Children's Home run by Alpha-Imperial Private Limited in Leicestershire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 1 Registered provider: Alpha-Imperial Private 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

The home is privately owned and operated and is registered to provide care for up to three children.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home. However, another child had lived at the home previously and so their experiences of living at the home were taken into account at this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is led by a registered manager.

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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: not previously inspected

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

not previously inspected Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 3

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improvement to be good

The home is spacious and equipped to meet the needs of the child currently living there. There is a large outdoor area containing seating and a trampoline. However, the cleanliness of the home requires improvement. The child’s bedroom had a noticeable smell of cigarette smoke, and ash was on the windowsill. The bathrooms were also found to be dirty. Consequently, the environment does not consistently promote children’s well-being.

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improvement to be good

The child was observed interacting with staff and is beginning to develop good relationships with them. However, a limited number of staff have completed training in relation to understanding the child’s specific needs. This is leading to a lack of understanding of the child’s individual needs and can hamper how staff respond to and meet the child’s needs going forwards.

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improvement to be good

There has been a significant delay in the local authority securing an education provision for the child. Despite the manager suggesting local provisions, the child remains without education. Although the manager has attended relevant meetings, there is a need for more proactive escalation to ensure the child’s educational needs are met.

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improvement to be good

Daily logs, written by staff, indicate that the child is regularly sleeping until late in the afternoon, despite being of school age. Staff are not actively encouraging the child to get up or participate in activities during the day. Furthermore, there are no plans for informal learning in the home to compensate for the lack of a school placement. The child only gets up early when being driven to their home local authority to spend time in the community and this often occurs during school hours.

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improvement to be good

The child has no clarity on how staff will manage behaviour in relation to rewards for good behaviour or consequences for negative behaviour. This is not yet set out in the children’s guide. One child was subjected to several consequences for challenging behaviour, including losing half of their pocket money for property damage, with no review for three months. There were limited examples of where this child had been rewarded for positive behaviour. The manager is making improvements in the reward system for the child currently living in the home and any children moving into the home in the future.

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improvement to be good

The language used by staff and the manager in some records relating to the child who previously lived at the home were overly negative. Unhelpful descriptions of the child and their behaviour were recorded. This lacks sensitivity to the child’s needs, especially if they chose to access their records in the future. Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 4

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improvement to be good

Risk assessments are being updated; however, they contain out-of-date information. This limits their effectiveness in identifying and managing current risks and vulnerabilities for the child. Some significant risks lack sufficient detail. For example, one child with a peanut allergy did not have clear guidance in the risk assessment on how staff should respond if the child ingested peanuts.

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improvement to be good

There has only been one physical intervention since the home was registered. The incident was managed appropriately, but the language used in the incident report was not child-friendly and lacked emotional warmth. Furthermore, management oversight is inconsistent.

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improvement to be good

A structured system is in place to address missing-from-care incidents. For one child, going missing from care has reduced. Staff respond appropriately to missing episodes and the child’s triggers are understood. The child has been supported to spend time with people that are important to them to prevent missing episodes. However, return home interviews following missing-from-care incidents have not been requested by the manager, and the child’s voice is absent from debriefs and key-work sessions. As a result, there is a lack of understanding about where the child has been and who with. This is particularly concerning given the child’s risks and vulnerabilities.

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improvement to be good

Following one missing-from-care incident, a child returned and was believed to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. However, staff did not seek medical advice for the child upon their return. Instead, the manager advised staff to give the child space. This lack of immediate medical intervention raises concerns about the staff’s ability to respond appropriately to potential risks.

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improvement to be good

There are no specific safety plans in place to address the risk of criminal exploitation. Although the risk is identified in the child’s risk assessment, there is no detailed strategy for mitigating this. The child is allowed a significant amount of unsupervised time in their hometown, where the risk is most pronounced, yet safety plans are not consistently followed. For instance, staff continue to drop the child off without obtaining an address, even when the child refuses to provide one, further compromising safety measures.

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

The manager has established a positive relationship with the child. However, concerns were identified regarding the manager’s reflections on the previous child, their time living at the home and leaving. The language used to describe the child, both in discussions and in management oversight of records, was negative. It was evident that the manager faced challenges in managing the care of the previous child, who presented behaviour that challenged staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 5 While the manager has built a constructive relationship with the child currently living in the home, there is an absence of a daily structure for the child, and rules and boundaries within the home. The manager acknowledged the need for improvement in several areas, particularly in terms of management oversight and the language used in reports.

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

The manager’s presence and availability in the home are inconsistent. Staff report that the manager is on site approximately three days a week, whereas the manager states that he is in the home three to four days. The home currently has vacancies for both a deputy manager and a senior support worker, which has resulted in periods where less- experienced staff are left without adequate senior support or guidance. Although the manager indicated that he works remotely, this arrangement raises concerns about the effectiveness of leadership in the home.

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

The responsible individual is reported to visit the home regularly, offering support when the manager is absent. The responsible individual understands the areas requiring improvement and has set out plans for improvement going forwards.

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

Staff said that they enjoy working at the home and feel supported by the manager. They reported that they are adequately equipped and trained for their roles, with the team working collaboratively to support the child in placement. Staff displayed a clear commitment to understanding the children in their care and are committed to their work.

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

The staff lack experience and require support to gain the knowledge and skills to provide children with consistently good care. Staff require additional training to better understand and meet the needs of the children in their care.

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

The manager regularly employs an agency worker who works two shifts each week in the home. Despite their consistent presence, the agency worker has not been provided with any mandatory training or formal supervision. While the manager stated that he speaks with the staff member, this is not recorded. This lack of formal oversight and training raises concerns about the worker’s preparedness and support in fulfilling their role effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 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

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

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare;

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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. (Regulation 12 (1)(a)(iii)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring staff understand, update and follow risk assessments and safety plans for children. 12 November 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

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; 12 November 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 7 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)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that good practice is being modelled to staff members when it comes to recording. This also relates to ensuring that staff have the correct training to meet the needs of the child in their care. This also relates to ensuring there is consistency in management oversight in the home.

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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

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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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)(iii)(v)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that the child is accessing some form of education while they are not in school. It also relates to ensuring that regular contact is maintained with the local authority and education providers to prevent drift and delay in securing education for the child. 12 November 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 8

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Recommendations

 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)  The registered person should ensure that when a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority provides an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. Homes should take account of information provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each

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Recommendations

child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)  The registered person should have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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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: 2744977 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Alpha-Imperial Private Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 16, Matrix House, 7 Constitution Hill, Leicester LE1 1PL

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Inspector

Lauren Barwell, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2744977 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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Inspector

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