Children's Home run by Oracle Care Limited in Central Bedfordshire

Inspection report children's home: SC421531 1 SC421531 Registered provider: Oracle Care 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

The home is owned by a private company. It provides care and clinical support for up to three children who experience social and emotional difficulties. One child was living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children's home

The manager registered with Ofsted on 2 November 2021.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: SC421531 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/10/2023 Full Good 06/06/2022 Full Good 25/05/2021 Full Good 27/11/2019 Full Outstanding Inspection report children's home: SC421531 3

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improvement to be good

The child was spoken with during the inspection. The manager was not present during the inspection.

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improvement to be good

Two children have recently moved out of the home due to escalating incidents. One of these children had only recently moved in. During this period, management oversight was limited and inconsistent. Staff say that they were ‘firefighting’ and not listened to. However, once senior managers became aware of the concerns, they responded quickly. This has prevented any widespread failures.

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improvement to be good

Children have made varied progress since the last inspection. One child's teacher said that they had made more progress since living at this home than any other home. However, due to the unsafe dynamics between the three children, one child has not been able to attend their school for two weeks and the other two children had to move suddenly and in a less planned way than staff would have liked.

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improvement to be good

The child living at the home currently returned from a two-week break to be told by staff that they had to move bedroom and play their games console downstairs. The rationale for this decision-making was unclear in staff’s records and there was no review period outlined around this decision-making. The child spoke of their confusion about the sudden changes made. They linked them to a significant incident later that day. The child is currently undergoing an assessment and their clinical consultation clearly outlines that they need time to process changes. Staff failed to allow the child this time and their actions heightened the child’s vulnerability at a time of significant change for them.

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improvement to be good

Staff take pride in the home. They spoke with sadness when discussing the damage to the house due to recent incidents. Action has been swiftly taken to ensure that repairs to the home are carried out.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported to spend time with their families. One child recently enjoyed a holiday with their grandparents. The child spoke of this being an enjoyable time.

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improvement to be good

Staff talk about the child with warmth and genuine care. This is generally reflected in their written records. However, a small number of written records use language that does not reflect the therapeutic ethos of the home. This fails to accurately reflect the warmth of relationships that staff were observed to have with the child in their care. Inspection report children's home: SC421531 4

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improvement to be good

Risk assessments are updated and clear to read. However, there has been a lack of thematic oversight of the emerging dynamics between the children that has affected children's progress and safety.

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improvement to be good

Staff have not been supported to consistently de-escalate incidents between children. Children have thrown furniture down the stairs and staff and children have been harmed. This has led to staff locking themselves in the office and calling police to manage incidents at crisis points. This fails to evidence that staff have supported children to learn about the consequences of behaviour without the risk of being criminalised.

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improvement to be good

Staff’s use of consequences is not consistently therapeutic or proportionate. Children have received financial consequences that were unrelated to the behaviour displayed. This is likely to have been confusing to the children and does not model pro social behaviour to them. Senior managers have since challenged this practice.

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improvement to be good

One child has recently moved into the home. This was their first experience of living in residential care. Their move was not well planned by the manager. He agreed the child’s move without consultation with senior managers, the staff team or the clinical lead. Following the child’s move in, the manager told staff to keep one child outside the home all day and to ‘stagger’ children’s mealtimes to manage the dynamic between the children. This failed to provide the children with a secure base. It also failed to help the children to understand and manage risk.

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improvement to be good

Senior managers have liaised effectively with professionals such as the local authority designated officer. Children have been kept safe by senior manager’s actions following an allegation during this inspection year.

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improvement to be good

Staff are proactive when children go missing from the home. Staff search for children and advocate for them to receive return home interviews.

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good

Staff have not had access to consistently good enough quality supervisions. The supervisions have lacked robustness and depth. This has been a missed opportunity to develop staff and support them to reflect on and improve their practice.

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good

Staff are supported by a clinical team. This could be an area of strength in the home. However, clinical directions are not always followed up by staff. Managers have not consistently provided challenge and oversight of this. Staff say that the manager has booked these consultations at a time when they have had children in their care. This has not allowed staff time to reflect with the therapist or share their concerns fully. Inspection report children's home: SC421531 5 Staff spoke of the manager having ‘complete control’. They said that they feel disempowered and that it just became accepted practice that their concerns were minimised and dismissed by the manager. Senior managers have since completed a lessons learned exercise. They have put in place a plan that includes staff training on closed cultures. Staff have been supported to discuss their feelings in a clinical debrief.

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good

Staff say that they feel enthused by this approach and less micromanaged. One member of staff said, ‘There is a big difference in morale now. The staff team was very, very low and tired. Now, everyone is keen; they [senior managers] have given us motivation again.’

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good

Senior managers are aspirational in their vision for the home moving forward. They have been open to challenge and scrutiny. They appear to have the capacity to make the changes required.

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good

The manager has met three requirements and one recommendation from the last inspection. Inspection report children's home: SC421531 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 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

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)(h)) 15 November 2024

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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

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(iv)) 29 November 2024

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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. 20 December 2024 Inspection report children's home: SC421531 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that arrangements are in place to−

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Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home;

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangement agreed with the child's placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

The children's views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them;

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children's care and welfare and their lives.

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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

ascertain and consider each child's views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child's best interests when making decisions about the child's care and welfare. (Regulation 7 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)) 11 December 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 20 December 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that records relating to children are written in child-friendly language and that language used to describe children is appropriate. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report children's home: SC421531 8  The registered person should ensure that any consequences used to address behaviour are restorative in nature. In particular, ensure that there is regular management scrutiny to provide assurance that consequences are fair and time limited and that children are offered the chance to complete restorative work. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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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 children's home: SC421531 9

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Oracle Care Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Suites 1 & 5, Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper, Derbyshire DE56 0RN

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Children's home details

Responsible individual: Chelsea Lightfoot

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Inspector

Majella Russell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC421531 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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