Children's Home run by SureCare Residential Ltd in Essex

Inspection report for children’s home: SC384018 1 SC384018 Registered provider: SureCare Residential 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

This privately run home provides care for up to four children who may have experienced significant trauma and have behavioural and social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager since February 2024.

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Information about this children’s home

There were two children living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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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: 13 November 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: SC384018 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/11/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 17/10/2022 Full Good 19/01/2022 Full Good 31/10/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC384018 3

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improvement to be good

There were two children present at the time of the inspection. Both children were spoken to during the inspection. Since the last inspection, one child has moved into the home and one child has moved on.

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improvement to be good

Children’s experiences are affected by poor staff responses to incidents. These incidents have led to children being harmed. This means that the judgements of how well children are helped and protected and leadership and management are requires improvement to be good.

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improvement to be good

The transition plans for a child moving to the home did not assess effectively the child’s presenting level of risk or the impact on the other children living at the home. This resulted in the child going missing from the home on the day they moved in, along with the other children. The children were missing from the home overnight. Due to the increased level of risk, the placement was ended after a short time. Unplanned endings provide additional trauma to children who are already affected by adverse childhood experiences.

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improvement to be good

There have been several incidents when the home has been damaged. This has resulted in children living in a home that regularly requires repair.

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improvement to be good

Staff support the children to be active and healthy. They encourage children, and help them, to cook nutritious meals and enjoy a healthy diet. Staff attend appointments with children and support them to manage their anxiety when faced with new tasks. Staff will act as advocates for children when needed.

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improvement to be good

Both children attend education. They acknowledge this can be difficult and require support. The children know that staff will be consistent in their support with attending school and staff encourage them to achieve their full potential. Children join the staff in activities that supplement their education. One of the children is planning to join a carpentry course two days a week. Staff are aspirational for the children.

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improvement to be good

One of the children attends the local banger racing stadium and helps in the pits. The child would like to work with cars or to be a carpenter in the future. Both the children said that they liked going out with staff.

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improvement to be good

The children have individually decorated bedrooms that they can personalise. Both the children enjoy spending time in their rooms. The garden has a new patio area and there is a trampoline for children to play on. Inspection report for children’s home: SC384018 4

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improvement to be good

During the inspection, four fire doors on the ground floor failed to close fully when the alarm sounded. This does not provide effective fire safety precautions. When this was raised by the inspector, immediate repairs were arranged.

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improvement to be good

Staff failed to follow the guidance in a child’s risk assessment. This resulted in a child being harmed. The manager was not informed immediately about the incident. A notification was not sent to Ofsted until some time after the event . This prevents Ofsted being fully aware of incidents at the home.

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improvement to be good

There have been several incidents of children going missing from the home. When children go missing from the home, staff immediately look for them and report the incident to the appropriate agencies.

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improvement to be good

When children use the internet, they are supported by staff who understand child exploitation. Key-worker sessions ensure that children understand there are additional vulnerabilities when being online. Staff are confident they would recognise if children were being exploited.

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improvement to be good

The staff help children to manage relationships. Communal living has helped children learn about tolerance and acceptance.

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improvement to be good

The staff use physical restraint at times. These restraints are proportionate and the staff discuss these with children afterwards. This helps children to understand why the staff intervene.

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

There has been no registered manager since February 2024. An acting manager was appointed but failed to register and left in July 2024. A deputy manager has been appointed to start in July 2024. The number of management changes have failed to provide the children and staff with positive or effective leadership.

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

The therapeutic model is not embedded in practice. Staff are unable to talk about theories or models of care in depth. Staff have been asked to write key-worker sessions and incidents in a more therapeutic way. However, they lack the knowledge to do this.

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

The well-being team provides some guidance to staff during team meetings. However, there is no plan or structure to this support. This support is not reinforced with training that helps staff to understand how to respond to children therapeutically. The well-being team does not provide the staff with enough follow up or further training. This lack of direction means that staff are inconsistent in their responses to children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC384018 5 There are some new monitoring systems being introduced that are starting to help identify areas for development.

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

The staff receive regular supervision sessions and annual appraisals. Inspection report for children’s home: SC384018 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 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;

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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

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)(a)(c)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the manager supports the staff to use a trauma-informed approach.

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that care plans, risk assessments and behaviour management plans include neurodiversity and how children’s individual needs are to be supported.

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that therapeutic assessments are included in care planning documents and that these are implemented in the staff’s approach. 15 July 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC384018 7 This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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Requirement Due date

If the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005(30) 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)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, that fire doors close when the fire alarm sounds. 15 July 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

there is no registered manager in respect of the home; and

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Requirement Due date

is not, or does not intend to be, in day-to-day charge of the home.

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Requirement Due date

If the registered provider appoints a person to manage the home, the registered provider must, without delay, give HMCI notice of—

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person so appointed; and

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Requirement Due date

the date on which the appointment takes effect. (Regulation 27 (1)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii) (2)(a)(b)) 15 July 2024

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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

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(e)) 15 July 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC384018 8 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))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all relevant information is gained before children move into the home, and the children living at the home are fully considered to ensure that children can live together safely. 15 July 2024

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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: SC384018 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: SureCare Residential Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Old Snap Factory, Twyford Road, Bishop’s Stortford CM23 3LJ

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Inspector

Trudy Potter, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC384018 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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