Children's Home in Kirklees

Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 1 Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a private provider. It offers care for up to three children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2023.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager was not available to lead this inspection. The responsible individual and director led this inspection in his place.

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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 the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 2

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inadequate

Children have not made progress. They have been moved into the home quickly and without sufficient consideration of whether the leaders and staff can meet their needs. This failure means that children move into and out of the home quickly, severing relationships with those who they have formed friendships with. One child lived in the home for only two weeks before a decision was made that their needs could not be met.

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inadequate

Children are not consistently supported by the staff because individualised behaviour management strategies are not in place. One child had their bedroom door lock removed. This led to another child having their lock removed as well. Consequently, this child became extremely upset. As the staff could not manage this related incident, the child was physically restrained, and the police were called. Despite this distressing incident, leaders and managers failed to ensure that the child was supported appropriately after this to help them to understand what had happened.

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inadequate

Educational outcomes for some children are poor. One child has not attended school since living in this home. The staff have made attempts to support this child to engage in different activities. However, the child’s progress has been delayed as their learning has been disrupted when a second child moved in. This child’s education attendance has also reduced since moving into the home.

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inadequate

Respect is not always communicated to the children. At times, verbal and written language about the children is stigmatising, unhelpful and not child-friendly. Some language is child blaming and does not benefit the children. In one child’s documents, it states that they must move out of the home due to their behaviour. The records do not acknowledge that the managers and staff do not have the skills to meet the child’s needs. This is unhelpful and inaccurate should children request to read their documents in later life.

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inadequate

Children are encouraged to take part in different activities. Their memories are captured in colour photos for them to look back on. Children enjoy going to the park, visiting farms, arts and crafts, cooking and baking. One child attended the Army Cadets and was very proud of their new uniform.

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

Staff do not understand the children’s behaviour. Therefore, staff’s actions have escalated the children’s anxieties, which has resulted in the children going into crisis. As the leaders and managers cannot manage the children’s subsequent behaviour, physical intervention, which may have been avoided, has been used. This practice distresses the children. This poor practice has not been recognised by the leaders and managers. Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 3 Children’s risks are not clearly identified or mitigated against. Children’s risk assessments are vague and generic. They do not include all the children’s known risks and the strategies that the staff must use. Staff are also ill-equipped to support children who are known to be at risk of using ligatures. There are no ligature cutters in the home, and the staff are not provided with the relevant training. This has the potential to place children at risk of harm.

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

Leaders and staff have missed opportunities to help the children to understand how to keep themselves as safe as possible. When risks become evident or increase, this is not always communicated with the children. While there is evidence of individual conversations with some children, these are not clearly focused on the most pertinent matters for each child.

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

Conversations with the children after incidents are poor, and they do not help them to understand what has happened. This does not help the children to grow and learn from their actions. It also does not help the children to repair any harm that may have been caused. Furthermore, children are not supported to understand how things may be done differently next time.

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

The staff’s supervision arrangements for the children are poor. Despite one child being supported by two members of staff, they were able to access another child’s bedroom during the night without the staff’s knowledge. The manager identified this shortfall and has put plans in place to mitigate further incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There are significant shortfalls in the leadership and management arrangements in the home. This has resulted in the children’s experiences and progress being poor. The responsible individual and the director are open, honest and acknowledge the organisation’s shortfalls. Nevertheless, these shortfalls have not been identified in time to help the children who have lived in this home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers have failed to provide the staff with the necessary skills and training to understand how to de-escalate confrontations. Children have been moved into the home before all staff received de-escalation and physical intervention training. This has resulted in the children not receiving the correct support when they are in crisis. Children have been physically held at times when this measure may have been avoided. This poor practice creates a punitive culture that does not help children to make progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The leadership and management oversight of the children’s documents is ineffective. Failure to identify shortfalls in key documents, such as incident reports, means that children do not have an opportunity to discuss their worries and fears following significant events. This hinders the children’s ability to reflect and discuss what has happened so that they can learn and adapt their responses to help to reduce the risk of future incidents. This shortfall has been identified by the responsible Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 4 individual, and a new online monitoring system has been purchased. However, the effectiveness of this cannot be tested as this is not yet in use.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The independent visitor carries out monthly visits to the home and produces reports on the running of the home. These reports provide a good oversight of what is happening. Children, professionals and the staff are consulted regularly and their views are captured in these reports. The independent visitor provides constructive advice and makes appropriate recommendations. The leaders and managers recognise the importance of these visits.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The leaders and managers are accepting of the shortfalls identified during this inspection and have put an action plan in place. Before this inspection, the responsible individual made the decision not to accept any new children into the home until they are confident that the managers and staff have the appropriate skills to care for the children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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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 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 has sufficient staff to provide care for 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)(a)(c)(d)(f)(h)) 17 March 2024

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential. 31 March 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 6 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand and manage the impact of any experience of abuse or neglect. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(iv)(v))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children are supported in a way that meets their individual needs and helps them to understand significant incidents in their lives.

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Requirement Due date

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

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

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Requirement Due date

strive to gain each child’s respect and trust;

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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

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children. (Regulation 11 (1)(a) (2)(a)(viii)(ix)(xi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff have the skills to understand how to communicate with the children effectively so that their anxieties do not increase and result in them going into crisis.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must also ensure that verbal and written communication about the children is helpful, child- friendly and non-stigmatising. 31 March 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 7 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

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

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(iii)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all staff have the necessary de-escalation, diversion and diffusion skills to ensure that physical intervention is only used as the last resort. 31 March 2024

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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

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Requirement Due date

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. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)) 31 March 2024

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Requirement Due date

*This requirement is subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 8

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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: 2730592 9

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Inspectors

Jo Birtwhistle, Social Care Inspector Ed McCallum, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2730592 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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