Foundations Derby

Inspection report for residential family centre: Foundations Derby 1 Foundations Derby Progressive Care Limited 60 Village Street, Derby, DE23 8SZ Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential family centre

The family centre is privately owned and is registered to provide accommodation for up to 10 families at one time.

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Information about this residential family centre

There were four families living at the centre at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this residential family centre

The manager is not yet registered with Ofsted.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and parents, taking into account requires improvement to be good

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Overall experiences and progress of

How well children and parents are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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Overall experiences and progress of

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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Overall experiences and progress of

The residential family centre is not yet delivering good assessments, help and care for children and parents. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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Overall experiences and progress of

Date of previous inspection: 15 May 2024

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Overall experiences and progress of

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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Overall experiences and progress of

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for residential family centre: Foundations Derby 2

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improvement to be good

The quality of families’ assessments is variable. Some assessments are well informed, resulting in an evidence-based and evaluative report. Local authorities have provided positive feedback about the work undertaken. However, one ongoing assessment is weak. Information gathered in assessment sessions is not sufficiently detailed and does not reflect areas of risk and vulnerability well enough. The local authority is disappointed with the assessment work so far, as there is potential for delay in the court timetable as a result. Managers have been made aware of the concerns and are working to rectify these following inspection.

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improvement to be good

Social workers undertaking assessments are newly qualified. They have received training in the centre’s model of assessment. However, they are not yet confident in their roles. Their support needs have recently been identified and a more experienced social worker is now co-working their assessments. The social work managers have arranged additional support and training, which is currently being embedded.

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improvement to be good

Families say that they have a positive experience at the centre. Staff are supportive and available when needed. Families have access to their records and can comment on the content. One family’s first language is not English. They have regular access to an interpreter, but not all written information provided is in their first language. This limits the parent’s opportunity to access important information about their assessment.

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improvement to be good

Parents are provided with opportunities to attend activities with their children. There is a well-equipped family room where children can play. Baby massage classes are offered at the centre, and children can attend playgroups in the community. One child attends nursery, which has ensured consistency in their education.

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improvement to be good

Some parents have had positive outcomes since the last inspection. One parent with two children who had significant health needs made very good progress. This has resulted in the parent maintaining the care of their children. Another parent is currently making the transition home with their child. When families move on, they are well supported.

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff work hard to keep children safe. They intervene in situations where children are at increased risk of harm. Staff work sensitively with parents to help them understand their children’s needs and develop strategies to care for them in safe ways. Inspection report for residential family centre: Foundations Derby 3 Managers develop risk management plans for each family. The quality of these is variable. Some plans are detailed and capture risks and vulnerabilities well. Others have basic information demonstrating a lack of professional curiosity about complex areas of potential harm to parents and children.

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improvement to be good

The previous manager did not respond fully to a situation when they observed marks on a child. They contacted the relevant professionals and ensured that the child was safe. However, the child was not medically examined following this incident. Ofsted was not informed of this incident until it was later reviewed by the current manager. She recognised that there were shortfalls in the response to this incident and is working to improve practice.

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improvement to be good

Staff respond well to incidents of going missing. One parent did not return to the centre with their child as planned. Staff endeavoured to maintain contact with them and reported the family missing in a timely way. The involved professionals and family were informed so that the family could be located and returned safely.

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improvement to be good

Overall, staff are safely recruited through thorough vetting procedures. There is an ongoing situation with one member of staff, which requires a risk assessment to be in place. This has not been completed, which limits management oversight of this issue.

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good

The previous registered manager left in November 2024. Other key members of staff have also left including a senior manager, deputy manager, social workers and support staff. Some of these are with immediate effect. The remaining staff have been impacted by this and expressed confusion about why this has happened. There is a new manager in post, who brings experience and enthusiasm. She has made a positive start, and the team is beginning to feel more settled. The manager is eager to make improvements that will benefit families and staff.

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good

New staff are being recruited, although this is not without challenge. It is taking time to appoint suitable people. There have been times when staffing levels have been under pressure. The manager and social work staff have covered absences to make sure supervision of families remains at safe levels. Leaders and managers are not accepting new families with high support needs until staffing levels improve.

