Children's home run by Support and Sustain Care Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 1 Registered provider: Support and Sustain Care 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

This home is operated by a private organisation. It is registered to provide care for up to four children who have had adverse childhood experiences that have led to associated trauma and social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, three children were living in the home. The three children were present during the inspection and spoke with the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

There is currently no registered manager. The registered manager resigned from their role in June 2024 with immediate effect to take on the role of responsible individual. An interim manager has been recruited to fulfil the role of manager. Ofsted has yet to receive applications from both leaders.

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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 widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: 13 November 2023

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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: 2730637 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/11/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 3

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inadequate

The leadership and management of the home are considerably weak. Significant shortfalls with safeguarding practices have impacted on children’s overall experiences.

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inadequate

Since the last inspection, two children have moved into the home and one child has left the home. One child moved out of the home three weeks after moving to the home in an unplanned way. Managers ended a child’s placement as they were unable to meet their needs. Poor care planning leaves children vulnerable to the risk of harm and means that they do not experience stability.

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inadequate

Children do not receive sufficient support from staff to help them overcome difficulties in their relationships with one another. Managers fail to address this lack of support to children. Children have mixed feelings about their experiences living in the home. Some children identify staff members who they can share their worries with, while other children shared that staff do not take prompt action to address unkind and harmful behaviours from other children. This approach does not support children to resolve conflicts positively and does not support children to feel safe and develop positive relationships with their peers.

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inadequate

Managers do not provide training opportunities for staff to ensure they have the skills to support children with their complex needs. Furthermore, staff and managers do not adapt their approach to caring for children with their individual needs. This has impacted on the daily experience and progress that children make because staff do not always understand how to adapt to changing needs. This approach to care planning does not support children to achieve good outcomes. Despite the significant shortfalls identified during this inspection, some children make progress.

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inadequate

Staff support children with their educational outcomes. All children have excellent school attendance and are making progress with the curriculum. One child graduated from secondary school and is actively seeking a college placement to further their education.

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inadequate

Children are encouraged by staff to develop skills in cooking and budgeting in preparation for adult life. This approach to care planning ensures that children are appropriately prepared for their next transition. This support helps children to make progress.

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

Serious shortfalls were identified in relation to safeguarding practice. Safeguarding practice is not proactive and fails to ensure that all children are safe. Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 4 Children are not safeguarded effectively. One concern about the identified safeguarding practice is the excessive use of restraint by staff to manage children’s behaviour. On some occasions, restraint is used as a last resort, while on other occasions, children are held unnecessarily. Following the use of restraint, staff do not always record incidents in a timely way. Records do not provide relevant and pertinent information. Poor recording of incidents limits the opportunity to determine if interventions were appropriate.

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

Children are regularly restrained in their bedrooms and on their beds. Managers do not address this practice or acknowledge the impact of this on children or how this practice can be avoided. Additionally, the manager does not always speak with children following incidents of restraint. This is a missed opportunity for children to reflect on their feelings after an incident has occurred.

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

The organisation’s internal safeguarding children policy is ineffective. Staff do not raise concerns of potential harm to their designated safeguarding lead. For example, when staff are aware of serious allegations following incidents of physical intervention, they fail to alert managers promptly. Delays in raising concerns leave children vulnerable to harm.

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

The arrangements for supporting and supervising children are not followed in line with their plans. For example, when children require support by more than one adult, this is not followed, resulting in children not having appropriate levels of support during times of crisis. Consequently, children are left in potentially unsafe situations.

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

Children’s risk assessments do not reflect current risks. Staff and managers do not routinely update risk assessments following significant incidents or changes in children’s circumstances. Therefore, staff are not provided with up-to-date information to ensure that children are appropriately safeguarded.

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

Staff do not consistently support children with strategies to manage their emotions and behaviours positively. Staff use learning measures to promote positive behaviours with children. While some measures are appropriate and restorative in nature, others are unreasonable and do not evidence that a restorative approach was used. This limits the opportunity for children to reflect on the impact of their behaviours and does not provide children with nurture to meet their individual needs.

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

Managers ensure that the staff recruited to work with children have been subjected to necessary checks. This helps with ensuring that children are cared for by individuals who are less likely to pose a risk to them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Changes to the leadership and management team have contributed to shortfalls and instability with arrangements in the home. The management, monitoring and reviewing of the home are ineffective. Managers lack an understanding of the Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 5 shortfalls in the quality of care provided to children. This means that effective action is not taken swiftly when concerns are raised by children. This limits children’s progress and negatively affects the experiences that they have.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers do not have effective oversight of the home. Monitoring systems used do not assess the care and experiences that children receive effectively. There is a lack of routine monitoring and an absence of reflection following incidents involving children. This limits the opportunity to learn from practice or consider further support that may be needed for staff and children or to reduce and manage risk.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Record-keeping in the home highlights serious concerns about the integrity of the organisation. For example, some records show that discussions with children take place before incidents occur. Other records suggest that discussions take place with children, yet there is no evidence across other records that managers engaged with children on the dates specified. Senior managers acknowledged these inaccuracies. This practice provides no assurance that children are safeguarded effectively and that their welfare is prioritised.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There has been a high turnover of staff since the last inspection. Children are not cared for by a consistent staff team to support them to develop safe and meaningful relationships. Consequently, children have not received a continuity of care to support them to make progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff do not receive the training they require to provide safe and effective care to the children. Individual needs of children are not well understood because staff do not receive the relevant training to support children with neurodiversity and their needs. This means that children are not cared for by staff who can provide individualised and responsive care to support them to achieve good outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers do not notify the regulator of serious incidents in a timely manner. For example, several incidents were reported almost two months late. This prevents both the regulator and children’s services from having effective oversight of the service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff speak highly of the interim manager and say that they feel supported. The new manager shares an ambitious vision to improve the safeguarding practice and the quality of care to children. The senior leaders have acknowledged the shortfalls identified and are implementing actions to address the concerns imminently. Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 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

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

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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

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; and

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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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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;

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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)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(e)) 5 August 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 7 This specifically relates to ensuring that staff and managers proactively safeguard children. This includes ensuring that all concerns of harm are promptly acted on, risk assessments remain current with relevant information and behaviour management is effective in a way that does not cause harm to children.

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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;

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ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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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)(a)(c)(d)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that leaders and managers monitor the service effectively to provide clear oversight of the quality of care provided to the children in their care. 5 August 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— 5 August 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 8 within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time, and location of the use of the measure;

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a description of the measure and its duration;

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details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that when staff use a measure of control, an accurate account of the measure is recorded within timescales. Managers are to review records and ensure that all children and staff are spoken to afterwards.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement has been repeated three times. Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 9 No measure of control or discipline which is excessive, unreasonable, or contrary to paragraph (2) may be used in relation to any child. (Regulation 19 (1))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that learning measures used to promote positive behaviours are restorative in nature and appropriate to children’s age and stage of development. 5 August 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: 2730637 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Support and Sustain Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 27 Morrison Avenue, Wolverhampton WV10 9TZ

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Inspector

Nateisha Cardoza-Evans, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2730637 11 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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