Children's Home run by Ivory Cottage Limited in Warwickshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 1 Registered provider: Ivory Cottage Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager’s post is currently vacant.

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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 inadequate

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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: requires improvement to be good

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

An assurance visit on 22 March 2023 identified serious concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at the home. As a result, Ofsted issued a compliance notice under regulation 12, the protection of children standard. Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/06/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 01/02/2022 Interim Sustained effectiveness 09/06/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 3

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improvement to be good

Shortfalls in how children are helped and protected and the effectiveness of leaders and managers have had a negative effect on the overall experiences of the children living in the home.

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improvement to be good

The support given by staff to help children with their learning varies significantly. One child receives good support. She has excellent school attendance and is making good progress with her learning. However, not enough is done to support children who are not in education. For example, staff do not always support children to engage in constructive activities when they are not at school. Consequently, children who are not in education spend a large amount of the school day in their bedrooms.

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improvement to be good

Overall, the home is warm and welcoming. However, despite regular bedroom checks, in one child’s bedroom, staff had not noticed explicit words written on the door, a smoke detector covered by a sock and a lighter. Another child’s bedroom was observed to be untidy, with food wrappers and laundry scattered across the floor. This does not create a safe and nurturing environment for children.

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improvement to be good

Children have good relationships with each other. The inspector observed the children engaging with each other with warmth and humour. These positive relationships mean that children live together happily.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to attend health appointments. This ensures that children receive the help and support that they need to address their health and well-being needs.

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improvement to be good

Children engage in fun activities. These include holidays to the seaside and trips to the cinema, the trampoline park and laser tag. The children enjoy their leisure time. During the inspection, one child was keen to show the inspector photos of the activities that she had done.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand the importance of family to children, and they do all that they can to support children to spend quality time with family members. The registered manager ensures that family time is planned and well supported for children living far away from their home.

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improvement to be good

During the inspection, positive relationships were observed between the children and the staff. The children told the inspector that they feel safe and that they can identify an adult who they can talk to if they have concerns. One child said that they could speak to every member of staff if they had any worries. Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 4 Since the last inspection, there has been a high number of missing-from-home incidents. When children have been missing from the home, staff have not always followed children’s agreed missing-from-care protocols. For example, one child was missing from the home for two days. Despite being made aware of the child’s location, staff did not act on this information. This was a missed opportunity to swiftly locate the child and return them to the home. Subsequently, the child went missing for a further period of time.

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improvement to be good

For two children, there has been an increase in self-harming behaviours. Overall, staff work with the children in a sensitive manner in relation to these behaviours. However, there have been two separate occasions where staff have called the police to de-escalate the situation. This resulted in one child being arrested on both occasions.

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improvement to be good

Children take part in direct work with staff to help develop their understanding of risk. However, this work does not always address the children’s specific vulnerabilities, for example self-harm, healthy relationships and substance misuse. This leaves children without important information to raise their awareness of how to keep safe.

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improvement to be good

Managers do not consistently report serious incidents to Ofsted as required by regulation. This reduces the regulator’s oversight of the action staff take to keep children safe.

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improvement to be good

The manager deals with concerns raised about staff appropriately. Managers work closely with safeguarding agencies to understand any concerns and risks.

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improvement to be good

Staff are safely recruited in keeping with the home’s safer recruitment processes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager’s post has been vacant since March 2023. A manager was appointed, but they did not progress their registration with Ofsted. A new manager has now been appointed, and they have applied to register.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager’s monitoring of the operation of the home, including the quality of children’s care, is ineffective. For example, oversight of significant events is poor. The manager’s review of children’s records has failed to identify and address shortfalls in staff practice relating to safeguarding and behaviour management.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Not all staff receive supervision. Some staff told the inspector that supervision is infrequent. One member of staff did not know who supervises them. Records show that some staff have not had supervision for over three months. This means that staff are not being provided with the opportunity to reflect on and develop their practice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 5 The manager has not ensured that newly appointed and agency staff have received a thorough induction before working with the children. This means that children are cared for by staff who do not fully understand their needs or risk-taking behaviours and how best to support them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Feedback from external professionals is mixed. One child’s social worker informed the inspector that the staff have an excellent approach to meeting their child’s needs and keeping her safe. Another social worker told the inspector that the home’s risk assessment for their child is ineffective and does not follow the safety plans put in place by the local authority.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The independent person’s external monitoring of the home does not always provide a detailed and thorough assessment of the quality of care provided. The absence of feedback from professionals hinders the regulator, as well as the manager, in monitoring the service. Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 6

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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 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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(ii)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the manager ensuring that the home is free from hazards. In addition, direct work undertaken by staff with children should be focused on the child’s needs and risks to support children to keep themselves safe. 7 September 2023

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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 the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child; 7 September 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 7 understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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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)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the manager ensuring that they have monitoring and review systems in place that identify and address shortfalls effectively.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)(e)) 7 September 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires; and

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Requirement Due date

to inspect the premises of the home and such of the home’s records (except for a child’s case records, unless the child and the child’s placing authority consent) as the independent person requires.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person’s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

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Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and

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Requirement Due date

the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being. 7 September 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 8 (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(b) (4)(a)(b))

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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: 2586067 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Skytax, 37th Floor, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AA

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Inspector

Lydia Isaac, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2586067 10 regulates and inspects 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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