Children's Home run by Middlesbrough Borough Council in Middlesbrough

Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 1 Registered provider: Middlesbrough Borough Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a local authority. It provides care for up to six children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, the home was providing care for six children.

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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

This inspection took place on 23 and 24 April 2024, but inspectors also returned on 5 June 2024 to gather additional evidence.

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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

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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: 4 September 2023

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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 Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/09/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 14/02/2023 Full Good 19/10/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 3

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improvement to be good

The home is located in a park that is accessible to the public. As a result, children experience the anti-social behaviour of others in the immediate vicinity of the property. This requires the staff to call the police on occasion to help to keep the children safe. This means that the children are unable to enjoy a safe and stable home environment.

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improvement to be good

Children do not have access to all areas of their home. The front door is locked due to ongoing external risks. This is due to youths entering the home uninvited and refusing to leave, requiring police intervention. In addition, cupboards containing board games and picture frames are locked for no safeguarding reason.

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improvement to be good

The home will welcome children in an emergency. The immediate arrival of children means that assessments are not always robust and can lack important information. Consequently, it is unclear whether staff can meet the individual and competing needs of children. This can lead to relationships between children becoming fractious and, in some cases, unsafe. For one child, this resulted in them being moved to an unregulated placement. This has a significant impact on children being able to feel a sense of security in their home.

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improvement to be good

The internal home environment is comfortable and well decorated. There are two reception areas and a dining room for children to spend time in. Children’s bedrooms are personalised and decorated with items of their choice.

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improvement to be good

Some children undergo clinical assessments to help staff to quickly understand their needs. Communication passports are agreed and shared, these are easy to understand for children and staff. This helps children to communicate and be understood using their own words.

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improvement to be good

Children have positive relationships with staff. The staff are familiar with each child’s history and how it affects their daily life. The staff have a good understanding of the children’s trauma and the impact it has on their behaviours.

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improvement to be good

Most children make progress from their starting points. Attendance and engagement in formal education have increased for some children. Children’s contact with family has increased in quality and frequency.

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improvement to be good

The behaviour of some children is increasing the vulnerability of others in the home. One child is using vapes that contain illegal substances and they share these with other children. These are being delivered directly to the home by unknown adults. The staff Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 4 are aware of substance misuse trends in the local area. They receive training to understand current risks and deliver direct interventions to the children to increase their knowledge of the dangers. There is joint work at the home with substance misuse workers to reduce harm and increase awareness. However, this has not been effective in reducing the risks to some children.

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improvement to be good

The staffing arrangements of the home have not been sufficient to consistently manage the risks and behaviours of the children. Staff teams have been led by staff in their probationary period, and children are cared for by staff who are unfamiliar to them. Children have been able to purchase alcohol and drink it in the home. Staff did not take effective action to address this and, subsequently, two children were involved in a physical altercation in the home.

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improvement to be good

When children go missing from care, staff act quickly to locate them. Local and known areas are searched, and known people are contacted. The police and professionals are updated while the staff remain committed to searching for children alongside police involvement. This ensures that children are returned as quickly and safely as possible.

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improvement to be good

The manager and the staff try to help children to learn from their behaviours. When unwanted behaviours are observed, these are addressed directly with the children. Staff use calm tones and explain their actions. Other staff offer support and reaffirm their decisions. Children are taught to learn to accept responsibility and understand the consequences of their actions.

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

Poor decisions taken by leaders and managers have impacted on children’s safety and their progress and experiences while living in the home. Effective action has not been taken to address some of the safeguarding concerns that have been highlighted.

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

Professionals do not always agree with the rational for admitting children to the home. Some children move in successfully, whereas others have had a poor experience as a result of staff not being able to meet their needs or manage the competing needs of other children.

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

Safer recruitment checks are missing important information. The manager has not fully explored the reason for one member of staff leaving their previous roles. Furthermore, their full employment history was not recorded. These shortfalls could place children at risk of harm from adults who are not suitable to work with children.

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

The statement of purpose contained incorrect information regarding complaints procedures and contact details for the Office of the Children’s Commissioner.

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

Notwithstanding this, leaders and managers advocate on behalf of children. The manager has escalated a child’s concerns to the local authority and secured an advocate. The manager is working with the virtual school and the child’s social worker to challenge the education provider. Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 5 The staff are trained to meet the children’s needs. All new employees receive an induction and mandatory training in line with the statement of purpose. When additional or emerging needs are identified for children, specific training is sought and arranged.

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

The staff demonstrate resilience during challenging situations. This helps children to understand that staff are consistent in their approach to try to keep them safe, and care about them.

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

Supervision takes place regularly and is viewed by the staff as a positive process. The sessions are reflective and involve discussions about each child’s needs and how support should be delivered.

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

Parents are listened to and feel part of their children’s lives. The staff support family time and involve parents in planning. Family relationships are promoted and have improved for some children. One child has been reunited with their family and has a six-month support package from the staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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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)(i)(ii)(iv)(vi)(vii)) 12 July 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; 12 July 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 7 ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for 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)(a)(b) (2)(c)(d)(f))

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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

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)) 12 July 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 12 July 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 8 individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

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)(d))

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a)(b)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, children should be able to access all areas of their home, unless there are reasons why this not safe. 12 July 2024

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Recommendations

 The register person should ensure that the statement of purpose is developed and kept under review (regulation 16 and schedule 1). (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.5) Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 9

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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: 2565716 10

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Children’s home details

Registered Provider: Middlesbrough Borough Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Middlesbrough House, 50 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RH

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Inspectors

Lee Riley, Social Care Inspector Julia Hagan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2565716 11 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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