Children's Home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited in Coventry

Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 1 SC482683 Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services 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 owned and run by a private company. The home provides care for up to four children who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is suitably experienced and is working towards a relevant qualification.

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Information about this children’s home

Two children lived at the home at the time of the inspection.

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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: 12 September 2023

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/09/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 06/12/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 15/02/2022 Full Good 10/07/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 3

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improvement to be good

Two children have experienced unplanned moves on from the home. On one occasion, the decision made by managers was due to a child spending most of their time away from the home. On another occasion, the group dynamics changed after two younger children moved in. When these dynamics could not be managed safely by staff and managers, the provider made the decision to move a child who had lived in the home for three years.

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improvement to be good

Decisions to move children into the home do not always consider the needs of the children already living there. This has an adverse effect on children’s experiences. The manager does consider the location of the home and consult with people who know the child well. The provider is contracted to provide care for children from the area where the home is located. This means children often move into the home in an emergency and without the opportunity to visit their new home and meet staff and the children who they will be living with. Managers and staff do not think creatively about how they could give the child information about where they are coming to live.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff seek the views, wishes and feelings of children through daily conversations. Since the last inspection, two children have made separate complaints. The manager takes children’s concerns seriously and seeks advocacy support from an external service. She writes child-friendly letters to the children to reassure them that their concerns are heard and outlines the action that is being taken.

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improvement to be good

Children’s education is promoted by staff. Both children attend school on a reduced timetable. This is reviewed regularly and attendance has increased. To further children’s learning, staff engage them in educational activities at home and in the community. When there are barriers to children’s learning, staff work well with external professionals to ensure that children’s individual needs are considered. One child has moved school, which has improved their learning experiences. They have received awards from the headteacher for their hard work and engagement in lessons.

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improvement to be good

Staff ensure that children are registered with local health services and attend appointments. Good daily routines help children to develop skills in managing their self- care. One child has grown in confidence and they are now able to make their own health appointments. Staff access guidance from specialist services to help them to support children’s emotional well-being.

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improvement to be good

Children benefit from participating in a range of activities and new experiences. One child enjoys sleepovers at their friend’s house, while another child enjoys activities with staff. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 4

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improvement to be good

Children do not receive good enough help to develop and benefit from positive relationships with the children they live with. As a result, children do not develop skills to enable them to resolve conflicts. Children have experienced name calling, derogatory comments about people who are important to them and, on occasion, there have been physical altercations between children. One child spent an extended period at their friend’s house to avoid peer group conflict.

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improvement to be good

There has been an increase in incidents requiring staff to restrain children to prevent them from harming themselves or others. Staff keep good records of incidents. These are used by managers, in conjunction with discussions that they have with the child and staff involved, to help them to evaluate the appropriateness and effectiveness of restraint practice.

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improvement to be good

Two children have displayed self-injurious behaviours, which is new for them. Staff can identify triggers when the children are more likely to harm themselves and then adjust their support accordingly, which helps to keep children safer.

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improvement to be good

Allegations made by children are taken seriously. Managers and leaders share concerns with relevant professionals and investigations are carried out. Staff have a good understanding of whistle-blowing procedures and their responsibility to share any concerns they might have, to promote the safety of children.

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improvement to be good

Occasionally, staff use consequences to help children to recognise unacceptable behaviours. On some occasions, managers and leaders have identified that these are not restorative in nature. They have discussed this in team meetings and developed a staff guide. However, this has not yet brought about sufficient improvement in this area of practice.

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improvement to be good

The manager has recruited new staff, and effective systems are in place to reduce the risk of children being cared for by unsuitable adults. New staff have some transferable skills but lack experience of supporting children in a children’s home setting.

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improvement to be good

Managers and leaders work well with external professionals when there are concerns about the safety and well-being of children. They have established positive relationships with local police. For example, one local police officer visited the home and allowed a child to sit in the police car and sound the siren. This good working relationship is helping to challenge negative perceptions that children may have about those who are there to help them and others.

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

The manager has worked hard to address shortfalls identified at the last inspection, however, shortfalls remain that impact on children’s experiences. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 5 Most staff have not completed training to enable them to fully understand and meet children’s needs. For example, they have not had training to help them learn more about attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and equality and diversity. There are other gaps in staff training which managers have not identified and addressed. This shortfall hinders staff development and means that children do not receive care in line with their needs or the therapeutic approach detailed in the home’s statement of purpose.

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

Staff rosters do not always accurately reflect the staff who are working in the home. In addition, there are occasions when staff on probation are leading shifts alongside staff from other homes in the organisation and agency staff. This means that children are cared for by staff who are unfamiliar to them, at a time when there are elevated levels of disruption due to poor peer dynamics. This further unsettles children.

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

Managers are not effective in ensuring staff attendance at team meetings. There are shortfalls in ensuring that important information discussed in meetings is disseminated to those who were not there. This does not help to promote consistency of care for the children.

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

Some aspects of oversight from managers are good. For example, there are strategic reviews of incidents to highlight risk and identify children’s changing needs.

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

Managers have strongly advocated for children when they did not have an allocated social worker. Despite challenges made to external professionals, managers maintain strong links with the local authority and key external agencies. Professionals said that communication is good, and the manager regularly consults them to review children’s risks and progress. This contributes to a network of support for children, with the aim of achieving better outcomes.

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

The home’s strengths and weaknesses are understood by the manager, who is passionate about supporting children. She is working hard to change the culture in the home. Staff feel supported and speak highly of the management team and of their experiences of working in the home, despite the challenges. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 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 positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual 18 December 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 7 and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful;

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Requirement Due date

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(xi))

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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.

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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

ensure the effective induction of each child into 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 arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)) 18 December 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

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

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. 18 December 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 8 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)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the records are kept up to date. (Regulation 37 (1) (2)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager must ensure that staff rosters accurately reflect which staff are working in the home. 18 December 2024

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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: SC482683 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 1 Tustin Court, Riversway, Preston, Lancashire PR2 2YQ

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Inspectors

Helen Dunn, Social Care Inspector Tonia Dubidat, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC482683 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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