Children's home run by Lincolnshire County Council

Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 1 Registered provider: Lincolnshire County Council 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 local authority. The home provides a short-break service for children who have disabilities. The home currently provides care for 53 children.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager is registered with Ofsted and is suitably qualified and experienced.

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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

Date of last inspection: 24 January 2023

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/01/2023 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 3

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improvement to be good

This home requires improvement because safeguarding arrangements need strengthening in some areas. Children have been at increased risk due to a lack of supervision at night by staff. The oversight of leaders and managers is not yet sufficiently strong to detect concerns such as risk assessments not being updated and records not being completed to the required standard.

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improvement to be good

This short-break service provides care for 53 children. Five children were staying overnight at the time of the inspection. The home is furnished to a very high standard, giving children a sense of warmth and belonging.

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improvement to be good

The home provides a range of facilities for children to enjoy. This includes a soft- play area, sensory room, playroom and a large outdoor sandpit. This encourages children to have fun, enjoy their stays and create wonderful memories.

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improvement to be good

Children’s participation in the running of the service is captured in the monthly celebration report. The report contains photos of children enjoying themselves, and these are displayed around the home. These opportunities help to develop children’s confidence and social skills. However, a member of staff was observed to be feeding a child when they can do this independently. This takes away from the child’s independence skills and autonomy in doing things for themselves.

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improvement to be good

Staff are experienced at supporting children to form trusting relationships with those caring for them and feel welcome when they come to the home for their stays. The careful planning of children’s stays supports them to make friendships with other children and promotes social inclusion.

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improvement to be good

Managers are working closely with an independent reviewing officer to create a widget-form questionnaire to support children to have a voice at their review meetings. Children have regular access to an independent advocate, and they are actively encouraged to meet with her. This is empowering children with communication difficulties to have their say and be listened to.

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improvement to be good

Children who are new to the home are welcomed in a planned and sensitive way. Provision is made for them to have their initial overnight stay when fewer children are staying. This provides an opportunity for staff to support children and address anxieties they may have. Children who leave the home, have positive endings; their time at the home is celebrated with a party where further memories are made.

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improvement to be good

When writing records, staff sometimes use language that could stigmatise children. This is particularly when recording children’s behaviours. Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 4

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improvement to be good

Staff have an understanding of children’s safety needs. However, individual risk assessments are poor. One child has a known risk of banging their head. Although this was identified as a risk in their crisis plan, the child did not have a risk assessment. As a result, staff are not aware of the appropriate actions to take in such incidents. There was one incident when the child was able to bang their head against hard surfaces several times before staff held the child for their own safety.

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improvement to be good

All children have missing-from-care protocols. However, these do not contain clear guidance for staff in the event of a child going missing from the home. This fails to reflect learning from previous incidents of this nature that occurred in the child’s family home. It also fails to protect children in potentially distressing situations, increasing their vulnerability.

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improvement to be good

Children are not always adequately supervised. There have been two occasions when children have been able to leave their bedrooms during the night undetected. On one occasion, a child was able to gain access to a laundry room and chemicals before staff found them. During a second incident, a child was able to leave their room and enter another child’s bedroom. The manager has not taken sufficient action to ensure that arrangements for the supervision of children at night are sufficiently secure.

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improvement to be good

There has been one allegation made by a child. Although the manager thoroughly investigated the matter, concerns were identified in the response from the staff member to the child. This fails to ensure the child is listened to and their concerns taken seriously.

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improvement to be good

Errors have been made in the medication administering procedures. The manager has been quick to investigate each occurrence when a mistake has taken place. Changes in practice have been implemented to avoid further errors in the future. All staff are trained in medication administration, and staff have undertaken further competency assessments. As a result, the likelihood of further errors is reduced.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The management of monitoring systems is not yet sufficiently robust to identify shortfalls. For example, the manager had not identified shortfalls in some records and assessments. The manager has not identified shortfalls in practice and has not thoroughly evaluated incident records and risk management strategies. For example, managers have approved risk management plans that lack the required information. This placed children at increased risk of harm.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff do not all have the required training in communication, Makaton and Picture Exchange Communication Systems. This lack of training prevents the voice of the child from being heard fully because not all staff understand children’s Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 5 communication methods. Additionally, staff are not trained in managing children’s eating disorders. Managers have failed to ensure that staff have the required training to meet children’s individual, complex needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff report that they feel supported by the management team. Staff benefit from regular supervision and have opportunities to discuss children’s progress at regular team meetings. Staff are eager to develop their own skills. For example, one staff member has developed a resource called ‘An introduction to key-working’, which is made available to all staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff carry out regular health and safety checks. All children have personal evacuation plans, and regular fire evacuations take place. However, the storage of oxygen cylinders that are no longer required poses a safety risk to all. The home does have a location risk assessment, although this does not contain any consultation with relevant external agencies. This is a missed opportunity for identifying potential risks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager has worked closely with children’s social workers and the local authority designated officer, following serious incidents, to ensure there is transparency. However, on two occasions, Ofsted has not been alerted. This impairs the regulator’s oversight in reviewing safeguarding incidents to be confident that agencies are taking the necessary action to ensure the safety of children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 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 health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being needs of the children are met. (Regulation 10 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring children receive oxygen therapy as stated in their plans. 16 January 2024

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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 harm to the child.

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk.

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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;

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Requirement Due date

that the homes 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)(iii)(v)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that staff understand their roles and responsibilities in regard 16 January 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 7 to completing and reviewing children’s individual behaviour management risk assessments. It also relates to the registered person ensuring that children’s missing-from-care protocols contain all the necessary information.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that safeguarding measures are in place to keep children safe through the night.

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Requirement Due date

It also relates to the registered person ensuring that staff take allegations reported by children seriously and manage them in accordance with the home’s safeguarding policies.

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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

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

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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)(c)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person using monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

Additionally, allegations made by children should be taken seriously and managed in accordance with the home’s safeguarding policies.

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Requirement Due date

It also relates to the manager ensuring that staff have the required training to meet the individual needs of the children 16 January 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 8 and that Regulation 40 notifications are submitted after serious incidents of safeguarding have occurred.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person should ensure that oxygen cylinders that are no longer required are removed from the building as this causes further risk.

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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.

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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 each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14(1)(a) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that staff follow children’s individual plans to promote their independence. 16 January 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when conducting a review of the premises, they consult and take into account the views of each relevant person. (‘Guide to Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, Page 64, paragraph 15.1)  The registered person should ensure that the home is nurturing and supportive. Language used by staff should be positive and child centred. (‘Guide to Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, Page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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: 2707638 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lincolnshire County Council, County Offices, Newland, Lincoln, LN1 1YL

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Inspectors

Linda Mason, Social Care Inspector Zoey Lee, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2707638 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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