Children's home run by Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited in Birmingham

Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 1 Registered provider: Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a large national provider of children’s homes. It provides care for up to three children with learning disabilities, including autism.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted on 22 July 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, two children were living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/06/2022 Full Good 22/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 17/08/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 30/04/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a homely, comfortable, well-maintained home. Pictures of days out and celebrations are a reminder of happy times that children and staff have enjoyed together and act as a prompt for positive reflective discussions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work hard to meet the needs of the children in their care. Records are clear and well maintained, reflecting the views and wishes of children and how they wish to be cared for. Records are updated on a regular basis, ensuring that information is current and that staff are aware of any new concerns or changes to children’s routines.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the health of children by preparing regular healthy meals, as well as encouraging children to take part in regular exercise and a range of activities. Children enjoy activities and, when they are able to, plan their activities with staff. Pictorial planners help children to understand what the plans are for their day.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff take children’s education seriously and have high aspirations for them. The manager and staff are proactive when children do not have an educational placement and ensure that children enjoy a range of educational activities while waiting for their placements to begin.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to maintain relationships with their family, friends or previous carers. When there are safeguarding concerns, staff act swiftly and involve relevant professionals to promote the safety of children.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children’s physical and mental health are managed proactively by the manager and her staff team. The manager ensures that a multidisciplinary approach is taken to ensure there are no delays in responding to the safety and welfare of children.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Records are clear and accurate and provide guidance for staff to follow to ensure that the needs of children are met in a way that meets their wishes.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Physically holding children is used as a last resort. Records outline the necessary steps for staff to follow before using any hold. Staff refer to these procedures in their daily routines, with records demonstrating that these procedures are followed to ensure that children’s routines are maintained.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Although risk management plans are well written, clear and reflect some risks to children, they do not contain all known risks to children and are not always updated following incidents. This fails to ensure that staff are aware of how to safeguard children adequately. Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 4 There have been few safeguarding concerns for children and no allegations made against staff since the last inspection. When necessary, staff follow safeguarding procedures and involve relevant professionals to ensure the safety of children.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Generally, children’s medication is well managed and medication administration procedures are followed. However, there have been two medication errors since the last inspection. The manager took appropriate action to safeguard the children affected at the time, as well as addressing the issue with the staff concerned. She has used the opportunity to learn from the incidents and is using quality assurance systems to reduce the risk of further incidents and errors.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children know the tasks that they need to complete, many of which are incentivised, and are linked to individual goals. Children and staff discuss these goals and achievements throughout the day as part of natural conversations.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a suitably qualified and experienced manager. She is passionate about her role and aspires for children to achieve success in their lives. These beliefs and values are shared with staff, who work together to create a positive environment for children to live in.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff know the children they care for very well and show children genuine affection in their daily lives and routines.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Although procedures for the recruitment of staff are robust and promote the safety of children, the consistency of staff has been an issue at the home since the last inspection. The manager has tried to minimise the impact with the use of regular agency staff. However, the number of agency staff used at the home remains high, which has not allowed children to be cared for by a stable staff team and to develop their relationships with adults. However, there is no indication that this lack of consistency has had a negative effect on children’s progress so far. Recruitment of staff is continuing, and a number of staff have been recruited, with recruitment checks waiting to be completed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from a range of relevant mandatory training. As a result of staff leaving the home for a variety of reasons, few staff hold a relevant childcare qualification. However, all staff are currently enrolled on a course to achieve an appropriate qualification. The manager is monitoring their progress to ensure that this is achieved as quickly as possible. Staff receive regular planned supervision and annual appraisals, which help them to develop and learn in their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has developed a range of internal quality assurance systems alongside company systems to monitor the standard of care and record-keeping at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A social worker referred to staff going ‘above and beyond’ for children, saying that the home is ‘phenomenal’ and has done so well for their child. Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 5

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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 registered person must ensure that the employment of any person on a temporary basis at the children’s home does not prevent children from receiving such continuity of care as is reasonable to meet their needs. (Regulation 31 (1)) 30 September

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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)) 30 September

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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: 1249031 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Second Floor, Queensway, Halesowen, Worcestershire B63 4AH

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Inspector

Julia Toller, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 7 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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