Children's Home run by Homes 2 Inspire Limited in Nottingham

Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 1 Registered provider: Homes 2 Inspire 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 is run by a private company, which is owned and operated by a national charity.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care for up to five children who have emotional and social difficulties. Four children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. Two of the children were spoken to, one child was observed and one was absent from the home throughout the course of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has applied for registration with Ofsted.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/03/2024 Full Outstanding 28/03/2023 Full Outstanding 24/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 20/04/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 3

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improvement to be good

Staff work to build relationships with children and know most of the children well. Children can engage in a range of positive activities that reflect their interests and preferences. The manager and staff have created ways to capture children’s feedback and use this feedback to make improvements, where possible. However, managers and staff have made some decisions despite children’s wishes, such as a child’s animal being moved out of the home.

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improvement to be good

Children’s health needs are identified but not always addressed. One child’s quality of life is affected by poor mental health. This condition has not been discussed with the child’s doctor, nor has the child’s condition been reviewed by their doctor or been assessed for medication. Staff have made a further referral to children and adolescent mental health services. Efforts to promote the child’s engagement with health services have been inconsistent.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not always offer medication to children in line with prescribing instructions. One child is prescribed a medication daily and staff have stopped offering this medication on the assumption the child will refuse to take it. When the child requested to take this medication independently, no assessment took place to identify whether this was safe, and the child was told to wait until they begin learning independence skills when they reach the age of 17. The child has since turned 17 years of age and has not been supported to take their medication independently.

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff did not ensure that they had access to translation services. Staff told inspectors that this made it difficult for them to speak to the family and associates of a child when trying to locate the child when they went missing from the home.

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improvement to be good

Most children have made some progress with their education since arriving at the home. Most of the children are registered with an education placement. However, progress has recently declined in terms of engagement, and one child has been excluded. One child had not yet been registered with an education placement. Staff undertake educational activities with children if they do not attend education. Staff encourage children in a gentle manner to engage with tutors, but this is not always successful.

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improvement to be good

Children were able to personalise their bedrooms, but did not contribute their opinion to communal areas that were being redecorated or refurbished. Children have locks on their doors, but the children are not provided with lockable storage for personal items. The home affords children a safe and homely environment that is well maintained. The manager has recognised an area that requires maintenance and has arranged this. Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 4 Children are supported to develop their independence in preparation for adulthood and leaving care. The home captures children’s wishes in relation to their transition and aims to meet these where possible, working in a timely way with the placing authority.

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improvement to be good

Children spend time with their families, friends and other people who are important to them. These arrangements are assessed to ensure they are safe for everyone. The manager and staff have ensured that there are no unnecessary restrictions in place. Staff work with parents and other caregivers to promote meaningful and safe contact where appropriate.

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improvement to be good

Children know how to make a complaint. The setting’s complaints policy is easy to understand and accessible. Children’s complaints are responded to in line with policy and children understand what has happened because of their complaint. Children have access to an independent advocate.

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improvement to be good

When children go missing from care, the manager’s review of incidents does not identify learning or improve strategies that reduce risk. Risk management plans do not capture current risks, nor identify clear strategies for staff to follow to manage those risks. The service is reactive in its approach to missing-from-care incidents, and there is often a long period of time before staff look for children when they are missing from the home. This demonstrates a lack of urgency and understanding of risks for children.

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff do not consistently promote and encourage children to behave well. Staff have used financial penalties to make children follow house rules, such as tidying their bedroom. When consequences are put in place, these are reviewed to ensure that they do not become disproportionate, and reparation is requested of children for understanding and learning.

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improvement to be good

Modifications to the environment to monitor children’s movements, in this case hallway sensors, have not been individually risk assessed to ensure that they safeguard each child. The manager has plans to implement this into each child’s positive behaviour support plan.

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improvement to be good

Staff hold children when necessary to protect the child and those around them. When children have been held, it is proportionate, and all incidents are recorded. However, a child was held, which could have been avoided by staff. This was not identified in the review of the use of the hold.