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good

Staff have not consistently received reflective supervision, and the quality of supervision records is variable. Some records do not contain basic information, which weakens the accountability of an important process. For some staff, there are gaps in their supervision records. The manager has started to address these shortfalls, although is yet to achieve regular meaningful reflective discussions about families with support staff. Limited reflection can impede the ability of staff to understand the impact of their work on families. Inspection report for residential family centre: Foundations Derby 4 The manager is not yet routinely obtaining letters of instruction regarding the work they are to carry out with families. This is mitigated by planning prior to placements commencing. However, there is potential for misunderstandings to occur without this document, which directs work with families. As a result, the work undertaken could

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good

be more vulnerable to challenge in court and impact on the decisions being made about children.

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good

Leaders and managers are not yet making records of significant meetings, such as impact risk assessment panel meetings and decision-making forums regarding important issues that may require evidence of accountability. To date, this has impacted on the quality of a risk assessment for one family when they moved into the centre. This had the potential to affect the safety of that family and others already living at the centre. Inspection report for residential family centre: Foundations Derby 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, Residential Family Centre Regulations 2002 and the national minimum standards. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person shall prepare and implement a written child protection policy which—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the residential family centre from abuse or neglect; and

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Requirement Due date

sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of any allegation of abuse or neglect. (Regulation 12 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that children receive timely medical examinations when they have marks or injuries. It also relates to having effective risk assessments in place that reflect all risks posed to families. 30 April 2025

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Requirement Due date

The methods of assessment or monitoring must be capable of evaluating the parents’ capacity to change.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that conclusions or recommendations are made as a result of the assessment or monitoring and that—

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Requirement Due date

such conclusions or recommendations are objective and based on verifiable evidence; and

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Requirement Due date

the evidence on which they are based is capable of being presented in a manner that is clear, accessible and appropriate to the persons who will need to consider them. (Regulation 13A (3) (4)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that assessment reports meet the required standard to submit to court and contain clear evaluation of evidence gathered and recommendations based on the evidence. 30 April 2025 Inspection report for residential family centre: Foundations Derby 6 The registered person shall—

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Requirement Due date

The registered person shall ensure that all persons employed by him—

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Requirement Due date

receive appropriate training, supervision and appraisal. (Regulation 17 (1) (5)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that all staff receive regular reflective supervision that benefits their practice. 30 April 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the centre has a written family placement plan, in consultation with the placing authority and agreed, so far as may be practicable, with the parent(s) and, if age appropriate, the child. The plan should specify the objectives and intended outcomes of the placement, details of training, assistance, assessment, supervision and protection to be provided at the centre, and how the child’s welfare will be promoted. This particularly relates to routinely obtaining a letter of instruction from the local authority. (‘Residential Family Centre National Minimum Standards’, page 17, paragraph 9.2)  The registered person should ensure that the residential family centre has a record of the recruitment and vetting checks that have been carried out on those working (including as volunteers) for the residential family centre. This includes having a robust record of risk assessments in place where required. (‘Residential

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Recommendations

Family Centre National Minimum Standards’, page 22, paragraph 14.3)  The registered person should ensure that staff understand the nature of records maintained and follow the centre’s policy for the keeping and retention of files, managing confidential information, and access to files (including files removed from the premises). There is a system in place to monitor the quality and adequacy of record keeping and take action when needed. (‘Residential Family Centre National Minimum Standards’, page 30, paragraph 20.2)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and parents 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 Residential Family Centre Regulations 2002 and the national minimum standards. Inspection report for residential family centre: Foundations Derby 7

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Residential family centre details

Registered provider: Progressive Care Limited

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Residential family centre details

Registered provider address: 51 Attercliffe Common, Sheffield S9 2AE

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Residential family centre details

Email address: info@progressivecare.co.uk

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Inspectors

Laura Walker, Social Care Inspector Rachael Sprigg, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for residential family centre: Foundations Derby 8 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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