Children's home run by Hillcrest Children’s Services Ltd in Havant

Inspection report for children’s home: SC482293 1 SC482293 Registered provider: Hillcrest Children’s Services 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 privately owned children’s home provides care for up to seven children with complex social and emotional difficulties, who may have also suffered trauma. At the time of this inspection, five children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has been without a registered manager since 1 July 2024.

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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: 1 November 2023

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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: SC482293 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/11/2023 Full Good 07/09/2022 Full Good 21/03/2022 Full Good 17/12/2019 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: SC482293 3

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improvement to be good

Children’s moves into and from the home have not always been well planned. Since the last full inspection, staff have supported one child in a planned way to move home to live with their family. This was in accordance with the child’s wishes and feelings. A member of staff said, ‘This was a very positive new beginning for the child and their family.’ However, a child recently moved into the home under emergency circumstances. The planning around this was insufficient. Staff said the information gained did not adequately prepare them to meet the child’s risks or vulnerabilities. Staff were unable to meet the child’s needs. Consequently, dynamics in the group of children deteriorated, risks to children as a whole quickly increased and the situation continues to be unsettled.

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improvement to be good

Senior leaders recognised that staff were unable to meet the needs of one child and keep them safe. The lack of good planning for this child’s move into the home ultimately resulted in further disruption for the child as they were moved on from the home.

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improvement to be good

Most staff demonstrate caring attitudes towards children. This is seen in their interactions and shared laughter in the home. However, sometimes staff’s verbal and written language about children does not always demonstrate that children are valued and respected.

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improvement to be good

Most children, despite the challenges faced, are continuing to maintain positive progress in important areas of their lives. For example, the children are attending an appropriate school or college or are engaging in a structured program of home-based learning. Staff support the children to work towards their goals and aspirations. One child has recently completed a level 1 motor mechanics qualification, and another child has received their Duke of Edinburgh award. One education professional said, ‘Staff see the value of education and support children to attend and engage.’

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improvement to be good

Staff provide plentiful trips and activities for the children to enjoy. Photos and notes of children’s thoughts about their planned days out with staff demonstrate meaningful time spent with children. The staff plan these activities according to the children’s likes and interests.

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improvement to be good

Staff support fun and engaging activities when children see their families. Staff listen to children’s feelings about seeing their loved ones and help them feel more relaxed and happier. Staff are positively supporting two children to enjoy regular overnight stays with their families. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482293 4

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improvement to be good

The new manager has spent time exploring children’s behaviours to have a better understanding. However, on occasion, staff struggle to maintain consistent boundaries with children and appropriately manage the dynamics in the group of children. This has the potential to undermine children’s welfare and the future development of positive, healthy relationships.

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improvement to be good

Staff have not been well equipped to anticipate and manage difficult situations. Consequently, there has been a noted increase in significant incidents. On occasion, children have harmed each other and/or staff. This has caused fractured relationships between children and an increase in children going missing from the home. Furthermore, children have been less safe and have sometimes become involved in criminal activity.

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improvement to be good

When incidents occur in the home, managers are quick to review written reports and speak to the necessary staff, children and linked professionals. Staff often have good reflective conversations with children and help them think about how they can repair situations. This helps children to develop a greater understanding of how others may respond to situations and their behaviours. However, on one occasion, managers did not speak to a child after the use of physical intervention to keep them safe. This is a missed opportunity for the child to feel heard and for managers to identify whether the action was proportionate and any wider learning outcomes for staff.

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improvement to be good

Staff make good use of on-call arrangements and seek further support when they feel more help is needed to keep children safe. On occasion, staff have called the police to assist them. On one occasion, following two children’s arrests, staff failed to make appropriate arrangements to support them during an overnight stay in police custody. Staff were therefore not in a good position to ensure that the children’s rights and entitlements were observed. Information-sharing of the children’s bail conditions was also hindered as a result.

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improvement to be good

Leaders and managers did not ensure that the necessary work to address all the risks identified in a recent fire risk assessment had been completed. The interim manager ensured this issue was resolved before the end of this inspection. However, the leadership’s lack of urgency in addressing all identified risks and recommendations is a concern.

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improvement to be good

Staff have a good understanding of child protection and whistle-blowing procedures. They understand the role of external safeguarding professionals and how to contact them. Any concerns regarding safeguarding or child protection have quickly been referred to the appropriate safeguarding professionals. Any shortfalls in practice have been addressed with staff in supervision. This demonstrates a transparent culture in raising potential safeguarding concerns and taking any necessary identified actions to upskill and develop staff practice. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482293 5

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

The previous registered manager left the home in July 2024. Senior leaders have appointed an interim manager from another home in the organisation. The induction and handover into the home for the interim manager have been poor. She has not been provided with all the necessary information to enable effective oversight and management of the home. The disorder due to the transition from paper-based to electronic records further hampered the manager. She was therefore unable to confidently locate necessary information for children and operational requirements.

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

Staff say they feel heard and hope the new leadership will bring consistency and stability for them and the children. They have received supervision and practice-related discussions with senior staff when needed. However, staff have not received sufficiently regular, good-quality reflective supervision. This is a missed opportunity for managers to ensure staff are well supported and developed to meet children’s needs and manage the nuances of working in the home.

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

Since the last full inspection, there have been changes in addition to the manager leaving, such as the loss of the deputy manager and two changes in the nominated responsible individual. Children say they are sad and unsettled with people leaving the home at the same time.

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

Senior leaders have improved the quality of internal investigations. For example, a chronology of any previous staff conduct concerns is reviewed as part of any new investigation. This helps managers continue to ensure that staff working in the home are safe and suitable adults.

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

The interim manager has spent time getting to know the staff and children. She has quickly and actively begun to address the learning outcomes from recent events and incidents in the home. She has a clear action plan on how to further improve the service. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482293 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 that staff—

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure incidents in the home are managed to ensure children are safe and feel safe. Furthermore, ensure that children are supported by a familiar and appropriate adult during police interviews. 15 September 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 work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

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

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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

feedback on the experiences of children including complaints received; and 15 September 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC482293 7 use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(e)(g)(i)(h))

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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. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)) 30 July 2024

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Requirement Due date

If the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005(a) applies to the home—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person must ensure that the requirements of that Order and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25 (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure all identified actions from the external fire risk assessments are completed. 15 September 2024

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Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development; and

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience . (Regulation 33 (1)(a)(4)(a)(b)) 15 September 2024

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non- stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children’s home: SC482293 8

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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: SC482293 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hillcrest Children’s Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Atria, Spa Road, Bolton BL1 4AG

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Inspector

Kelly Monniot, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC482293 10 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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