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improvement to be good

The registered person does not always ensure that notifications of all significant events that relate to the welfare and protection of children living in the home are made to the appropriate authorities. Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 5 Staff understand the risks that using the internet may pose for children and manage these appropriately and in line with policy. When children spend a substantial amount of time on technology, proactive steps are taken to encourage socialisation.

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improvement to be good

Staff conduct room and possession searches appropriately. These are recorded, including the reasons for the search and include efforts to seek the child’s consent.

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improvement to be good

Children do identify staff as trusted adults. They do not report that they feel unsafe, and are able to raise concerns with staff.

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

Leaders and managers have not always identified shortfalls in practice during quality assurance processes and, therefore, missed opportunities to improve practice. Processes have not identified when staff have not followed policies and procedures, and learning from incidents has not been used to improve the quality of care or reduce risks. Audits in relation to the administration of medication have not identified when medication has not been offered to children.

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

Leaders and managers do not always identify when the style and clarity of records is not personalised. Records contain multiple spelling errors and incorrectly address children’s identities. This will not demonstrate care to children who request their records in the future. Although this has been identified by the management, actions taken to improve staff practice so far have not been effective.

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

Training is not always in place to meet children’s needs by the time they move into the home. When staff do receive training, development and induction activities, these are effective and enable them to meet the specific needs of the children they are responsible for.

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

External professionals spoke positively about their working relationship with the staff and leaders of the home. Communication between professionals is good and helps coordinate the care and support provided to children.

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

Managers and staff receive regular and effective supervision, and annual developmental appraisals, that are focused on children’s experiences, needs, plans and feedback. Staff’s development needs are identified through supervision. Staff take responsibility for attending and auditing children’s review meetings. Staff and children’s meetings take place to collect feedback and promote improvements.

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

Staff work collaboratively to provide consistency and stability. There are clear responsibilities and accountabilities, and staff have a sense of shared ownership about their practice. Staff feel supported by the management team. However, staff felt they were unable to respond to incidents of children going missing from the home effectively due to low numbers of staff on shift. Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 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

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. ( Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that c hildren’s risk management plans take into account information in the child’s relevant plans. Plans should be reviewed in a timely manner after incidents, and risk management plans should provide clear guidance for staff to follow to reduce risk. 31 March 2025

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Requirement Due date

No measure of control or discipline which is excessive, unreasonable or contrary to paragraph (2) may be used in relation to any child.

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Requirement Due date

The following measures may not be used to discipline any child —

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Requirement Due date

imposing a financial penalty, other than a requirement for the payment of a reasonable sum (which may be by instalments) by way of reparation. (Regulation 19 (1) (2)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children’s behaviour is not managed by means of financial penalties. 31 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 31 March 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 7 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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that audit systems are effective in identifying learning from incidents and omissions in care and care records.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI each other relevant person without delay if–

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involved occurs in relation to child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that notifications of such events are made consistently. 31 March 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that records are kept of the administration of all medication, which includes occasions when prescribed medication is refused. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15)  The registered person should ensure that the care provided meets each child’s needs and promotes their welfare, taking into account the child’s gender, religion, ethnicity, cultural and linguistic background, sexual identity, mental health, any disability, their assessed needs, previous experiences and any relevant plans. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.2)  The registered person should ensure that children are provided with appropriate furniture, such as a lockable cabinet or drawers to securely store personal items, including any personal information. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations,

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Recommendations

including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.19)  The registered person should ensure that the use of door alarms is rigorously assessed and kept under regular review to ensure that this is proportionate to risks to children’s welfare. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10) Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 8

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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: 1254745 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Homes 2 Inspire Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lumonics House Valiant Office Suites, Valley Drive, Swift Valley Industrial Estate, Rugby, Warwickshire CV21 1TQ

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Inspector

Vikki Thwaites, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1254745 10 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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