Dunborne Ltd

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 1 Dunborne Ltd Registered provider: Dunborne Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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provider

This supported accommodation service is owned and managed by a private provider. The service can accommodate up to seven children in two shared or group-living homes that are limited to accommodating looked-after children and care leavers. At the time of this inspection, this service was providing supported accommodation for five children aged 16 and 17.

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provider

The service manager has been registered with Ofsted since September 2024. The provider was registered in December 2023.

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provider

Inspection dates: The inspection was announced on 10 February 2025 and started that day. The inspector was on site from 12 to 13 February 2025.

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Outcome

Inconsistent quality of service delivery adversely affects some children’s experiences, and this may limit their progress. Leaders and managers must make improvements. The next inspection will take place within approximately 18 months.

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Summary of findings

Although staff understand children’s needs, the support plans and risk assessments for some children do not provide staff with the strategies that they need to support children and do not provide children with an accurate record of their placement.

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Summary of findings

Leaders and managers do not always operate in a way that is consistent with the ethos of the service, or that delivers the outcomes set out in the provider’s statement of purpose.

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Summary of findings

There are weaknesses in monitoring systems, recruitment processes and the recording of staff supervision. This prevents effective management oversight and the ongoing development of the service. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 2 Leaders and managers acknowledge the work needed to improve systems underpinning the service.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children are supported by staff who know them well. Staff help children to attend appointments and meetings. These interactions help children to form good relationships with staff that they can draw on during difficult periods. For example, for one child, the positive and trusting relationships they have with staff have helped them cope with a recent bereavement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children have support plans that include how to develop independent living skills to take into adulthood. The quality of these plans is varied. One child’s support plan was extremely detailed, however, most are generic and not personalised to each child. They do not provide staff with guidance or information on how to support the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Records capture the attempts staff make to encourage and motivate children to engage with learning opportunities and employment and, in the main, children make progress from their starting points. However, two children’s attendance at college is inconsistent. Staff do not support these children to develop a structure to their day and, as a result, they are not engaging in activities to help them reach their potential.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children’s documents and records detail the range of activities that are available, including group cooking sessions and communal meals. When children engage, these activities give them a sense of community and help to improve their self- confidence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff regularly consult with children about their views and wishes, through informal and formal conversations. One child spoke of being supported to go to a job interview and said, ‘The staff are great. They help me with anything I want and there is always someone here for me to talk to.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children’s accommodation is well furnished, comfortable and homely overall. Staff carry out weekly room checks to ensure that children keep their bedrooms acceptably clean and tidy. However, the ineffectiveness of these checks was apparent in two bedrooms that were untidy, extremely cluttered and dirty. The registered service manager took immediate action to address this shortfall but needs to ensure that the monitoring of children’s bedrooms is effective.

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How well children are helped and protected

Children were positive about their experiences at this supported accommodation. They said they were happy and felt safe. A social worker for three children said, ‘I have no safeguarding concerns. Any incidents are reported straight away and followed up with actions.’ Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 3 Risk assessments are in place for children, but these are generic and do not detail how to support children’s specific risks and needs. It is also unclear from these documents if children contribute to them. This is a missed opportunity for children to be involved in discussions about their support needs. Despite this shortfall, staff are generally confident in supporting children when they are worried or upset.

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff benefit from a range of training that equips them with knowledge and skills in supporting behaviours and reporting safeguarding concerns. Records detail the appropriate involvement of police when staff are unable to safely manage or de- escalate children’s behaviours, and when children have been missing. Following incidents, leaders and managers are quick to review children’s placements to ensure that the service can meet their needs. This approach helps to protect them from further harm.

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How well children are helped and protected

There are safer recruitment processes in place. However, in three cases, leaders and managers had not followed their own processes. For example, they had not recorded dates of employment or the verification of references, and records of interviews were poor. These did not detail how candidates’ suitability had been explored.

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff have access to their own personnel records. However, on one occasion, confidentiality was breached when a document containing confidential information about other staff members was incorrectly shared.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The nominated individual and the registered service manager are committed to improving outcomes for children. A strength of the service is the understanding of each of the children and their individual support needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Monitoring and reviewing systems are in place but are not effective. For example, some records and documents for children were poorly written or incomplete, misplaced or wrongly filed, and management oversight was not recorded on some documents. Monitoring systems do not help leaders and managers to identify these shortfalls and means that the service is not consistently managed in line with the statement of purpose.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Staff said that they are well supported by the registered service manager and that they receive regular supervision. However, records of formal staff supervision and the frequency of these sessions were not in line with the organisation’s policy.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers respond appropriately and report safeguarding concerns. Records of these concerns detail how and when they share information with partner agencies, and how they contribute to keeping the children safe. However, a recent serious incident when a former member of staff placed a child at risk did not highlight the weaknesses in staff recruitment practice. While this has since been satisfactorily addressed, learning still needs to be embedded. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 4 Partner agencies say they have positive relationships with the registered service manager. Social workers say they receive effective communication, are kept up to date about the progress children make and are confident that their children are receiving the right support. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 5

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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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023 and the ‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’. The registered person(s) 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 supported accommodation undertaking that puts children first and prioritises their wellbeing and development.

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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 supported accommodation undertaking in a way that is consistent with the ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the undertaking’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

implement recruitment practices that ensure staff are suitable to work with children and to keep them safe from harm;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that arrangements are in place for the supervision, training and development of staff. (Regulation 4 (1) (2)(a)(e)(g)) 9 May 2025

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Requirement Due date

The support standard is that children receive individual and tailored support that meets their needs.

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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 plans for support are based on initial referral information, are meaningful and are created in full consultation with the child, taking account of relevant plans for the child;

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Requirement Due date

keep the child’s support under review, taking into 9 May 2025 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 6 consideration the plans for support, and relevant plans, to ensure that the child’s needs continue to be met and that the child is kept safe;

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Requirement Due date

ensure a plan for support is in place to support the child to develop the resilience and skills required to transition out of supported accommodation when the child is ready to live more independently. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(b)(c)(k))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraph (4), the registered person may only— employ an individual for the purposes of the provision of supported accommodation, or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work for the supported accommodation undertaking in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work for the supported accommodation undertaking, if the registered person is satisfied that the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character,

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the experience, qualifications and skills appropriate for the work that the individual is to perform,

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform, and

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 1.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may permit an individual to start work for the purposes of providing supported accommodation or, as the case may be, for the supported accommodation undertaking, despite the fact that the requirement in paragraph (3)

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Requirement Due date

the registered person has taken all reasonable steps to obtain full information about each of the matters in Schedule 1 in respect of the individual, but the enquiries in relation to 9 May 2025 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 7 any of the matters in paragraphs 3 to 6 of that Schedule are incomplete,

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information in respect of the individual has been obtained in relation to the matters in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Schedule 1,

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Requirement Due date

the registered person considers that the circumstances are exceptional, and

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Requirement Due date

the registered person ensures that the individual is appropriately supervised while carrying out the individual’s duties, pending receipt of any outstanding information on the matters in paragraphs 3 to 6 of Schedule 1, which is then considered satisfactory by the registered person. (Regulation 17 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(a)(b)(c)(d) (4)(a)(b)(c)(d))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the supported accommodation is a homely and welcoming environment and that systems are in place to ensure children are helped to maintain a clean, tidy and well-organised living space. (‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’, page 29)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 8

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider address: Southon & Co, 6-12 Parade, Exmouth EX8 1RL

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered service manager: Philip Watts

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Inspector

Linda Bond, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Dunborne Ltd 9 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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