Children's home run by Norfolk County Council in Norwich

Inspection report for children’s home: SC034419 1 SC034419 Registered provider: Norfolk County Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority home provides short breaks for up to four disabled children at any one time.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was staying at the home. The home currently supports a total of 12 children for short breaks.

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Information about this children’s home

There are two registered managers, who registered with Ofsted in December 2017 and September 2022.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 13 February 2024

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC034419 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/02/2024 Full Good 28/02/2023 Full Good 16/08/2021 Full Good 27/02/2020 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC034419 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child staying at the home at the time of the inspection was spoken to by the inspector.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff know the children well and understand their individual needs. Parents and professionals are positive about the support provided. Communication between staff, families and carers takes place regularly. Families and carers receive updates about children's stays through a communication book.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has been supported to access school. The child had been out of school for over a year. Managers work closely with the family and professionals involved to support the child. During the child’s short breaks, staff spoke to them about school to help prepare them. The school updated the managers about the child’s first day, which shows they have close working relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

New systems to track children’s targets and progress have been introduced. These are being amended to make them beneficial for staff and children. This system means that managers and staff can clearly review children’s targets and monitor focus areas.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is large and suitable for children’s needs. There is a sensory room and playroom for children to use during their stays. Children can engage with sensory activities on the walls of the hallways. Before children arrive for their stay, their bedrooms are prepared with bedding to reflect their interests. This creates a welcoming environment for the children.

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

Two investigations are underway regarding safeguarding concerns. One of these investigations relates to an incident that took place outside the home. The other concern was reported to the local authority designated officer appropriately when managers became aware. The investigation is ongoing, but the staff member no longer works at the home. The managers are keen to ensure that any learning about the incident or wider practice concerns are identified during the investigation. The investigation is being carried out by someone independent of the home. This means they have an impartial view and will be able to identify actions if required.

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

Staff attend meetings about children to ensure that they remain up to date with any changes in their lives. Staff work with other professionals to support children. For one child, a meeting took place to discuss known risks and to create a plan that was agreed by all professionals involved. This ensures that there is consistency in the care provided to the child. Inspection report for children’s home: SC034419 4 Children’s documents and risk assessments are individualised and provide strategies for staff to support children. The plans are kept up to date. There are several plans containing the same information, which could be confusing and time-consuming for staff to read and ensure that they have all the relevant information. The managers are considering how they can condense children’s plans.

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

Safer recruitment processes are followed for new members of staff. Staffing levels have been low, but a recent recruitment drive has been successful. The home does not use temporary staff. This allows children to receive care from people they are familiar with and who understand their needs.

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

Restraints are not used regularly and are proportionate. There is management oversight following all restraints. Debriefs take place with staff. However, the debriefs with children are not always robust. Some debriefs involve observing the children instead of actively seeking their views through their preferred communication methods. This could mean that children do not understand the reasons for their restraint and are unable to express their views.

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

The managers are very experienced and suitably qualified. They are aware of the home’s areas for development.

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

There have been two delays in staff reporting safeguarding concerns. Once managers were aware of the concerns, they took immediate actions. Workshops and team meetings have been used to remind staff of their safeguarding responsibilities. However, there are no recorded conversations with the staff who delayed reporting practice concerns. This could mean that staff do not fully understand their responsibilities and when their practice needs improvement.

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

One of the safeguarding concerns being investigated relates to night staff. Since this became known to managers, there have been very few actions to ensure that the night staff are following safeguarding procedures properly. This could mean that similar concerns may not be prevented.

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

There are concerns about team dynamics. There is no indication that these concerns are affecting children’s care. However, if these dynamics continue, it could affect the culture of the home and the care being provided.

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

Ofsted was not notified of one incident in a timely manner. This delay limits Ofsted’s oversight of the home. Managers took appropriate actions following this incident, and the placing authority was informed. This did not affect children’s safety or other actions taken by the provider.

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

Supervision sessions and team meetings take place regularly. These meetings give staff a chance to discuss the children they support. Appraisals take place annually for staff. Inspection report for children’s home: SC034419 5 Appraisals do not include feedback from professionals, colleagues or children. This limits staff’s ability to fully reflect on their practice and identify areas for development.

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

Staff receive relevant training. There is a clear training offer for staff, and a new training matrix will make this training easier for managers to monitor. New staff follow a clear induction. This is currently being redeveloped to make it more robust to support new staff to learn their roles and gain confidence.

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

The managers have oversight of all incidents. They have implemented some changes in response to concerns about delays in reporting matters. A regular telephone call from staff to the on-call manager before the home closes at the weekend is now in place to ensure that managers are aware of what has been happening at the home. This will help to avoid any future delays in them being aware of concerns. Inspection report for children’s home: SC034419 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 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

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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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;

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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 premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff report safeguarding concerns promptly and that the actions from the fire risk assessment are addressed or considered by a fire professional if the manager does not feel that they are required. 28 March 2025

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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

promotes their welfare. 2 May 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC034419 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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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

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)(b)(c)(f)(h))

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children have the opportunity to express their feelings about their experience of a restraint as soon as is practicable, ideally within 24 hours of the restraint incident, taking the age of the child and the circumstances of the restraint into account. If it is deemed inappropriate to talk to the child about the restraint, the manager should include the reasons for this decision in their management oversight. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 50, paragraph 9.60)  The registered person should ensure that all staff, including the registered manager, have their performance and fitness to carry out their role formally appraised at least once annually. This appraisal should consider, when reasonable and practical, the views of other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year and children in the home’s care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations,

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Recommendations

including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)  The registered person should ensure that notifications to Ofsted are made promptly. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.13)

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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: SC034419 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Norfolk County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Martineau Lane, Norwich, Norfolk NR1 2DH

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Nicola King and Claire Pooley

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Inspector

Leanne Lyon, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC034419 9 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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