Children's home run by Beacon Childcare Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 1 Registered provider: Beacon Childcare Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private organisation and is registered to provide care for up to three children who have suffered early childhood trauma and have associated emotional and behavioural needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted in November 2019. The registered manager is experienced and holds the level 5 diploma in leadership and management.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager also registered to manage a second home in January 2023 to provide care for one child.

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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: 2546172 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/05/2022 Full Good 26/04/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 3

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improvement to be good

At the time of the inspection, three children were living in the home. Since the previous inspection, three children have moved into the home and three children have moved out. One child’s move was positive and planned, moving to live in another home operated by the company. However, two children moved out of the home sooner than anticipated. Staff were unable to keep them safe because of multiple incidents of going missing. This resulted in the home serving notice on one child’s placements, which ended abruptly.

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improvement to be good

The home is very spacious and welcoming, and clean and tidy in most areas. However, other aspects of the home do not help create a nurturing environment. For example, one child’s bedroom ceiling has water damage, window restrictors are on the lounge windows and there is rubbish behind a chest of drawers. One child told the inspector: ‘I would like the house to be more personalised and have things like the broken trampoline repaired… been like that for two weeks now.’

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improvement to be good

Staff support for children with their education varies significantly. One child attended school and made some good progress with their learning. However, when there are challenges in children attending education and achieving, staff are not providing sufficient care and support. Staff do not always engage these children effectively each day in structured learning and educational activities. Children are left to their own devices and spend prolonged periods in their bedrooms. Two children told the inspector: ‘Basically, I chill in my bedroom playing Xbox’ and… ‘I spend most of my time in my bedroom and come out my room to get food then go back to my bedroom.’

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improvement to be good

Staff do not regularly review and update children’s records to capture their history. For example, placement plans and documents detailing children’s progress do not contain relevant information. This means that staff are not able to consistently measure the child’s achievements or what further support they may need. However, the manager has recognised this shortfall and plans to act.

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improvement to be good

Children do not always have free movement within the home. Staff implement restrictions in the home, such as locking the kitchen at night after children’s bedtime. Managers were not aware of this practice. The manager acknowledges this is unacceptable practice and plans to take action to address it.

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improvement to be good

Children enjoy various days out and activities such as going to the cinema, trampoline parks, cadets and football. Staff plan days out and special events for them. However, despite them taking photos, these are not displayed to capture children’s experiences and time in the home. This is a missed opportunity to ensure that children have well-presented records of their memories to take with them when they leave. Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 4 Overall, children’s health needs are met to a good standard. Staff ensure that children’s health needs are monitored, and individual health assessments are in place. Recommendations from health plans are acted on. Children attend appointments with the dentist, general practitioner, optician and specialist services.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to maintain important relationships with family members, relatives and carers. They communicate with social workers to review and update the family time arrangements for children. Also, staff show a good understanding of the importance of children spending meaningful time with their families and relatives. As a result, children benefit from a sense of feeling connected to their families.

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improvement to be good

Some staff have healthy and positive relationships with children. These members of staff have a good grasp of the children’s behaviours and vulnerabilities and are responsive to their needs. They show compassion and kindness, which helps children to begin to develop trusting relationships. One child told the inspector: ‘[staff member] and [staff member] have a lot in common with our music. When they do key work with me, it’s because they want to, not because they have to do paperwork... they connect with me and make me feel relaxed.’

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff do not always ensure that children have sufficient support to help them to understand potential risk, personal safety and how to keep safe. Despite the manager identifying the need for some targeted support for children, staff did not facilitate these important discussions with children to help them to progress. As a result, children do not receive good enough care to help them stay safe and progress.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff are not proactive in minimising potential risk of harm online. For example, while staff were proactive in ensure that one child was supported understand the risk of online safety, this was not extended to all children. Furthermore, staff do not undertake online checks to promote the safety of children.

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improvement to be good

When children go missing from the home, on most occasions staff respond quickly and follow missing-from-care protocols to reduce the risk of harm in the community. However, on some occasions, staff did not follow the missing-from-care protocol and failed to continue searches to establish the child’s whereabouts.

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improvement to be good

There is a culture where managers and staff use monitoring and surveillance of some children without good reason. For example, two children’s bedroom doors are fitted with door alarms to alert staff when children leave their bedrooms, when there were no known safeguarding concerns of risk to the children’s welfare. This places unnecessary restrictions on children’s ability to move freely in their home and infringes on their privacy. Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 5 Overall, incidents of restraint are managed well. Staff demonstrate skill in supporting children with their behaviours and know how to de-escalate behaviour which may become challenging. The use of physical restraint is rare and proportionate to the potential risk or serious concern to children or staff.

