Children's Home run by Midas Manors Ltd in Bradford

Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 1 Registered provider: Midas Manors Ltd

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Full inspection 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 provider. The home is registered to care for up to two children with social and emotional difficulties. There was one child living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has been registered with Ofsted since 12 September 2022. The registered manager post has been vacant since July 2023. An acting manager has been in post since September 2023, but they have withdrawn their application to register with Ofsted and are due to leave the provider.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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requires improvement to be good

On 28 December 2023, an assurance inspection was completed, and serious concerns were identified in relation to the care or protection of children. Eight requirements were raised. A case review was held, and a decision was made not to issue any further enforcement action. Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/08/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 19/04/2023 Full Inadequate 03/01/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 08/11/2022 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 3

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improvement to be good

The child has developed positive relationships with some of the staff members. However, there are frequent staff changes due to a high level of staff absences. The child expresses their frustration about these changes and has been uncertain who will be caring for them on a day-to-day basis. This prevents the child from developing trusting relationships with staff.

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improvement to be good

Staff help the child to keep in touch with their family. The child’s parent recognises the early progress the child has made and how their child is coping better living away from home. However, the instability in the staff team means that family time is sometimes supported by staff less familiar to the child.

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improvement to be good

The child knows how to make a complaint and is confident that if they are worried or concerned, then this will be taken seriously by staff. However, the child does not always feel listened to and said, ‘Staff don’t give you their undivided attention. This is very frustrating.’

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improvement to be good

Staff provide education through home-based learning, supplemented by community activities as part of the child’s daily learning programme. Recording of these sessions is poor, failing to capture the purpose or the impact these learning sessions have. However, staff have actively supported the child’s aspirations by facilitating a visit to an open day at a nearby animal welfare college. The social worker said, ‘We are now in a position where [name of child] is settled enough to look at returning to more formal education.’

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improvement to be good

Staff engage in meaningful, responsive conversations with the child, addressing various topics. For example, staff sensitively discussed the impact of hurtful words on cultural identity with the child, demonstrating their supportive approach to education on important social matters.

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improvement to be good

Managers do not have access to the child’s care plans or have notes from the child’s care review to be reassured that the staff are providing care in line with the child’s care plan.

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improvement to be good

The child has a variety of enjoyable experiences, and their love for animals is well supported. For example, staff bringing their dog into the home enabled the child to play and have fun with a favourite animal. This helps to ensure that the child can have fun experiences and fond memories of their time living at the home.

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improvement to be good

The quality of decoration throughout the home is inconsistent, and a lack of attention to detail makes the environment less inviting. The space outside of the child’s bedroom is drab and uninviting. There are no photos of the child or staff, and a lack of soft furnishings reduces the homeliness. The responsible individual has a plan to improve the environment, but this has yet to be achieved. Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 4

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improvement to be good

The child said that they feel safe living at the home. However, not all staff fully understand the child’s needs or risks because of the frequent changes in the staff team.

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improvement to be good

There is a court-imposed order to prevent the child from leaving the home without staff. This has resulted in no incidents of the child being missing from home. Therefore, the associated dangers have been reduced, and there has been a period of stability for the child. A plan to progressively reduce the level of restrictions over time demonstrates the child’s progress.

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improvement to be good

The child has not needed to be physically held by staff; however, there is no information about what restraint technique should be used if staff needed to prevent the child from leaving the home. Furthermore, agency workers do not have restraint practice training.

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improvement to be good

The child’s risk assessment outlines the necessary actions staff must take to keep the child safe. This does not include information to guide staff about how to help the child to cope with difficult emotions, particularly how they should physically hold the child to keep them and others safe. This could result in the child being in an unsafe situation.

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improvement to be good

Staff rarely need to use consequences to help support the child in managing their behaviour. When these are used, staff do not document what consequences have been used. This means it is not clear whether the child has been spoken to, whether the consequence has been effective or whether the managers have had oversight of the staff’s actions.

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improvement to be good

Health and safety and fire safety checks in the home are not being completed by staff, and there is no record of fire evacuation drills. This has extra significance because the external doors are locked in line with the court order. Additionally, staff are not completing the daily checks as outlined in the child’s risk assessment. As a result, managers lack full assurance regarding the safety of the home environment for both the child and staff.

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improvement to be good

There continue to be shortfalls in the provider’s recruitment practice. This includes gaps in recruitment checks for new staff. Information requested about agency workers is inconsistent and does not enable managers to have all the information they need to be satisfied about the worker’s suitability. This does not provide assurances that the children are being cared for by safe adults.

