Children's Home run by Brooks & Brooks Recruitment Ltd in Rochdale

Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 1 Registered provider: Brooks & Brooks Recruitment Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is operated by a private organisation. The home provides care for one child who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There were no children were living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operating without a registered manager.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 2

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inadequate

Since the home was registered in April 2023, two children have lived there. Both children left after a short time as staff were unable to provide them with adequate and safe care. The time children have spent at the home has not always been positive and neither was the way they moved out. For example, one child’s placement came to an end in an unplanned way while they were in police custody. Managers and staff took no steps to help the child understand why it was unsafe for them to return to the home or to say goodbye to the staff caring for them.

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inadequate

Managers do not fully consider children’s needs prior to them moving in. This means that children have moved into the home despite staff not having the skills and knowledge to meet their individual needs. As a result, children have not received a consistent quality of care to keep them safe and meet their needs.

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inadequate

Staff do not feel prepared for the arrival of new children. Managers do not work with staff to help them understand the needs of new children or to ensure that they have clear plans on how to support children and keep them safe. This leaves staff feeling out of their depth and unable to provide children with effective and consistent care.

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inadequate

Despite children’s short time in the home, they were able to form relationships with some staff. However, the quality of care provided by those staff was variable. This was because staff were not always aware of what they were meant to be doing. A staff member said, ‘Changes are made about what we are expected to do and then changed again. We did not know where we were up to.’

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inadequate

During children’s time at the home, they did not engage in sufficient education. One child did not attend any formal education during their three-month placement and another child attended once. Staff attempted to provide children with informal educational activities, but they were rarely successful in encouraging children to take part.

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inadequate

Staff do not ensure that children are in a good routine. For example, on occasions, children remained awake through the night watching television. This behaviour made it difficult for children to achieve good sleeping patterns and have a positive daily routine.

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inadequate

Staff’s knowledge of children and their professional curiosity is poor. They did not have an awareness of children’s friendship groups or an insight into what children did when they were in the community unsupervised. Arrangements to check on children’s welfare when they were in the community were limited. This meant children were not kept safe. Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 3 One child engaged well with the company psychologist. This was viewed by managers and staff as positive. However, the child’s short time living in the home reduced the potential benefits of this work.

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

The protection of children is compromised by inadequate planning and assessment of each child’s individual needs. A staff member said, ‘We did not have all the information for one child, so we did not know all the risks.’ Staff were not adequately prepared or sufficiently skilled to manage children’s complex behaviours. This contributed to some significant incidents in the home, including one in which staff were threatened by a child who had possession of a knife.

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

A child who was known to be at risk of exploitation was able to access social media in the home for several weeks without the knowledge of staff. As a result, the child was placed in a situation where their vulnerability was increased.

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

Assessments that identify risks are completed. However, actions to manage known risks are not robust. Furthermore, staff do not consistently follow agreed plans. For example, on one occasion, staff heard a child speaking to someone in their bedroom using a mobile device they should not have had access to. Staff lacked the insight and drive to understand how this was possible. Staff did not identify that this was a safeguarding concern and failed to act in a timely manner.

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

Staff did not follow agreed plans to supervise children, due to confusion about the expectations for staff. This resulted in one child being reported as missing on four occasions, when they were absent for a total of nine days. On one occasion, the child was made subject to a police protection order because of the risks posed when they were missing. Senior managers, including the responsible individual, were not alerted to this significant incident in a timely way by the manager. Once notified, senior managers did not take action to investigate, understand and learn from this incident. This is a missed opportunity to develop strong safeguarding practices.

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

Behaviour management strategies are inadequate. Although house rules are displayed in the home, staff do not consistently promote them. Strategies and/or consequences for managing challenging and disruptive behaviour are not in place. Consequently, children are not provided with clear guidance and boundaries, resulting in frequent incidents in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager and deputy manager in post at the time of the home’s registration have both left the home. The home is currently operating without a registered manager or deputy manager. A new manager has been appointed, who is inexperienced and has not previously been a registered manager or deputy.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The responsible individual and safeguarding lead have not had consistent oversight of the home. This has resulted in poor practice being left unchecked. Furthermore, Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 4 they demonstrate variable understanding of the significance of the safeguarding matters which have affected children’s time living at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

A lack of effective leadership is having a significant impact on staff working in the home. Poor leadership has impacted on the stability and consistency of the staff team and the quality of care that children receive. Staff have not received supervision and guidance. One staff member said, ‘It’s hit and miss. We do not discuss what is happening, what is going wrong and think about why this may be happening.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff have not received face-to-face training on topics such as child exploitation or deprivation of liberty orders. Furthermore, staff’s understanding of these issues is not assessed to ensure they are able to manage any concerns that may arise. This means that leaders and managers have not assured themselves that the staff caring for children have the required knowledge to do so.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The home has sufficient staff. However, some staff have limited residential childcare experience. Leaders and managers have taken steps to increase the number of experienced staff working in the home, by moving staff from their other homes. In addition, further training is planned.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Team meetings take place and more recently have been a forum for staff to reflect on matters arising in the home. A staff member said, ‘We have held learning circles and looked at what we could do better. The staff team are keen to get it right.’ Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 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 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 each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(viii)(x)) 24 November Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 6 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; and positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

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

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children;

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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)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(ix)(x)) 24 November

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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

that staff— 12 November Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 7 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;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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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)(v)(vi)(b))

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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 promotes their welfare.

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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’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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Requirement Due date

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; 12 November Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 8 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)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed;

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Requirement Due date

that the child’s placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child’s relevant plans is requested, if—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person considers that the child is at risk of harm or has concerns that the care provided for the child is inadequate to meet the child’s needs. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(c)(e)(i)) 24 November

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 9

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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: 2727760 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Brooks & Brooks Recruitment Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hilton Jones Ltd, Hollinwood Business Centre, Albert Street, Oldham OL8 3QL

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Junior Brandford

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Inspector

Maria McGranaghan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2727760 11 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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