Children's Home run by Alicie Enterprises Limited in Ealing

Inspection report for children’s home: 2544885 1 Registered provider: Alicie Enterprises Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately run children’s home that is registered to provide care for up to four girls with social and emotional difficulties.

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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: 31 January 2023

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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: 2544885 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/01/2023 Full Good 30/11/2021 Full Good 11/12/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2544885 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of the inspection, four children were living at the home. All children are making good progress in their social, emotional and physical development.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The ethos of the home and the relationships staff build with children are warm and caring. All children in the home say that staff listen to them and care about them. Staff respond to children with calm sensitivity. Staff know the children well and mostly have the skills to meet children’s unique individual needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of education. Staff proactively encourage and support children into education, including supporting them in school. This has enabled children who have been missing education for significant periods of time to successfully re-engage with school. This has a positive impact on children’s well- being and on their future life chances.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of recreational activities. They are well supported to engage in hobbies, social activities and sports clubs. Staff also arrange a variety of day trips and holidays to broaden children’s experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand children’s health needs well and seek the support of specialist health services to ensure that children’s physical and emotional health are promoted. Medication records for children do not always clearly record the administration of medication in accordance with the home’s medication policy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff complete meaningful key-work sessions with children that are focused on their needs, previous experiences and worries. Recent key-work sessions have focused positively on how children’s past experiences, and importantly their understanding of these experiences, impact on their current circumstances. These sessions are sensitively recorded and reflect children’s lived experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand how important it is for children to keep in contact with people who are important to them. They set up and support these arrangements to the benefit of children.

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

Children’s risk assessments and behaviour support plans are updated after significant events or incidents. These reflect children’s changing circumstances and identify appropriate actions. This includes work to help keep children safe and to understand the reasons for any inappropriate behaviour.

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

Staff understand the risks to children well. Staff are proactive in recognising any potential or actual signs of children being exploited. Managers and staff work well Inspection report for children’s home: 2544885 4 with external partners, including children’s social workers, to develop plans to help keep children safe.

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

Room searches are carried out appropriately to help keep children safe. However, there is insufficient information in the children’s guide for children to understand the purpose of these searches and how they will be carried out. There is also inconsistency in room search records, including any subsequent actions taken.

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

When children go missing from the home, staff make determined efforts to keep in contact with them to ensure they are safe. When children return, helpful ‘welcome home’ conversations with children take place. This helps staff and children to understand why children went missing from the home and to acknowledge any risks they have been exposed to while away from the staff’s care.

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

Staff ensure that the voice of the child is reflected in all decisions that are made about the running of the home.

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

Staff assess whether they can meet children’s needs before they move into the home. While this is positive practice, insufficient consideration is given to the impact of new children on children who are already living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is suitably qualified and experienced.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have effective processes to review children’s progress. This includes working closely with schools, local authorities and other agencies working with children. As a result, they have a rounded picture of children’s life journeys.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers recognise that the children’s guide lacks some important information to help children understand what happens in the home. There is a gap in information concerning room searches and when and how these are carried out. Information relating to the use of CCTV in the home does not help children precisely understand the areas it covers and how any images recorded may be used.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Regular staff meetings focus on children. Any incidents affecting children are discussed, with consideration given to the actions that will help keep children safe. The weekly consultation meeting held with a psychologist deepens staff’s understanding of children’s needs and how they can respond to children’s difficulties. This understanding has meant there has been a noticeable reduction of police involvement when children’s behaviour challenges staff’s skills.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Positive efforts have been made to ensure that staff have completed their training. However, not all staff have completed relevant training to help them meet the needs of children. This includes areas such as medication administration, criminal and sexual exploitation, and self-harm. Managers’ systems for oversight in this area are Inspection report for children’s home: 2544885 5 underdeveloped. As a result, not all staff possess the necessary knowledge to meet the needs of children effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff and managers receive regular supervision. However, supervision is often focused on case records and management tasks, rather than children’s needs and staff’s practice. This reduces the managers’ oversight of the quality and impact of care that children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Parents value highly the care provided to their children by managers and staff. They particularly value the way that staff keep them informed about the progress of their children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have a realistic knowledge of the home’s strengths and areas for improvement. For example, they recognise the need to improve the quality of children’s records to reflect the safeguarding practice in the home and children’s current circumstances. Inspection report for children’s home: 2544885 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 ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development. (Regulation 33 (4)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all staff complete training necessary to meet the needs of the children in their care, such as on child criminal exploitation, child sexual exploitation, self-harm and medication administration. 8 April 2024

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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 children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager must ensure that the recording of medication administered to children is accurate. In addition, medication records must be regularly audited to identify if there are any shortfalls. 8 April 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  The registered person should ensure that the children’s guide includes information on the purpose of, and the process for, the carrying out of room searches. In addition, the children’s guide should include information on the use of CCTV in Inspection report for children’s home: 2544885 7 the home, particularly in terms of the areas it covers and how the images are stored and used. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 24, paragraph 4.21)  The registered person should only accept placements for children when they are

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Recommendations

satisfied that the home can respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs as recorded in the child’s relevant plans and when they have fully considered the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4)

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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: 2544885 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Alicie Enterprises Limited

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Inspector

Andy Whippey, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2544885 9 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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