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improvement to be good

Through training and a review of procedures, staff have a better understanding about the risk of ligatures and the protocol that guides their practice. This helps to ensure that they can respond swiftly and effectively should an incident occur. Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The home continues to operate without a permanent manager. The continual changes in the leadership team leaves staff feeling uncertain about the future of the home and does not provide children or staff with permanence. The new responsible individual is ambitious but has yet to have the desired impact at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The several changes made at the home with managers, recording systems and approaches to care have left staff feeling confused, disillusioned and low in morale. Staff said that they have struggled with the pace and style of changes and that they are uncertain about the organisation’s leadership. This includes the provider’s director requesting a manager from another of the provider’s homes to remove staff files without explanation. In addition, significant levels of staff sickness have caused further instability in the team. This also impacts on the continuity of care for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Working rotas do not portray a true reflection about who has worked in the home. This makes management oversight difficult and does not provide an accurate picture of who has cared for the child. For example, there have been several occasions when agency workers’ names are not recorded on the staff rota, although they have completed shifts at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager has not held regular staff team meetings, which limits their ability to develop the team and reflect with staff about the child’s care. The child is not always discussed when the team does come together, preventing shared decision-making about how best to meet the child’s needs. Furthermore, staff do not consistently have supervision sessions. This limits their development and does not provide them with support for their welfare. Managers do not have an effective system to have oversight of supervision to help ensure that staff have the support they need to be effective in their roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff have received face-to-face training focused on developing their knowledge and skills. However, managers do not consult with staff or reflect with them about their learning to validate the impact it has had on their practice. There are also several gaps in refresher training courses for staff that have yet to be addressed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The independent person submits reports to the regulator each month about their findings from their monitoring visits. However, the quality of the reports is inconsistent and do not give a strong enough narrative about what it is like for children to live at this home. Staff are rarely consulted, and there are concerns about the accuracy of the reports because of duplicated information month after month.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager has continued to fail to produce a quality of care review. This does not help the manager or regulator to understand the areas for development at this home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 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 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; and

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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)(v))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that:

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Requirement Due date

the children’s behaviour support plans are individualised and provide staff with sufficient direction about how to help children; and

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Requirement Due date

they are reassured that all staff know the contents of the children’s risk assessments and what actions they must take to keep children safe.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 2 June 2024

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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— 2 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 7 that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that health and safety checks in the home are routinely completed by staff to ensure that the environment is safe.

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(d)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that:

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Requirement Due date

there is sufficient stability in the team and staffing arrangements to minimise the disruption to the child’s care due to staff sickness;

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Requirement Due date

staff have the required essential training and where gaps are found, timely arrangements are made for staff to complete the updated training courses;

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Requirement Due date

they review the team’s learning strategy to ensure that staff are helped to benefit from the training they have. Managers must have a system that helps them to be reassured that staff retain the information from their learning; 2 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 8 they take appropriate action to investigate poor practice; and

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Requirement Due date

regular team meetings take place where the children’s needs are consistently reflected on.

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Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

make arrangements for persons working at the home to receive suitable training in fire prevention; and

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Requirement Due date

ensure, by means of fire drills and practices at suitable intervals, that persons working at the home and, so far as reasonably practicable, children are aware of the procedure to be followed in case of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that:

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Requirement Due date

fire drills are completed with children and staff, and that they are recorded to support monitoring; and

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Requirement Due date

staff complete the required fire safety checks to ensure that the home remains safe for children and staff to live in. 2 June 2024

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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

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home,

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character.

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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; and 2 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 9 full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(a)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

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

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)(b)) 2 June 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; and

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Requirement Due date

are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they have the children’s up-to-date local authority care plans.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 2 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4; and

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the records are kept up to date. (Regulation 37 (1) (2)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff rotas are accurate, kept up to date and have the names of the staff and agency workers that have worked in the home. 2 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person— 2 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 10 if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit ("the independent person’s report") which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

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Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and

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Requirement Due date

the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a) (4)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the independent person must interview staff in private and ensure that the information recorded in the reports is accurate and not copied and pasted from previous reports.

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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; and 2 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 11 make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3) (4)(a)(b) (5))

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Requirement Due date

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

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the whole environment of the home is nicely decorated to provide the children with a warm and cosy place to live. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that consequences are recorded in line with the relevant regulation and guidance. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.36)  The registered person should ensure that staff are provided with a risk assessment that directs the actions they must take should a child need to be held when staff working do not have the required restraint practice training. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.57)

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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: 2693113 12

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 19 Poplars Park Road, Bradford, Bradford BD2 1DU

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Phillip Marshall

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Inspector

Aaron Mcloughlin, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2693113 13 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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