Children's Home run by Young Foundations Limited in Darlington

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 1 SC061439 Registered Provider: Young Foundations Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a private provider. It provides care for up to five children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is no longer working in the home but has not yet resigned their registration.

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This monitoring visit

An assurance inspection took place on 13 February 2025. At that visit, the inspector found serious and widespread concerns. A case review on 19 February 2025 decided that three compliance notices would be issued in relation to Regulations 12, 13 and 20. This monitoring visit was undertaken to review the provider’s compliance with these notices.

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This monitoring visit

Senior leaders have made changes to the management structure of the home. The registered manager is no longer working in the home, and a new responsible individual has begun their role. The responsible individual visits the home regularly and has arranged for additional support for the new manager and her staff team.

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This monitoring visit

The new manager has started to implement systems to improve management oversight of the home. However, they are not fully operational and therefore not yet effective. Consequently, there continue to be shortfalls that are not identified or addressed. For example, a serious incident did not have a manager’s review and risk assessments were not updated.

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This monitoring visit

Risk assessments and behaviour management plans do not contain all the necessary information to help staff care for and protect children effectively. Risk assessments do not identify actions that staff should take to keep children safe. As a result, one child was able to access a hazardous substance and needed to attend an accident and emergency department for treatment. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 2 Since the last inspection, physical intervention has been used to prevent children from leaving the home and to escort a child to a car. However, the new manager is taking action to ensure that the use of physical restraint is a proportionate response to an immediate risk of harm. This shortfall was subject to a compliance notice and remains as a requirement that will be reviewed at the next inspection.

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This monitoring visit

Children are sometimes cared for overnight by agency staff whom they had never met. One child felt unsafe and called the police, as there were no familiar adults in the home that were known to them. A senior staff member arrived the following morning and found the child in distress and having had no sleep. This does not demonstrate that the home prioritises the well-being of children or considers their views and wishes related to their care.

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This monitoring visit

Staff are not provided with clear directions on how to respond when children are missing from home. The information that staff refer to when a child is missing from home is contradictory and creates confusion for those caring for children. This means that staff are not following a consistent approach when responding to children who are missing from home, which increases their risk.

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This monitoring visit

Following a case review held on 8 April 2025, it was agreed that the compliance notice issued in relation to Regulation 20 has been met. However, the provider has not met all the steps within the compliance notices issued under Regulations 12 and 13, and these have been reissued. The requirements issued at the last inspection have not been reviewed and are therefore also restated. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/07/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 28/11/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 04/10/2022 Full Good 14/06/2022 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 4

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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 with 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

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

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; and

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This compliance notice has been reissued. 1 June 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; 1 June 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 5 and 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

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

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

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to 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. (Regulation13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This compliance notice has been reissued. Restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purpose of preventing—

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Requirement Due date

injury to any person (including the child);

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Requirement Due date

serious damage to the property of any person (including the child).

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate. (Regulation 20 (1)(a)(b) (2)) 1 June 2025

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

that staff— 1 June 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 6 understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible; and

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(iii)(iv)(v)(viii)(x))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular the registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

medicine which is prescribed for a child is administered as prescribed to the child for whom it is prescribed and to no other child; and

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Requirement Due date

a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 1 June 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 1 June 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 7 *These requirements are subject of a compliance notice.

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 8

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Childre’s home details

Registered provider: Young Foundations Limited

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Childre’s home details

Registered provider address: Alexander House, Highfield Park, Llandrynog, Denbighshire, Wales LL16 4LU

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Inspector

Lee Riley, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC061439 9 regulates 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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