Children's Home run by Chamberlain Residential Care LTD in Wolverhampton

Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 1 Registered provider: Chamberlain Residential Care Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company owns this home. It provides care for up to two children who have experienced childhood instability which has resulted in trauma and associated complex behaviours.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted on 29 June 2022. They hold the relevant qualification and are suitably experienced.

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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 inadequate

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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: 23 January 2024

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/01/2024 Full Good 27/02/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 3

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improvement to be good

Children’s experiences require improvement, but they are making progress. There are shortfalls in the leadership and management of the home. These shortfalls have had a detrimental impact on children’s experiences. They also have the potential to affect children’s safety.

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improvement to be good

Two children who are siblings live in the home. Both children were spoken to during the inspection. The children have lived in the home for almost two years. Both children say they are happy and that they feel safe.

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improvement to be good

Children’s wishes and feelings are not always acted on. Both children would like to go on holiday abroad. They have also said they would like their bedrooms to be decorated. Due to reductions in the home’s budget, these things have not been acted on.

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improvement to be good

The amount of weekly pocket money that children receive has recently reduced. Children were not informed beforehand and have questioned staff about this. The manager has explained to the children that it is due to the reduction in the home’s budget. This does not help children to feel wanted, worthy and important.

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improvement to be good

Rewards are not exciting, inventive or encouraging for children. Most involve verbal praise or are not appropriate. For example, one child received a haircut as a reward. This does not promote and reinforce positive behaviour.

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improvement to be good

The home provides children with a homely environment. Children’s hobbies and interests are reflected in the home’s decor. The hallway is decorated with artwork by children and staff. The artwork illustrates the children’s journey in the home and the progress they have made. However, the glass in a family photo on display was cracked. This does not give children confidence that their family is valued.

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improvement to be good

Both children have good attendance at school. They enjoy school and are achieving. One child is working above their age and stage of development. As a result, they will be sitting their GCSE exams early, next year. The other child has recently moved into a higher-level class for one subject. Children are settled in school and previous behaviours have significantly reduced. Children are achieving their educational potential.

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, there has been a serious mechanical incident when children and staff were in the home’s car on a motorway. Managers and staff ensured that children were safe. However, this incident was preventable. Managers and staff do not complete health and safety checks correctly. Concerns were identified about the Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 4 condition of the car several months before. The concerns were not rectified and staff continued to drive children in the car. This seriously compromised the safety of children and staff.

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improvement to be good

Staff lack understanding of professional boundaries and professional curiosity. This does not support safeguarding practice or promote the welfare of children. A staff member was seen using their personal mobile phone in front of the children.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff do not always ensure that children have enough medication. On one occasion, a child’s medication was not ordered in a timely manner. This led to staff not being able to obtain the medication due to a national shortage. A lack of planning by staff prolonged the delay in the child receiving their medication.

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improvement to be good

Risk assessments are detailed and outline children’s risks and needs. They also give strategies for staff to keep children safe. However, the level of risk and the potential impact is not clear.

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improvement to be good

Recently, staff have physically intervened to manage children’s behaviours. The physical interventions are proportionate. However, records do not give a clear timeline of events. As a result, it is unclear whether staff take prompt action. This has the potential to compromise the manager’s oversight of these incidents.

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improvement to be good

Safeguarding incidents in the home are infrequent. When they do occur, staff generally respond appropriately to ensure that children are safe. Incident records are detailed and outline the action staff take. Management oversight of these incidents is clear. Conversations with staff and children are carried out after each incident. Any shortfalls in staff practice are followed up quickly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There are significant shortfalls in the leadership and management of the home, in particular, failures in monitoring and oversight. Leaders and managers have not monitored the service effectively. Audits have not been consistently undertaken. This includes health and safety checks. Managers have failed to ensure adequate oversight of these checks. There has also been poor communication about safety issues, including relating to the home’s car, which delayed repairs being carried out. A manager’s investigation of the car incident did not consider the safety of the car. Furthermore, this serious incident was not reported to Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders recently decided that the home was no longer able to care for the children. This was due to a financial dispute with the children’s placing authority. This decision was not made in children’s best interests. The children became aware that they were moving, with no explanation. This had a detrimental impact on their emotional well-being. One professional said that one child became very quiet and withdrawn at school. Both children shared their worries about the move with people who are important to them. Their worries included where they were going to live, in particular, whether they would remain living together. The children felt uncertain and confused about what their futures Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 5 held. Both children told professionals that they did not want to move. Leaders have since overturned this decision and the children remain living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager recognises the areas for development in the home. However, they do not yet have a clear plan in place to improve their oversight of the care children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Children receive continuity of care. The staff team is secure and stable. Staff receive training pertinent to children’s needs. They receive regular supervision which helps them to reflect on their practice. Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 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 children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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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

ascertain and consider each child’s views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child’s best interests when making decisions about the child’s care and welfare;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how the child’s views, wishes and feelings have been taken into account and give the child reasons for decisions in relation to the child;

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Requirement Due date

is enabled to provide feedback to, and raise issues with, a relevant person about the support and services that the child receives;

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ensure that the views of each relevant person are taken into account, so far as reasonably practicable, before making a decision about the care or welfare of a child. (Regulation 7(1)(c)(2)(a)(i)(iii)(b)(i)(iii)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that any decision made about the care planning for children is done in their best interests and takes into consideration their wishes and feelings. 8 August 2024 Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 7 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

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

that the effectiveness of the home’s child protection policies is monitored regularly. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff understand risk and how to respond to risk to ensure children’s safety. This particularly relates to ensuring that the home’s car is safe to use, how to complete safety checks and what they should do in the event there is a concern.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, risk assessments should identify the level of risk posed to children and how this should be prioritised. The registered person must also ensure that staff understand professional boundaries and how they should implement them. 8 August 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— 8 August 2024 Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 8 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

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)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure they frequently monitor and evaluate the quality of care children receive. This must take place at regular intervals. This includes the oversight and monitoring of health and safety checks and safety checks on the home’s vehicle.

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Requirement Due date

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

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

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an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and positive responses to other children and adults.

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In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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

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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. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(iii)(v)(viii)) 8 August 2024 Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 9 In particular, managers and staff should ensure that appropriate praise and rewards are given to children to reinforce positive behaviour.

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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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a child protection enquiry involving a child —

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

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there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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A notification made under this regulation— must include details of—

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the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter; must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)(5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all serious incidents are notified to Ofsted and all other relevant professionals. They must ensure that they provide the full detail of these events in a timely manner. 8 August 2024 Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 10

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that records of physical intervention are accurate and give a clear timeline of events. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59)  The registered person should ensure that children’s medicines are ordered promptly, to avoid any unnecessary delay. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraphs 7.15 and 7.17)

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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: 2659259 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Chamberlain Residential Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 109 Sledmore Road, Dudley DY2 8DZ

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Inspectors

Sarah Berry, Social Care Inspector Louise Naylor, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2659259 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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