Children's home run by Harmony Residential Homes Limited in Barnet

Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1226612 1 Registered provider: Harmony Residential Homes Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private organisation. It provides care for up to four children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2023.

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Information about this children’s home

Date of last inspection: 11 September 2023

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Information about this children’s home

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Information about this children’s home

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Information about this inspection

At this inspection, the inspector evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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’. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1226612 2

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Findings from the inspection

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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Findings from the inspection

Since the last inspection, one child has moved out of the home and one child has moved in. Four children are currently living at the home. Children feel comfortable at the home. One child said that staff make them feel safe and that the relationships they have with staff make them feel happy.

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Findings from the inspection

Leaders and managers ensure that there is an emphasis on education in the home. This helps to boost children’s self-esteem and confidence. Two of the children attend school full time, and two children have a bespoke education package. One child is being supported to take their mock A-levels.

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Findings from the inspection

Leaders and managers are using a multi-agency response to ensure that the children’s health needs are met. In response to a child’s emerging drug and alcohol use, staff have requested support from the local authority. This is now in place. Staff also ensure that advice and support from health professionals are appropriately sought. For example, a child had an injury and refused to go to hospital or their general practitioner about this. As a creative alternative, leaders and managers arranged for a specialist to visit the home.

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Findings from the inspection

The home requires a large amount of maintenance work. A plan is in place for the work to commence imminently. However, there are areas of the home that require attention. For example, the grouting on the bathroom floor tiles needs a deep clean and there is a stain on the floor of the second lounge. A child said that ‘when things are broken, they take a while to get fixed’, giving examples of a broken shower head and a television that does not work. This means that the children do not currently have a sufficiently warm and inviting environment to live in.

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Findings from the inspection

Since the last inspection, there have been three missing-from-care episodes for one child. Staff take effective steps during these incidents. When the child goes missing, staff follow them. When the child becomes out of sight, staff report them as missing to police. When the child needs to be collected during a missing episode, staff go to pick them up. However, after missing-from-care episodes, independent return interviews do not take place. This means that important information about why the child went missing, which could be related to the home, is not collected or considered.

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Findings from the inspection

For one child, there are possible indicators of child sexual exploitation (CSE). Not all of these indicators are included in the child’s risk assessment. Other, out-of-date information, is still part of the child’s risk assessment. This means that staff do not have clear guidance on what the individual indicators of CSE could be for the child, or what steps to take to keep the child safe. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1226612 3 When the child has been involved in incidents that could indicate CSE risks, staff have spent time with the child trying to understand these. However, staff have not sufficiently recognised that the child might be feeling scared and that this could be a barrier to disclosing information. This means that there is not enough professional curiosity around what could be happening for the child.

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Findings from the inspection

Leaders and managers ensure that possible indicators of CSE are raised and discussed in strategy meetings that involve the police. However, they have not escalated their own concerns when they have felt that the responses from police and the local authority have not been adequate. This means that further strategies that could keep the child safe, and other contextual information, have not been raised or considered.

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Findings from the inspection

Leaders and managers hold regular supervision sessions with staff. These provide staff with time to talk about and reflect on their practice and the needs of the children. Practice issues are identified and taken forward into performance plans. However, leaders and managers have not ensured that staff receive annual appraisals.

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Findings from the inspection

Formal investigations with involvement from the local authority designated officer are thorough. Actions from these investigations are used to inform supervision and performance plans. This helps staff to learn and improve their practice.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/09/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 09/06/2022 Full Good 19/10/2021 Full Good 20/08/2019 Full Good Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1226612 4

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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, 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 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 any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

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

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that risk assessments are up to date and include current risks and indicators of exploitation, return- home interviews are carried out after missing episodes, and staff show sufficient professional curiosity and an awareness that children might feel scared to make disclosures. 8 April 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.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 8 April 2024 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1226612 5 ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(vii)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the house and garden are clean and tidy throughout, the home is decorated to a high standard, and broken fixtures and fittings are repaired in a timely manner.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(c)).

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 1 April 2024

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (c)) 8 April 2024 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1226612 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Harmony Residential Homes Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 33A, Portsmouth Road, Southampton SO19 9BA

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Inspector

Hannah Phillips, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1226612 7 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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