Children's home run by Cocoon Children Services Ltd

Inspection report for children's home: 2730667 1 Registered provider: Cocoon Children Services Ltd

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Inspected under the Social Care Common Inspection Framework

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned home is registered to provide care for up to four children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

At the time of the inspection, there were two children living at the home.

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Information about this children's home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 8 November 2023.

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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

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children's home: 2730667 2

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improvement to be good

Children have experiences that vary in quality. Although they have made some progress during their short time at the home, they have not been provided with all the support they need to make consistently good progress from their stating points. For example, one child regularly goes missing from home, and there has been no sustained improvement in this since they moved to the home.

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improvement to be good

Children are not yet making consistent progress in relation to their attendance and achievement in education. One child’s engagement in education has been sporadic, and a suitable education placement is yet to be identified for the other child. There are plans in place for the child to have a tutor, but this is yet to commence.

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff team have provided opportunities for children to access a range of community-based activities. One child spoke positively about their experiences. However, the child is restricted from going out unsupervised, and plans do not sufficiently demonstrate why this is the case or clearly describe the steps being taken to help the child increase their independence.

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improvement to be good

Staff are well informed about children's health needs. They ensure that children attend routine appointments and receive advice from healthcare professionals when required.

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improvement to be good

Children benefit from living in a large and spacious home that has been suitably decorated. One child told inspectors that this was very important to them.

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improvement to be good

Children’s strengths, vulnerabilities and risks are not clearly understood. Consequently, children are not supported to take appropriate risks in line with their age and ability.

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improvement to be good

The management of missing-from-care episodes is not sufficiently robust. One child frequently goes missing from the home for substantial periods of time. There are not always enough drivers to enable staff to search for them. Additionally, return home interviews are not always offered. As a result, there are missed opportunities to explore the reasons why the child goes missing, fully understand the risks to the child while they are missing and take steps to reduce the risk of further episodes.

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improvement to be good

While staff show care towards the children, daily records do not consistently describe the support that they provide. Consequently, if children choose to see their records in the future, they may find it difficult to understand their experiences during their Inspection report for children's home: 2730667 3 time in the home. The registered manager has recognised this and is taking steps to address it by arranging further training for staff.

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improvement to be good

The registered manager does not always notify Ofsted of serious events. This limits the regulator’s ability to monitor the management’s response to incidents that have placed children at risk of harm.

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improvement to be good

Despite some shortfalls in safeguarding responses, there are several examples of good practice, particularly by the registered manager, for example writing letters to children to explain the consequences or decisions following difficult events. These are written in a sensitive and child-centred way. The registered manager has also engaged in meaningful conversations with children about their safety and welfare, particularly to explore what support they feel that they might benefit from.

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good

Monitoring and oversight of the home have been poor during a challenging period. This has led to some shortfalls in the quality of care provided to children and the extent to which they are protected from harm.

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good

The staff benefit from a range of training opportunities to help them understand the needs of the children that they are looking after. The registered manager has recognised that the limited experience of the staff has a negative impact on their ability to consistently support children in a therapeutic manner. She is in the process of identifying further training to enhance their skills.

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good

The registered manager is a visible and child-centred leader who aspires to improve children’s outcomes and is an important figure in their lives. However, there has been a lack of curiosity about the missing-from-home episodes for one child and this has had a negative impact on their safety and well-being.

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good

Leaders and managers recognise the important role that supervision has in ensuring the development of the staff team. Staff receive high-quality supervision that enables them to reflect on their care of the children, but this does not always have a positive impact on their outcomes.

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good

The home is fully staffed. The rota arrangements and shift patterns provide consistency for children. Staff speak positively about working in the home and the support that they receive from leaders and managers.

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good

The registered manager recognises that a caring approach to supporting children needs to be fully embedded. Staff have demonstrated some elements of good care practice. As a result, there is a firm basis on which to make improvements in the quality of care provided. Inspection report for children's home: 2730667 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, 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 with 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 that staff—

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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 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; and

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Requirement Due date

that the home's day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that prompt and effective action is taken when children go missing from the home. 30 June 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

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 30 June 2024 Inspection report for children's home: 2730667 5 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

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. (Regulation 13 (1) (2)(a)(c)(f))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child —

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 30 June 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should recognise the importance of children being able to make decisions about their everyday lives and work with placing authorities and Inspection report for children's home: 2730667 6 other professionals to ensure that every reasonable step is taken to ensure that children are kept safe from harm and have appropriate autonomy in their lives. This may include a safety plan that is completed with the child to set out the steps needed to keep them safe and the role that different professionals in their support network may have. ('Guide to the Children's Home Regulations including the Quality Standards', page 42, paragraph 9.7)  The registered person should ensure that all staff record information in a transparent and child-centred manner that avoids non-stigmatising language. All children's records will provide a clear overview of the actions and support of staff, whilst providing sufficient information about staff interventions such as:

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Recommendations

indirect/direct work, physical interventions, or day-to-day conversations. This specifically relates to the importance of children's records capturing how and why staff have supported children. ('Guide to the Children's Home Regulations including the Quality Standards' page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 2730667 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Cocoon Children Services Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 80 Astra Close, Hornchurch RM12 5NJ

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Inspector

Ashley Edwards, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Sonata Brisley, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2730667 8 regulates and inspects 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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