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improvement to be good

Some staff have a good understanding and knowledge of children’s associated risks, such as self-harm. They use this information to support one child effectively. For example, staff are responsive and take appropriate action. Furthermore, they have important discussions with the child about their feelings. Consequently, this has helped to reduced further incidents.

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good

Leadership and management of the home has not been stable since the registered manager began to manage two homes in January 2023. The registered manager also had a period of absence and an interim manager was appointed. These management arrangements have not been sufficient or effective. This instability has impacted on some of the children’s experiences and progress.

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good

When children express their concerns, the managers respond and take complaints seriously. Managers carry out investigations into their complaints. However, one child did not receive an explanation of the outcome of their complaint.

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good

Not all staff receive the required training to keep their skills up to date and meet the needs of children. For example, some staff have not received specific training to help and support children with fire safety, knife crime, gang affiliation, substance misuse, and autism spectrum disorder awareness training. This means that children do not have the consistent support they need to promote their overall development.

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good

Some staff told the inspectors that they feel supported by the registered manager and have a positive relationship with her. However, the quality of supervision that staff receive is variable. For example, new staff do not receive regular supervision in line with the company’s policy. Furthermore, the registered manager and senior managers do not use supervision effectively to monitor staff’s progress and professional development. This does not promote staff development and improve practice in the home.

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good

The manager’s oversight and monitoring of the home is weak. Monitoring systems fail to identify shortfalls in the care of children and staff’s response to missing-from- care incidents and keeping children safe online. They also fail to identify patterns and trends in poor practice. For example, some foods are kept and stored in the staff office, which means children do not have access to certain foods. This has resulted in an inconsistent quality of care of children and a culture of unacceptable practice goes undetected.

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good

Overall, rewards and consequences are used to encourage children to behave positively. However, some consequences are punitive rather than restorative in Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 6 nature. The registered manager’s and senior management’s monitoring of this practice is not always effective. This does not help children to recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them and the wider community. Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 7

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) 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 education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly refers to the registered manager and staff ensuring that children are supported to overcome barriers to their learning. 21 July 2023

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour. 21 July 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 8 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop the understanding and skills to recognise or withdraw from a damaging, exploitative or harmful relationship;

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Requirement Due date

are provided with supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children to do the same. (Regulation 11 (1)(b) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(vii)(x))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly refers to the managers and staff ensuring that they support children engaged in targeted work about child exploitation.

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Requirement Due date

Also, it relates to staff supporting and empowering children to keep safe online.

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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; (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly refers to the registered manager and staff ensuring that they protect children from harm. They must understand their roles and responsibilities to protect children, 21 July 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 9 and take action to keep children safe online.

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Requirement Due date

It also refers to staff ensuring that they understand potential risks, minimise risks and follow children’s risk assessments when they go missing from care.

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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

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(g)(ii)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly refers to the manager ensuring that staff have a consistent approach to children’s care. It also relates to the manager ensuring that she and all staff receive essential training. In addition, the responsible individual must have effective oversight skills to carry out their role.

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Requirement Due date

It also relates to the manager ensuring that she uses internal monitoring systems more effectively. 21 July 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 10 It also relates to the manager ensuring that feedback is provided to children following complaints.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if—

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child concerned, or other children;

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Requirement Due date

the child’s placing authority consents in writing to the monitoring or surveillance;

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Requirement Due date

so far as reasonably practicable in the light of the child’s age and understanding, the child is informed in advance of the intention to do the monitoring or surveillance; and

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child’s need for privacy. (Regulation 24 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that monitoring or surveillance of children is for the purpose of safeguarding. 21 July 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that new staff receive regular and reflective supervision sessions to help them understand their roles and responsibilities. 21 July 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 11 The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that staff keep children’s records and care plans up to date and that they capture and track children’s progress. 21 July 2023

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff provide a nurturing environment that is welcoming and supportive for children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7)  The registered person should ensure that staff keep, and encourage children to keep, appropriate memorabilia of their time spent living at the home and help them record significant life events. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)  The registered person should ensure that children are able to access all shared areas of their home unless there are specific reasons why this would not meet a child’s needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)

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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: 2546172 12

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Beacon Childcare Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 28 Phoenix Business Park, Avenue Close, Birmingham B7 4NU

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Inspector

Patrick McIntosh, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2546172 13 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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