Children's home run by Semi-independent House Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2510315 1 Registered provider: Semi-independent House Limited 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 three children who have experienced neglect and/or abuse and have social or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 2020.

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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

Date of last inspection: 29 November 2022

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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: 2510315 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/11/2022 Full Good 14/09/2021 Full Good 13/01/2020 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2510315 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Three children were living at the home at the time of this inspection. One child has been settled at the home for over three years. Two of the children have experienced lots of change and different moves before this home. The support provided by staff has been consistent and allowed these children to settle in and make good progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive good care from staff who know them well. One child said:

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

‘To live here is very, very, very nice. I feel safe, I have my own room, I feel comfortable. They are always around to support you, even if I don’t want to talk to them, they still try and find a way to open me up. Staff always make sure I am happy even if I am sad one day.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children regularly spend positive time with staff at the home and in the community. Children go to the cinema, trampoline parks and play games with staff at the home. One child said, ‘They always make me laugh. We get on like a lot.’ Staff support children’s different interests and hobbies. Children have enjoyable and enriching experiences, which builds their self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All three children attend school or college. Staff have supported two children to move schools so that they can attend a local school. This has been in line with children’s wishes to make friends in the local community. Despite these school changes, staff do not have access to children’s current education plans, which does not help staff to know they are meeting children’s educational needs. However, when children struggle with their emotional well-being, staff provide sensitive approaches to encourage children to go to school. This helps children to value their education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to live healthy and balanced lifestyles. Children eat healthy meals and spend active time in the community. Children do not currently have diagnosed health needs; however, two children may have undiagnosed health and well-being needs. The manager has not proactively advocated with other professionals for these needs to be assessed in a timely way. This does not help staff to understand children’s unmet needs. In addition, one child’s identity needs are not clearly recorded in their care plans.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The previous recommendation about the home environment has been met, as the home has been decorated to make it more welcoming. However, minor damage to the home has not been repaired in a timely way. All children’s bedrooms have been personalised to their tastes, which gives them a sense of belonging. One child has two pet guinea pigs, which gives them a sense of responsibility. Inspection report for children’s home: 2510315 4

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

Children said they feel safe and happy living at the home and that staff have helped them to make their lives better. Children are learning new skills and have new experiences.

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

Staff have regular and meaningful conversations with children. These conversations help the children to express their wishes and feelings. Staff speak to children about their behaviours following incidents. This helps children to learn about themselves and their feelings and respond in different ways.

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

Staff rarely use consequences to support children to learn about their behaviour. When consequences are used, they are proportionate. These include encouraging children to repair items or make amends with staff or their peers. As a result, one child no longer damages items in their bedroom when they are frustrated. This child has been helped to communicate their feelings and values their personal belongings and space as a result.

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

Staff have good relationships with the children. They support children to feel calm and to respond in ways that will not hurt themselves or others. Since the last inspection, staff have not used physical intervention. Staff are trained in physical intervention techniques but use alternative approaches to help children manage difficult feelings.

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

Children very rarely go missing from the home. This is due to the good care they receive from staff. When one child went missing from home, staff responded quickly, informed relevant professionals and made efforts to search for the child in the local area.

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

Leaders and managers investigate concerns about staff and notify Ofsted and the local authority designated officer in a timely manner. However, leaders and managers have not clearly recorded the outcomes of their investigations. The manager cannot consider learning from these events when outcomes are not reviewed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a qualified and established registered manager. He is supported by two deputy managers. One of the deputy managers has applied to Ofsted to register as the manager of the home. The registered manager intends to undertake a new leadership role in the organisation. Leaders and managers are planning a transition so that the staff and children do not lose the relationships with a manager they have known for several years.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has recruited effectively to vacant staff positions. A consistent staff team provides continuity of care to children and allows them to build relationships with staff who know them well. Inspection report for children’s home: 2510315 5 New staff said that they feel well supported by the manager and other staff at the home. Staff said that they have received detailed induction training and are supported in their day-to-day roles when learning about the children and the procedures. Staff understand safeguarding and whistle-blowing procedures. Overall, they receive training which gives them the skills to meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision sessions. The manager talks to staff about children’s needs, any concerns or safeguarding issues and ensures that training is up to date. Staff receive a variety of training courses provided by the organisation that are relevant to meeting children’s needs. In addition, they receive support from an external therapeutic professional to discuss and consider children’s support and development needs. This helps staff to respond in kind and caring ways when faced with children’s behaviour that challenges them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from education professionals, social workers and family members is positive. A social worker said, ‘Communication is always good, and we share decision-making.’ A family member said, ‘I am really happy with the care, and they are always there for my child.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Generally, management oversight of children’s progress and their care plans is good. However, one child’s care plans have not been updated by staff since the child moved into the home in October 2023. In addition, some of the education plans for children are missing. Combined, this does not help the manager or staff to understand the changing needs of children or how they are meeting their developmental and educational needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Some of the staff have not achieved a relevant level 3 or equivalent qualification within the required time frame. One member of staff, who no longer works at the home, worked for over 18 months past the relevant date to achieve this qualification. A new member of staff, who joined the service in January 2024, has not yet achieved their level 3 qualification since working with children in other residential homes. The manager has since ensured that this member of staff is enrolled on a course to continue their qualification.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has not submitted a review of the quality of care or an updated statement of purpose in a timely manner. Inspection report for children’s home: 2510315 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 registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016. (Regulation 32 (1) (3)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b)) 1 July 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are kept up to date; and 1 April 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2510315 7 are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review report”).

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3) (4)(a)) 1 March 2024

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b)) 1 March 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2510315 8

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when serious events occur, the home’s record of the event includes a description of the action taken and the outcome of any resulting investigation. In particular, the registered person should ensure that there is a summary of the outcome of any investigations. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.14)  The registered person should ensure that they act as an effective advocate, as a good parent would do, for or on behalf of a child who may be experiencing difficulties with education or training matters. This includes, but is not limited to, attainment, admissions, attendance and behaviour. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.12)  The registered person should ensure that children’s relevant plans are personalised to their individual care needs. The registered person should provide

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Recommendations

care which meets each child’s needs and promotes their welfare, considering the child’s gender, religion, ethnicity, cultural and linguistic background, sexual identity, mental health, any disability, their assessed needs, previous experiences and any relevant plans. In particular, ensure that plans represent children’s individual identity needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.2)  The registered person should ensure that they promote the best interests of the child, proactively advocating for the child to ensure that others play their role and deliver the high-quality support that is needed. In particular, the registered person should ensure that relevant health assessments are requested in a timely manner. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 11, paragraph 2.4)  The registered person should ensure that the home is homely and well

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Recommendations

maintained throughout. In particular, repairs to the home should be made promptly. (‘Guide to the 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: 2510315 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Semi-independent House Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 51 Ploverly, Peterborough PE4 6HZ

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Inspector

Rebecca Hannell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2510315 10 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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