Children's Home run by Central and Southern Homes Limited in Devon

Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 1 Registered provider: Central and Southern Homes 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 provides long-term care for up to four children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

One child has moved out of the home since the last inspection. Two children remain living in the home and were present during the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted on 28 October 2024.

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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: 2 and 3 September 2024

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

At the full inspection on 2 and 3 September 2024 the home was judged inadequate. Two compliance notices and a restriction of accommodation were issued. Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 2 The compliance notices were deemed to be met by the provider during the monitoring visit on 8 October 2024. The restriction of accommodation lapsed on 28 November 2024 and was not extended. Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/09/2024 Full Inadequate 29/08/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 4

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improvement to be good

Both children were seen during the inspection and spoken with on their own. One child who raised concerns previously appeared less withdrawn and happier during the time spent with them. Another child was more open to having a conversation with the inspector and has made some progress in the past three months.

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improvement to be good

Overall, the daily experiences of children have improved since the last inspection. There are no longer physical incidents between the children, and the staff team is working towards providing more nurturing care. This is not yet consistent across the whole of the staff team and is not always evidenced in children’s records.

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improvement to be good

The staff have made some improvements in ensuring that the care they provide for the children is based on the children’s individual needs and considers their wishes and feelings. However, health remains a concern for one child, and the manager has failed to appropriately challenge and question health professionals around this. There is a lack of professional curiosity when it comes to children being prescribed medication, which could lead to children taking medication for longer than necessary.

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improvement to be good

The staff and the manager communicate with professionals effectively, and this has led to one child starting to receive tutoring as a form of education, whereas previously no provision was provided. This has resulted in the child being able to successfully undertake their mock exams. One professional reported that they receive good-quality interaction from the staff. A family member commented that there has been an improvement in communication since the new manager came into post.

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improvement to be good

Overall, the home environment is in a good condition. However, when there are repairs that need undertaking, these are not done in a timely manner. This leaves children being left with physical reminders of when they were struggling.

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improvement to be good

The staff have taken steps to support one child with their independence, including beginning to administer their own medication. There is a lack of exploration of potential risks in respect of this, and it is unclear what the content of discussions has been with the child due to poor recording.

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improvement to be good

The children’s views are considered in terms of decision-making. Staff consult children on changes they wish to make to the home, what meals they wish to eat and what activities they want to take part in. The ‘snacks’, for example dried fruit, are kept in a locked cupboard so they cannot be accessed independently by children. This is not regularly reviewed nor considered in terms of it preventing children from learning how to manage and regulate their food intake. Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 5 The staff have been supporting children to develop some practical independent living skills, such as cooking and washing clothes. The manager is yet to challenge effectively the lack of planning around one child, where there is a plan for them to move out of the home soon. This has left the child with uncertainty about their future.

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improvement to be good

. The staff have improved their approach to managing children’s behaviour, although this has also coincided with one child moving out of the home. Restraint has not been used since the last inspection

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improvement to be good

The staff understand some of the potential risks related to the children and some of their vulnerabilities. Some staff have important conversations with children to help them to keep themselves safe and encourage children to talk about their mental health and well- being. This is not yet embedded across the whole staff team, and the recording of these conversations is not consistent.

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improvement to be good

The manager has a lack of insight into potential and/or future risks in respect of social media and internet use. This lack of knowledge and understanding within the management team means that there is not a robust and clear approach to supporting children to safely use social media and the internet. The manager has taken some steps since the last inspection to improve this, but there remains significant work to do in developing up-to-date knowledge to ensure children are being kept safe online.

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improvement to be good

There has been a significant decrease in incidents since the last inspection, and when concerns have been raised, they have been dealt with appropriately by the staff team and manager. The staff acted swiftly and effectively when a child self-harmed and ensured that the child received support following the incident.

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

The new manager joining the home has improved the overall oversight of the care being provided for the children. The manager is new to working in children’s homes and is learning and developing along with the organisation. The manager understands the needs of the children. However, the plans for children are not always up to date, and there is a lack of focus on future needs and plans.

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

The staff report feeling happier working in the home now, and that they find the new manager to be supportive. Staff advise that the supervision they receive is effective and helps them to do their jobs. This has improved the overall morale of the team, which in turn is supporting a change in the culture of the home. These changes are not yet embedded or consistent across the whole of the staff team.

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

The manager understands most of the strengths and weaknesses in the home. However, the work in respect of areas for development is in the very early stages. The manager’s oversight of staff’s understanding of the needs of the children requires improvement. Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 6 The ethos of the staff and leaders and managers is now more in keeping with their statement of purpose and the aims and objectives of the home. However, there are still staff within the team who use a less nurturing approach, which does not fit with the organisation’s overall goals. This is yet to be addressed by the manager.

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

The manager, while new to the role, has started to develop confidence in challenging external agencies, but this is not yet robust enough, particularly in relation to medical services. Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 7

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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

In meeting the quality standard, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation.

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Requirement Due date

This particularly relates to obtaining the services required to meet children’s health needs. 15 January 2025

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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

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; 15 January 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 8 that the effectiveness of the home’s child protection policies is monitored regularly. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager should ensure that both she and the team have the required up-to-date knowledge to keep children safe online. The registered manager should have the skills and ability to identify any potential safeguarding concerns in relation to online gaming and social media use.

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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

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; and

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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)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers should ensure that robust monitoring systems are in place in order to frequently review the effectiveness of staff practice in relation to the care being provided to children. 15 January 2025

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children are able to access all shared areas of their home, unless there are specific reasons why this would not meet a child’s needs. This includes having access to food, such as healthy snacks, that are not locked away or kept out of their reach, unless this has been assessed as posing a risk Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 9 to children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)

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Recommendation

 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. In particular, ensure that records relating to the care children receive are suitably detailed. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 2717528 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Central and Southern Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Pitmaston House, Malvern Road, Worcester WR2 4LL

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Matthew Dangerfield

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Inspector

Helen Cushnie, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2717528 11 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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