Children's Home run by Progress Children’s Services Ltd in Walsall

Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 1 SC038526 Registered provider: Progress Children’s Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private organisation. The home provides care for up to nine children who may have learning disabilities, physical disabilities and/or sensory impairments.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a permanent registered manager, who is suitably experienced and qualified.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/06/2022 Full Good 01/03/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 03/07/2019 Full Good 05/02/2019 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 3

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improvement to be good

There are some shortfalls in the care provided to children. These are largely caused by drift in completing actions that staff and managers know are required. However, these shortfalls have had a limited impact on children’s experience and they are making progress at the home.

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improvement to be good

The home is made up of two bungalows situated on the same site, with an adjoining garden. At the time of the inspection, there were six children living in the home.

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improvement to be good

The home environment, including the garden, lacks care and attention and needs vast improvement. This is a known area of development, but there has been a lack of urgency to address it. In the meantime, children are living in a home that looks tired and, in places, dirty. Walls in some areas of the home are marked and damaged, and children’s bathrooms have stained floors and look dirty. The garden is in the process of being renovated, but contains rubbish and offcuts of wood; paths need weeding and the garden needs tidying generally.

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improvement to be good

Care planning for children is inconsistent and, at times, weak. Children at the home have very complex needs. However, information in children’s plans does not always set out clearly what care they need, for example children’s moving and handling requirements. Some plans have not been reviewed and updated, so do not reflect children’s current needs. As a result, staff were not always aware of how to meet children’s complex needs.

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improvement to be good

In some instances, there is slow progress in enabling those children who are not able to communicate verbally to use alternative methods of communication. Children’s communication preferences are not clearly documented in their plans. This could hinder staff’s ability to be consistent in their approach. This is a known issue and there are plans in place to introduce communication passports.

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improvement to be good

Staff provide respectful care that maintains children’s dignity. Staff are very reassuring when children need comfort and are very attentive to the children. As a result, children delight in staff’s company and thrive on the interaction from staff. One child told the inspector that the best thing at the home is the staff.

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improvement to be good

Staff are creative around ways to help children to learn and develop. Children enjoy sensory-based activities in the home. One child, who is waiting to start a new school, enjoys learning-based activities with staff during the school day. This widens her experiences and helps prepare her for starting school.

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improvement to be good

Overall, children are making progress at the home. For example, one child is developing independence with walking. Another child has seen her health improve, enabling her to stay out of hospital. Staff celebrate children’s progress with them. Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 4

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improvement to be good

All children have risk assessments. However, these are not always written in a clear way, to enable staff to understand the strategies needed to keep children safe, for example if or when a child needs to wear a helmet. This can result in inconsistent care, and is of particular concern for those who are new to the home or only working there on a temporary basis.

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improvement to be good

Not all staff have undertaken the training required to meet children’s needs. Staff are not equipped with the knowledge and skills to manage children’s behaviours. This has meant staff do not use consistent approaches to support children with their behaviours. As a result, children do not always know what is expected of them.

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improvement to be good

There is a lack of care and attention by staff to identify and act on health and safety hazards. During the tour of the home, kitchen cupboards that were assessed as needing to be locked, were found to be unlocked. This included a drawer containing at least one sharp knife. This is of concern given the vulnerability of the children. In addition, fire drills are not taking place at the set frequency and an external fire door needs fixing. As a result, children are exposed to unnecessary risk.

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improvement to be good

Staff follow the routines that are in place for medication storage, administration and record-keeping. Managers have a good relationship with the local GP surgery and pharmacy. This helps to ensure that children can access their medication and health supplies. There are audits in place to monitor the safety and effectiveness of medication systems and actions are taken to address any issues.

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improvement to be good

Staff do receive training for very specialist care tasks, such as to meet children’s nutrition and medical needs. Staff do not provide this care to children until they have received training and been assessed as competent.

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improvement to be good

Staff are proactive in seeking medical attention for children in the event of ill health or changes in need. Children attend a multitude of health appointments. This ensures that children’s health is monitored and they receive healthcare, as necessary.

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good

The home does not currently have sufficient staff to cover for sickness and annual leave and, as such, agency staff are required to work in the home. Efforts to recruit more staff, including team leaders, have not yet been successful and are ongoing.

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good

Staff are not receiving supervisions as frequently as required. This is because managers struggle to find the time to do this. This is a known issue and there are plans to change how supervisions are delivered to include group supervisions. The Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 5 effectiveness of this is not yet tested. Similarly, agency staff do not routinely receive supervisions, and there is no system in place to track when agency staff need to have supervision or have had it.

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good

Managers identify training needs well, through a training needs analysis. However, training is not provided promptly. For example, a training need around communication was identified last year, but to date only one staff member has attended this. This does not equip staff with the skills that are known to be needed to help children make further progress.

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good

Managers at the home know children well and are aspirational for their outcomes. Managers and staff advocate well for children. For example, a member of staff researched a health condition and advocated for a change of medication. This was approved by the medics and, as a result, the child’s asthma symptoms have improved.

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good

Managers have a good oversight at the home, using weekly and monthly monitoring to identify themes and issues. Managers do address concerns that arise around staff practice. There is an in-depth induction programme for new starters at the home. This also includes a structured probation plan, whereby staff have regular reviews of their performance. This prepares staff well for starting their roles.

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good

Managers do know the home’s strengths and areas for development. Overall, managers know what needs to be done to improve children’s experiences and progress at the home. However, the delays for some actions, as outlined in this report, are resulting in a reduction in the quality of the care children receive at the home. Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii)))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the home being appropriately decorated, maintained and clean. 31 August 2023

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe; 31 August 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 7 have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to care planning and risk assessments clearly setting out the current measures in place to meet children’s complex needs and to manage their risks. This includes arrangements to facilitate children’s communication methods.

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff receiving training in a timely way to ensure that they are equipped with the necessary skills. In addition, that there are enough suitably trained staff employed to work in the home. 31 August 2023

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Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must— 31 August 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 8 take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment in the children’s home;

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Requirement Due date

provide adequate means of escape from the home in the event of fire;

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Requirement Due date

make arrangements for persons working at the home to receive suitable training in fire prevention; and

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Requirement Due date

ensure, by means of fire drills and practices at suitable intervals, that persons working at the home and, so far as reasonably practicable, children are aware of the procedure to be followed in case of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to prompt repair of fire exits and the frequency of fire drills being suitable.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 31 August 2023

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the social care common inspection framework. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Progress Children’s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Progress House, 127 Millfields Road, Wolverhampton, Staffordshire WV4 6JG

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Inspectors

Alison Snell, Social Care Inspector Paul Robinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC038526 10 to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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