Children's Home run by Lily Residential Services Ltd in Dorset

Inspection report for children’s home: 2739974 1 Registered provider: Lily Residential Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered on 21 August 2023 and is operated by a private provider of social care. The home provides care for up to three children.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, three children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The term ‘adults’ is the preferred word used by the home to describe the staff who work there.

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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: 5 February 2024

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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 for children’s home: 2739974 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/02/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2739974 3

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improvement to be good

The children’s experiences in this home are mixed. One child has good attendance at their alternative education provision and will often participate in activities with adults inside and outside of the home. The other two children have not attended education since moving into the home. The manager has worked hard with other professionals to try and rectify this situation, and both children have plans to start some form of further learning within the next month.

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improvement to be good

Adults work hard to try and engage the children and offer a range of activities which are tailored to their interests. Sadly, the children do not always accept these, but this has not deterred the adults from thinking about other activity options. One child has a passion and talent for cooking, often making their own meals and barbequing for the home. However, this child also spends a lot of time alone in their room gaming. Furthermore, adults have struggled to help to address the child’s poor sleep-wake cycles, which has impeded the opportunity to engage the child in education and other activities.

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improvement to be good

Another child has secured a part-time job and is supported by the adults to get to and from the place of work. Outside of working, the child spends very little time in the home and is often out all day, returning by curfew late at night, collected by the adults. This has impacted on the adults’ ability to build a meaningful relationship with the child and address pertinent issues, such as the child’s education and substance misuse. They also have very little knowledge of what, if anything, the child has eaten on the days when they are away from the home.

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improvement to be good

Professionals have reported excellent communication between the home and wider professional group. One social worker told the inspector that they had a good understanding of a child’s needs and how best to work with the child.

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improvement to be good

Positive feedback is also reflected in conversations with the children’s family members. Parents said that they feel that the manager and adults look after their child well and have good communication with them also. They said that their children feel happy in the home and like the adults who care for them.

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improvement to be good

The home is a well-maintained and welcoming environment. Photos of the children are displayed on the fridge, and adults send postcards to the children when they are away, which demonstrates that they are being held in mind.

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improvement to be good

The risks associated with one child’s substance misuse are not adequately understood and recorded. This has implications on how well the adults can reduce and mitigate the Inspection report for children’s home: 2739974 4 risks and keep the child safe from harm. External agencies are relied on to carry out specific work around substance misuse. Some referrals have been made but these have been slow to proceed. At the time of the inspection, a referral had not been accepted by the external agency.

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improvement to be good

Adults have provided the child with relevant literature and made them aware of useful websites. However, they have failed to challenge the child to prevent them from bringing drugs into the home and smoking them in their bedroom.

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improvement to be good

Associated risks of children having access to lighters in their bedrooms have been overlooked by leaders and managers. This has potentially left children and adults at risk from fire.

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improvement to be good

Two children have had patterns of missing-from-home episodes, which have generally been responded to well by the adults. Where there was a lapse in judgement, this was addressed by the manager in team meetings and supervision sessions. Both children’s missing-from-home episodes have significantly reduced.

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improvement to be good

Adults are effectively supporting one child who was being criminally exploited and risks for that child have reduced.

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

The home is managed by a registered manager. Throughout the inspection, the manager welcomed feedback and fully engaged in the process. It is evident that he wants to do his best for the children in the home.

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

When incidents occur, there is timely management oversight. However, this is not always reflective and does not necessarily lead to a review of practice.

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

Adults describe the manager as ‘supportive’. He prioritises adults’ supervision and support. However, recordings of supervision are an area for development as they do not accurately reflect the discussions and directions given to the adults.

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

Specific training on substance misuse, through the provider’s online training portal, has been identified for adults to undertake. However, only three members of staff have completed this training so far. A further five are yet to complete the training, including the manager.

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

Four members of the staff team have not yet attained a relevant level 3 qualification, with two of these being out of the necessary time frame.

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

Team meetings take place frequently. However, records of these meetings do not detail discussions about the children’s care and evidence how adult’s ideas and skill sets are being utilised to improve care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2739974 5 Adults say that they like working in this home. They are supportive of each other and speak fondly about the children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2739974 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them 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

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose; and

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Requirement Due date

protect and promote each child’s welfare. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children receive care that is personalised to their individual needs. Additionally, ensure that adults are aware of the children’s whereabouts, friendships and associates online and in the community. 2 December 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

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; 7 October 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2739974 7 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

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies; 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)(vii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that practices are in place to prevent children from obtaining and smoking illegal drugs in the home, as far as is reasonably practicable. In addition, ensure that there is protocol in place for the safe storage of lighters and matches so that children do not have access to these without adults being aware.

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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

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff are enabled to complete the required residential childcare qualification in the necessary 7 October 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2739974 8 timescales, and complete training in relation to supporting children who misuse substances.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff support children when they are not in education to engage in suitable structured activities, providing them with a positive structure and routine to their day. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.15)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that supervision is effective, of good quality and clear about further actions they need to take. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.4)

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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: 2739974 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Lily Residential Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Spirare Limited, Mey House, Bridport Road, Poundbury, Dorchester DT1 3QY

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Post vacant (Laura Begbie appointed)

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Inspector

Katie Ratcliffe, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2739974 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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