Children's home run by Keir Lock Children’s Homes Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2602813 1 Registered provider: Keir Lock Children’s Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This is a privately run home for up to three children aged between eight and 18 years old. The provider offers children a home as a short- or long-term option.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The current registered manager oversees two homes. A new manager has been appointed for this home and is due to apply to register with Ofsted.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

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

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2602813 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/08/2022 Full Good 03/11/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2602813 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are settled and happy in their home. They are developing positive routines and are improving their life chances and their personal and social skills. Children have positive relationships with staff. They told the inspector that they are happy and settled in the home, and that they like the staff who work with them.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s time with their families is actively promoted and facilitated. Staff understand how important this is for children’s well-being and for their sense of identity.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide children with numerous opportunities to take part in activities and events tailored to their individual interests. Childhood experiences are valued, and the staff understand the importance of this. Children’s birthdays are celebrated, and when this is the same day as a major event, extra thought is given to ensure that the child still has the same experience as their peers.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers advocate for children’s education to ensure that it meets their needs. Staff understand children’s barriers to attending education and work hard with children to help them overcome them. Children are provided with opportunities to learn and develop when they are not in school. Staff use creative ways to help children with their literacy and numeracy skills. This helps to ensure that children continue to learn and build confidence in their abilities.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to develop their independence. They understand that for some children, their level of self-care and independence is lower than that of their peers. They support children, without judgement, to build on this at a pace suitable for them. As a result, children are well prepared for when they move on to independent living.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Direct work is undertaken daily with the children. A significant amount of learning is achieved through these discussions with staff. The children are helped to understand themselves and the world around them.

p.3

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

Staff know and understand the children well and can recognise signs that they are becoming upset. They are quick to respond to support the child, which helps to calm and reassure the child quickly.

p.3

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

Risk assessments, behaviour support plans and children’s plans are child focused and provide the right level of detail to guide staff practice. All staff are encouraged to read and update the children’s plans. This helps to ensure that all staff, including those new to the home, understand how to respond to children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2602813 4 Children’s risks of going missing from home have significantly reduced. The managers recognise that as children have more free time, the risks will increase, but they are working with the children so that they understand the dangers of the world around them and can try to reduce the risks.

p.3

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

Physical interventions take place as a last resort. Where necessary, individual strategies form part of each child’s risk assessment and care plan, including the technique to be used. This helps to ensure that any physical interventions are carried out appropriately and safely. The manager has recently implemented training to improve the quality of recording when these incidents occur. This helps to ensure that the manager can fully evaluate and determine the effectiveness of the intervention.

p.4

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

Not all staff understand what action to take when an allegation is made. This means that on at least one occasion, there was a delay in notifying a manager that a child had raised a concern. This has since been addressed with the team, and plans are in place to enhance staff knowledge through additional training.

p.4

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

Notifications of serious events are not submitted to Ofsted in a timely manner. This hinders the regulator’s ability to monitor the safeguarding arrangements in the home.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is in the process of handing over the management of the home to a new manager. The registered manager continues to have effective oversight while supporting the new manager to develop their own management style.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers know and understand the children well and are very child focused. They are eager to develop and improve the overall experiences of children. The managers actively seek feedback from children, staff and other professionals and use this to make improvements.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers recognise that when one child moved into the home, they did not have accurate information regarding the child’s needs. This was despite consultation with numerous professionals. The managers have since adapted the admission process to ensure that more specific questions are routinely asked when matching children to the home. As a result, children’s needs are now fully known and understood before they move in.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff access a wide variety of training specific to their role. Managers are quick to identify when further training is needed and source it from external trainers to help enhance staff skills.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Recruitment checks for staff are in place, and the provider seeks reassurance when staff have worked with children or vulnerable adults in the past. However, on one Inspection report for children’s home: 2602813 5 occasion, a significant reference has not been obtained for a member of staff. The lack of diligence in this area has the potential to weaken the safety of their recruitment procedures.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision sessions for established staff take place, and staff value the protected time that supports them. However, new staff members do not consistently have supervision in line with the home’s statement of purpose, and managers have missed opportunities to provide it. This prevents newer staff from having all the support they need while learning the role. Inspection report for children’s home: 2602813 6

p.5

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered persons 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 persons must comply within the given timescales.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v)(vi)(vii))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff know how to respond to allegations or concerns with staff practice. 31 March 2023

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

p.6

Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child —

p.6

Requirement Due date

is instigated; or 31 March 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2602813 7 concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

p.6

Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e))

p.7

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that references from the most recent employer are in place for all staff and that all staff receive supervision during probation in line with the home’s statement of purpose. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

p.7

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: 2602813 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Keir Lock Children’s Homes Ltd

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Thompsons Yard, New Street, Ossett, West Yorkshire WF5 8BH

p.8

Inspector

Debra Boldy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2602813 9 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.

p.8

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9