Children's Home run by Flying Spur Limited in Norfolk

Inspection report children's home: SC470585 1 SC470585 Registered provider: Flying Spur Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned home provides care for six children who may have experienced neglect and emotional abuse or had traumatic experiences that have left them vulnerable.

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Information about this children's home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2017.

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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 requires improvement to be 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: SC470585 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/04/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 31/08/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 05/07/2022 Full Inadequate 21/03/2022 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children's home: SC470585 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There were four children living at the home at the time of this inspection. One child has moved out since the assurance inspection following difficult circumstances. Three children have moved to the home. Detailed assessments were completed to reflect each child’s needs. These assessments also considered the possible impact on the children already living at the home. Recent changes to the home’s admissions procedure meant that children could only move in during office hours. Therefore, children were welcomed to the home in daylight. For some children, who have previously lived in cities and urban areas, this helped to reduce any anxieties they may have had because of the home’s rural setting. As a result of this comprehensive planning, the children have settled well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Interactions between staff and children during the inspection were exceptionally positive. Staff demonstrate emotional warmth towards children and show genuine interest in what children say.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the children well and talk about them warmly. The staff are experienced and confident. All the children are making progress from their starting points. Professionals and family members said that they are pleased with the quality of care that the staff provide.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the barriers that children face to attending school full time. Staff have worked creatively with schools and education provisions to set up bespoke packages for the children. Two children attend the local academy and a third child is looking forward to starting at a specialist provision in the coming months. Managers have proactively challenged local schools to secure placements for the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children’s relationships with their families. Detailed safety plans are written and implemented to enable children to visit and stay with friends. Planned time spent with families ensures that the children build and maintain relationships with the people who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities such as going swimming, visiting amusement parks, dry slope skiing, trips to the coast and the local gym. Staff focus on children having positive experiences and building self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have created memory scrap books for the children. These books contain positive statements from staff to remind the children of their achievements and happy times. The books act as important reminders of the children’s time at the home and help them to retain these memories.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well maintained and welcoming. Due to the age and size of the property, the home requires regular maintenance, which is carried out. The manager has ensured that all actions from the fire risk assessment were completed promptly. Inspection report children's home: SC470585 4

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improvement to be good

Several safeguarding concerns have not been responded to appropriately. The manager has not informed the local authority designated officer (LADO) or Ofsted after he directly addressed a safeguarding concern with a member of staff. Further related concerns were also not thoroughly explored. The manager implemented safeguarding procedures. However, by not demonstrating professional curiosity the risk of harm to children was not immediately reduced.

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improvement to be good

On one occasion, a member of staff waited 9 days before reporting a safeguarding concern that was raised by a child. The manager addressed this delay with staff during a reflective supervision session. However, failing to follow the home’s child protection policies could have placed the child at increased risk of harm.

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improvement to be good

Despite attempts, the staff have been unable to prevent children from taking illegal substances. Staff have implemented mitigating measures such as limiting children’s free time and restricting access to mobile phones and cash. Discussions between children and staff have taken place following these incidents to help the children gain an awareness of how to keep themselves safe. However, the staff have not sought advice from external professionals or organisations. As a result, opportunities to provide children with targeted specialist support to help them to understand risks have been missed.

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improvement to be good

There are significant risks present for children when they have free time. The children’s risk assessments do not provide staff with guidance for welfare calls or what to do if a child does not answer these calls. The risk assessments lack strategies to direct staff on when to report a child as missing.

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improvement to be good

There are alarms on all the children’s bedroom doors to monitor their movements at night. Although this may be appropriate for some children, it is unclear why alarms are in use for other children. The unnecessary use of alarms does not encourage independence or safety awareness and is a restriction on children who do not require them.

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improvement to be good

Staff are trained to use de-escalation and distraction methods using their positive relationships with children to reduce the intensity of conflict or potentially unsafe situations. As a result, physical interventions have not been used since the assurance inspection.

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improvement to be good

The staff understand trauma and behaviours that are associated with traumatic experiences. They establish positive, trusting relationships with children and support the children to reduce negative coping strategies. Consequently, because of the children’s progress, the staff have reduced the children’s high levels of supervision and there have been no incidents of children missing from the home since the assurance inspection. Inspection report children's home: SC470585 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A dedicated and experienced management team leads the home. Managers have established positive relationships with children’s families and other agencies to help them to meet children’s needs. The feedback from parents and professionals is consistently good.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have established a stable and experienced staff team. Staff enjoy working at the home. The children said that they feel safe and listened to by the managers and the staff. A stable staff team and use of regular agency staff ensure that children are always supported by familiar faces. Children benefit from consistent and familiar staff at the home each day. This helps children to feel safe and secure.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are complimentary about the support that they receive from the managers. Regular supervisions provide staff with a supportive forum to discuss matters that affect their care practices. Team meetings take place regularly. They are well attended by staff and child focused. Staff say that the communication between staff and managers is good.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are suitably trained. Training includes areas that are relevant to the known needs of the children. Staff said that their training provides them with the skills and knowledge to meet children’s needs more effectively. Several staff have qualifications and degrees. However, the manager was unable to demonstrate how these qualifications are equivalent to the required level 3 diploma.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Newly appointed staff receive a thorough induction which includes a range of training and shadow shifts with experienced staff. Good induction and training help staff to meet children’s needs and provide continuity of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring, internally and externally, is good. The manager has requested additional external scrutiny on policies, records and report writing. However, the manager has not produced a workforce development plan which incorporates the identified areas of improvement or the actions to address any shortfalls. This reduces the effectiveness of monitoring and lessons to improve the quality of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has met the two previous requirements and two recommendations. Children’s records are now clearly written and professionally worded. Generic risk assessments have been reviewed and now reflect the children’s individual risks. Inspection report children's home: SC470585 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, 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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

managers and staff follow the home’s child protection policies when a child makes an allegation about staff;

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Requirement Due date

children’s risk assessments provide clear guidance to staff for children’s free time, including when to make welfare calls and when to report a child missing;

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Requirement Due date

children receive specialist support in relation to substance misuse. 16 May 2024

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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 16 May 2024 Inspection report children's home: SC470585 7 promotes their welfare.

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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

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of 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)(c)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that there is a workforce development plan in place and that staff's existing qualifications are mapped for equivalency to the level 3 diploma for residential childcare, and any gaps are addressed.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if—

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child concerned, or other children. (Regulation 24 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that bedroom door alarms are only used for the purpose of safeguarding. 16 May 2024

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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 children's home: SC470585 8

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Flying Spur Limited

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Inspectors

Rachel Watkinson, Social Care Inspector Daniel Rankin, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC470585 9 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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