Children's Home run by Cove Care – Residential Limited in Telford and Wrekin

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 1 Registered provider: Cove Care Residential Limited

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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 registered to provide care for up to three children with social, emotional and complex mental health difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has been without a manager since 19 March 2024. A new manager has been appointed, subject to safer recruitment checks being carried out.

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This monitoring visit

This home was judged inadequate at the full inspection on 4 and 5 June 2024. Following that inspection, a compliance notice under 22a of the Care Standards Act 2000 was issued. This related to Regulation 6, the quality and purpose of care standard.

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This monitoring visit

This monitoring visit was undertaken to evaluate the provider’s progress in addressing the steps set out in the compliance notice.

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This monitoring visit

Since the last inspection, one child has moved out of the home. Two children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. Both children were spoken to by the inspector.

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This monitoring visit

The home has undergone a full renovation. This includes redecoration and new carpeting and furniture in communal areas. The children’s bedrooms have also been redecorated and personalised to their taste.

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This monitoring visit

Staff now maintain the home to a good standard, and the children’s bedrooms appear clean and tidy. All health and safety certificates are up to date. This means that the home is suitable for children to live in. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 2 Staff are supporting the children to develop healthy lifestyles. The managers have implemented individual routines for the children that focus on bedtime and mealtimes. The children are slowly adjusting to the new routines, and small improvements have been made in this area. For example, during the inspection, the inspector observed one of the children following their morning routine.

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This monitoring visit

Managers have made improvements to children’s care plans, and they now reflect the children’s individual needs. The plans are reviewed and updated when new needs emerge. In addition, they include guidance for staff to follow in line with the children’s views and preferences. These actions are supporting staff to better understand children’s needs, and they are beginning to implement these plans.

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This monitoring visit

Social workers and other professionals spoken to as part of the inspection reported that the managers and staff have been proactive in advocating for the children’s needs. However, statutory documents, such as care plans and personal education plans, are still missing and this still needs to be addressed.

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This monitoring visit

Managers have taken steps to support staff to understand children’s health needs. Children are registered with relevant health professionals, and more recently, children have been supported to attend specialist appointments. However, staff are not always proactive in ensuring that children attend all routine appointments. Furthermore, staff do not always support children to understand the importance of the appointments with regards to their health.

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This monitoring visit

Medication arrangements in the home have improved. Managers have put in place guidance to support staff to ensure that children’s medication is safely stored and administered. Health advice has been sought with regards to one child’s refusal to take their medication, but this advice has not yet been shared with staff. However, medication records show that staff are encouraging children to take their medication.

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This monitoring visit

Children’s risk management plans are in place; however, they do not reflect all the children’s known risks and vulnerabilities. Children in the home use vapes, yet there is no guidance in place for staff on how to monitor children’s usage and reduce this. In addition, staff have not supported the children to understand the risks associated with vaping, and therefore, the children remain vulnerable to harm.

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This monitoring visit

Furthermore, one child’s risk assessment does not provide staff with clear guidance on how to support or manage the child’s relationship with their girlfriend. Subsequently, the child’s girlfriend was able to enter the home without staff knowledge. This is a reoccurring incident, and there has been no learning about how to reduce the risk of this happening.

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This monitoring visit

Monitoring systems are not in place to ensure consistently good care is provided to children. This means it is not possible to tell whether managers have a clear understanding of the home’s areas of development and are identifying learning promptly. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 3 Not all the requirements raised at the last inspection were explored as part of this monitoring visit and will be reviewed at the next inspection.

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This monitoring visit

The compliance notice set at the previous inspection was considered at this monitoring visit. The compliance notice was met. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/06/2024 Full Inadequate 27/02/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 12/12/2022 Full Good 25/10/2022 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 5

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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 with the given timescales.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

maintain regular contact with each child’s education and training provider, including engaging with the provider and the placing authority to support the child’s education and training and to maximise the child’s achievement;

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Requirement Due date

raise any need for further assessment or specialist provision in relation to a child with the child’s education or training provider and the child’s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(vi)(vii)(viii)) 10 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 31 August 2024 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 6 necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

understand their roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(v))

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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

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to 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) (2)(a)(c)(e)(f)(h)) 31 August 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home. (Regulation 23 (1))

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Requirement Due date

This is specifically in relation manages ensuring that there are clear processes in place for staff to follow in the event of children refusing medication. 31 August 2024

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Requirement Due date

have the capacity, experience and skills to supervise the management of the home, or the homes, in respect of which 31 August 2024 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 7 the responsible individual is nominated. (Regulation 26 (7)(b))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff encourage children to take a proactive role in looking after their day-to-day health and well-being, and children should be supported to manage these subjects according to their age and understanding. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 34 paragraph 7.10)

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cove Care Residential Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 51 Waterloo Road, Wolverhampton WV1 4QJ

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Inspector

Lydia Isaac, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1231311 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 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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