Children's home run by Leeds City Council in Leeds

Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 1 SC488679

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a local authority. The home is registered for four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Three children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. The inspector spoke to one child during the assurance inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager at the home since February 2023. The manager is still to make an application to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Information about this children’s home

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Information about this inspection

At this inspection, the inspector evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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’. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 2

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Findings from the inspection

We identified the following serious and widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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Findings from the inspection

 The home’s leadership and management arrangements are ineffective.  Staff have been unable to prevent children engaging in high-risk behaviours.

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Findings from the inspection

Since the last inspection, Ofsted has received 15 safeguarding notifications about the children who live in this home. Some of the concerns relate to children being missing from the home for long periods of time, children being arrested in the community and children possessing prohibited items.

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Findings from the inspection

A manager is in post but at the time of this inspection had not yet applied to register with Ofsted. Leaders and managers have not addressed the shortfalls identified at the last inspection. Consequently, some children’s experiences are poor, and they do not make progress.

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Findings from the inspection

The staff team does not provide children with a stable home environment. Relationships between staff and children are such that staff have been unable to reduce the risks to children when they are out in the community. This contravenes the ethos of the home, which is to build relationships to aid trauma and attachment issues, as detailed in the home’s statement of purpose.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff are unable to prevent some children from being involved in high-risk and criminal behaviours in the community. External professionals, including youth justice services, regularly attend planning meetings to review children’s actions and risks to their safety. Staff discuss these risks and concerns with children and have completed some targeted sessions. However, for some children this work is ineffectual, and they continue to be at risk of harm. One child does not engage with staff and is rarely in the home. This child continues to be exposed to high levels of risk when out in the community.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff have not been proactive in raising children’s awareness around their sexual health and well-being. Furthermore, staff have not ensured that children know what safe behaviour is when they become expectant parents. This has left children at risk.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff provide children with opportunities to develop their independent living skills. One child is doing well and has a plan to move to semi-independent living in the near future. The manager has identified areas for improvement in the independence plans and is adapting these to be more useful for children. This will help them to learn life skills to prepare them for adult living. The effectiveness of this could not be determined as this plan is in the early stages.

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Findings from the inspection

The requirements made at the last inspection have not been met and are restated. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/04/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 27/06/2023 Full Good 13/03/2023 Full Inadequate 16/11/2021 Full Good Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 4

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 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; and promotes their welfare.

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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;

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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)(f)(h)) 15 September

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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 staff— 15 September Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 5 support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being;

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

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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

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

that each child is registered as a patient with a general medical practitioner and a registered dental practitioner. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement has been restated. 15 September

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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 15 September Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 6 harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii))

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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 promotes their welfare.

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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

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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(g)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement has been restated. 15 September

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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; if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3). The requirements are that— the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

and full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma. 15 September Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 7 The relevant date is—

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a) (3)(b)(d) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

*This requirement is subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that each child is given the opportunity to celebrate religious celebrations with their family. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 17, paragraph 3.22) Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Merrion House, Merion Centre, Leeds LS2 8LX

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Inspector

Gemma McDonnell, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC488679 9 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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