Children's home run by Five Rivers Child Care Limited in Wiltshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 1 SC001452

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Registered provider: Five Rivers Child 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

This home is run by a private provider. It provides care for up to six children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, there was one child living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: 20 February 2024

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/02/2024 Full Outstanding 25/01/2023 Full Outstanding 22/03/2022 Full Good 03/02/2020 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 3

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inadequate

The overall experiences and progress of some children have been adversely affected by the shortfalls in both leadership and management and how well children are protected. The staff were not given appropriate guidance to ensure that the children’s safety and well-being were assured. Serious failures were found in the protection of two children. This has resulted in one child leaving the home in an unplanned way, which was not a good ending for the child.

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inadequate

The home is well maintained and child-friendly, with plenty of toys, games and books available for the children to play with. There is lots of space for children to enjoy and play. However, the child’s bedroom was unkempt and untidy. This is not consistent with the overall presentation of the rest of the home.

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inadequate

The staff know the child who lives in the home well, and the child is confident and comfortable around them. The child’s personality is reflected throughout the home, creating a sense of belonging. The staff celebrate the child’s achievements, and the child is aware that the staff are proud of their successes.

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inadequate

Two children have had positive moves from the home since the last inspection. The staff supported them by taking them to visit their new homes, allowing them to spend time with their new carers and gradually adjust to their new environment at their own pace. Leaving parties were held for the children, with children and staff who have moved on from the home returning to celebrate with them. This approach helps to ensure that children feel valued and experience positive endings.

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inadequate

The child attends the on-site school and is making progress in all areas of their education. The staff in the home provide additional support outside of school hours. The child’s reading and writing skills have improved, and they now have a more positive attitude towards learning.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

A serious failure in the protection of children occurred in the home. This resulted in two children not being appropriately supervised and being left at risk of harm. On two known occasions, children were alone together in a bedroom without staff’s knowledge, compromising their safety. A third incident of two children being alone together occurred during a holiday, despite the high level of staff supervision. This further highlights gaps in safeguarding and oversight of vulnerable children. The provider has been transparent about these incidents and has reviewed procedures for monitoring children to prevent reoccurrence. Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 4 The home has experienced a period of change, with staff and children leaving the home and new staff joining. The staff have implemented positive behaviour management plans to support the children during this time of change. The staff have

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

also continued to use the organisation’s clinical support team, and the children have benefited from the continued support of play therapy. Nevertheless, the child currently living in the home has expressed feeling scared during this time.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

The staff ensure that physical intervention is only used as a last resort and for the safety of children and others. Children are spoken to by someone who is not involved in the intervention to gain an understanding from the child’s perspective. The staff are spoken to and helped to reflect on what happened. This approach helps to ensure that learning is taken from any incidents.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

The staff respond appropriately to incidents of children going missing from the home. They respond proactively by following the children and ensure that they keep the children in their sight. The children are supported in understanding the dangers of going missing and are spoken to about staying close to staff and keeping safe when out in the community.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The absence of a stable and consistent manager for a period of six months has negatively impacted on effective decision-making in the home. During this time, management actions have not safeguarded children. This lack of management oversight and ineffective decision-making have led to two children not being appropriately protected.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers do not consistently notify Ofsted of serious safeguarding concerns. Furthermore, errors in the submission of the independent visitor’s report to Ofsted were not identified by the provider. This limits the regulator’s ability to assess safeguarding practice in the home. This is not open and transparent practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

A new manager has now been recruited, and an application to register with Ofsted has been submitted. This manager led this inspection with the support of the new responsible individual. They were open and honest during the inspection, with no defensive practice. When the responsible individual became aware of the safeguarding concerns and previous poor decision-making, immediate action was taken to ensure that the child in the home is kept as safe as possible.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The new management team knows the strengths of the staff and the areas in need of development. It has a clear plan for improvement. The staff have confidence in the new management team and speak positively about managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

New staff speak positively about their induction to the home, and they feel well supported by the experienced staff. The new manager recognises that these staff need time to fully embed their learning to ensure that a consistent quality of care is provided to the children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 5

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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

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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

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and 1 December Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 6 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)(e)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h))

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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 harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

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

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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) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(b)) 10 December

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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

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child — 10 December Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 7 is instigated; or

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

A notification made under this regulation—

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Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter; must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e) (5)(a)(ii)(iii)(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 the children’s home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of the children. It should be a homely, domestic environment. In particular, the registered person should ensure that the children’s bedrooms are clean and tidy. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 8

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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: SC001452 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Five Rivers Child Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Five Rivers Childcare, 47 Bedwin Street, Salisbury SP1 3UT

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Victoria Elworthy

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Inspectors

Jo Birtwhistle, Social Care Inspector Mark Cryer, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC001452 10 and inspects 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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