Children's Home run by New Beginnings Young People’s Care and Support Services Limited in Wirral

Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 1 Registered provider: New Beginnings Young Peoples care and support services 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

The home is owned and operated by a private provider and is registered to provide care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties and/or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

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

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in August 2023.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and/or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: 16 January 2024

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/01/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

There are two children living in the home. Children’s overall safety, progress, and experiences are compromised by poor safeguarding practice and inadequate leadership and management oversight.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s progress in education is variable. One child has been excluded from college and another is attending school on a reduced timetable. Leaders and managers do not provide children with daily routines in the home that effectively promote or support learning. This limits children’s progress and educational outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s individual needs are not clearly recorded or understood by managers and staff. Not all children benefit from placing authority care plans. Children’s risk management plans are not consistently updated with known risks. This includes allegations, internet safety, and substance misuse. This does not ensure that staff are provided with clear actions to follow in practice. This impacts on the quality of care provided to children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are supported to maintain relationships and spend time with their families and those who are important to them. However, the arrangements for children having friends and family sleep over in the home do not effectively consider children’s individual needs and risks.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are supported to attend routine health appointments. However, staff do not help children to attend necessary health appointments when they are reluctant to participate. There is limited encouragement from those who care for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are not consistently supported to lead healthy lifestyles. Leaders, managers, and staff do not effectively address the dangers of smoking electronic cigarettes and alcohol misuse.

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

Leaders and managers do not adequately respond to or consider appropriate strategies to protect children. Leaders and managers do not provide the staff with consistent strategies to follow in practice to minimise the risk of harm to children.

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

Risks in relation to misusing alcohol and substance misuse are not always considered or understood by those caring for children. Risk management plans do not effectively demonstrate that the risks are understood. There have been repeated incidents of children misusing alcohol and smoking electronic cigarettes, without appropriate evaluation as to how the quality of care can be improved.

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

Leaders, managers, and staff do not understand the risks around children accessing the internet. Children have unlimited access to the internet, without any consideration of risk Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 4 or the impact on the children’s well-being. For example, one child has been asked to send inappropriate images on their mobile device, yet there has been no evaluation or action taken to minimise the risk of harm.

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

Leaders, managers, and staff do not respond effectively to indicators of risk, nor do they consider appropriate strategies to safeguard children and protect them from harm. This includes missing-from-home incidents and allegations. Room search records are not evaluated or reviewed by leaders and managers to support safeguarding decisions.

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

Allegations have not been considered as part of a child’s risk management plans, despite this being a known risk. Records of allegations are unclear and do not provide a clear overview of the incident.

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

Children have individual missing-from-home protocols. Staff are proactive in supporting children to return safely. However, children do not always benefit from independent return-home interviews. This is a missed opportunity to identify and respond effectively to children’s risks.

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

Children are not consistently supported to understand the impact of their own behaviour, as boundaries and routines are ad-hoc. Furthermore, sanctions are repeated, despite them not being effective. There is no evidence of learning from practice to improve the quality of care being provided and the protection of children.

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

Safer recruitment procedures are not consistently followed. Staff have been given shift allocations despite their visa requirements expiring. Recruitment records are unclear, with no evaluation by leaders and managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers do not demonstrate that they recognise the home’s strengths and weaknesses. The registered manager has not taken effective action to address all requirements identified at the last inspection. Requirements will be restated.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff are not supported to have discussions around developing practice or an understanding of their roles and responsibilities. Supervision records highlight that there is no learning from practice. This impacts on children’s experiences and progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Incidents in the home are not effectively reviewed or evaluated by leaders and managers. There have been repeated incidents involving alcohol misuse for one child. However, there is limited evaluation as to how the quality of care and response to risk can be improved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff are largely inexperienced, with some staff not completing the relevant qualifications within timescales. Not all staff have been supported to complete training that meets children’s individual needs. This includes substance misuse and PACE ( playfulness, acceptance, curiosity and empathy) training. Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 5 Leaders and managers have completed a review of the location of the premises; however, this does not consider children’s specific risks or contain feedback from relevant stakeholders. This is a missed opportunity to identify safeguarding concerns and implement strategies to minimise the risk of harm to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

As a result of these shortfalls, a case review was held 14 May 2024 and a decision was made to issue three compliance notices under regulation 10, the health and well-being standard, regulation 12, the protection of children standard, and regulation 13, the leadership and management standard. Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 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

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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. 23 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—

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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’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child; 23 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 7 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

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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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)(e)(f)(g)(i)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual 18 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 8 and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that children are helped to understand the impact of their own behaviours. There must be a consistent approach to behaviour support, including identified boundaries, routines, and expectations.

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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 achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible;

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to appropriate equipment, facilities and resources to support the child’s learning. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(viii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that education is promoted within the home. This should include informal learning. Children must be encouraged to access meaningful 18 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 9 education and be provided with appropriate resources and equipment to support them to learn.

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Requirement Due date

*The health and well-being standard is that—

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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)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that they seek specialist health services for children.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. 23 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the provider must ensure that they hold up-to-date placing authority plans. 18 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

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) ("the Level 3 Diploma"); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or 18 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 10 in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016. (Regulation 32 (1) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that staff complete appropriate qualifications within relevant timescales. Furthermore, all staff working in the home must have the appropriate documentation and right to work in the United Kingdom.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard).

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Requirement Due date

When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1) (2))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that they assess the risks for individual children within the home’s location. Furthermore, consultation should take place with relevant stakeholders. 18 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

* These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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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: 2737556 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Beginnings Young Peoples care and support services limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 5 Brett Street, Birkenhead, Wirral CH41 8DP

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Inspectors

Nichola Croft, Social Care Inspector Nichola Rutherford, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2737556 12 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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