Children's Home run by Kingston upon Hull City Council in Kingston upon Hull

Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 1 Registered provider: Hull City Council

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and run by a local authority. It provides care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Two children have lived at the home since the last inspection. There was one child living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in November 2024.

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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: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/05/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 26/09/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 3

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improvement to be good

Children’s experiences of living at this home are varied. Significant staffing changes have had an impact on the continuity of care for the child currently living in the home. Some staff have left or refused to work at the home due to the impact of inconsistent staffing. There is a lack of confidence in the team in being able to meet the child’s complex needs. Some staff working with the child have a limited understanding of the child’s needs. This level of disruption has impacted on the child’s experience and ability to develop trusting relationships across the team. A couple of permanent members of staff do offer the child some familiarity.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not fully understand the child’s plan or how to help them. There have been serious incidents involving agency staff or staff from other homes that have escalated due to their inexperience of caring for the child and subsequent lack of understanding about the child’s needs. This does not help the child to develop a sense of permanence and belonging.

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improvement to be good

Children have had different experiences living at the home and have developed trusting relationships with some staff. This has helped them to communicate their worries openly. The manager is committed to supporting children to build trusting relationships at a pace that is right for them and is striving to establish stability in the team.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported to access the right educational provision for them. Staff work with education professionals to help children overcome barriers to attendance. This has helped children to improve school attendance. For the current child, managers are working with education colleagues to create a pathway back into formal education.

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improvement to be good

The child currently living at the home is in good health. Staff ensure that the child has access to primary health care services and more specialist help that includes the child and adolescent mental health service, for when they are ready to engage.

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improvement to be good

Staff offer the children a range of activities of their choice and relevant to their interests. Staff use these opportunities to provide children with enjoyable experiences aimed at developing their self-esteem and to help them focus on positive engagement.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children when they move out of the home. Staff listen to children’s views and use these when planning for their care. Children are helped to develop the skills to navigate challenges they may encounter as they move into adulthood. Staff promote positive endings to the children’s time in the home and remain in contact to maintain important relationships.

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improvement to be good

The home is well decorated. There are areas of wear and tear that need attention. The manager has identified these and reported them to be remedied. Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 4 Improvements have been made to the way information is recorded. However, some records contain language that is blaming and not useful to the child. This prevents children from having meaningful records that are sensitive to their needs, and provide an accurate account of their time living at the home.

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improvement to be good

The core group of staff who regularly work at the home understand the individual complex needs and vulnerabilities of the child and want the best for them. However, there are significant gaps in the broader staff’s knowledge that means, collectively, staff do not use effective de-escalation techniques to help and support the child to manage their behaviour and feelings safely. Some staff have been injured as a result.

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improvement to be good

Bedroom searches should take place as an agreed safeguarding strategy to manage a significant risk. However, recordings of these searches show they are not consistently completed, and this has not been addressed sufficiently by the manager. This limits the ability of the staff to keep the child and themselves safe from the risk of harm.

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improvement to be good

When incidents occur, the quality of information recorded is varied. Some records do not contain clear descriptions of incidents or staff actions. Furthermore, management oversight has not identified these shortfalls. This prevents any learning being taken from analysis of serious incidents.

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improvement to be good

Complaints are rare at the home. When they occur, they are managed well and focus on children’s well-being. An allegation against a staff member was responded to appropriately. Relevant agencies were informed, and the outcome was explained to the child. However, the allegation was not recorded as such. This means the manager does not have accurate records of specific incidents, and this may impact on future reviews of staff’s practice.

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improvement to be good

Consequences are rarely given in the home. However, when they have been used, there is no evidence that the manager has evaluated the effectiveness of these in response to unwanted behaviour. This means the manager cannot demonstrate in their assessment whether consequences are reasonable and proportionate.

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improvement to be good

Missing-from-care incidents have decreased despite the complex and significant risks related to the child currently living in the home. Staff respond appropriately when the child goes missing from the home, and when needed, work with the police to return the child safely home. There are some gaps in management oversight of incidents and there is limited evidence that return home interviews are routinely completed after missing incidents.

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improvement to be good

The manager has improved the quality of children’s individual risk assessments since the last inspection. Risk assessments provide information about how staff should respond to Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 5 children’s behaviours and vulnerabilities. This means staff can access the right information to help them respond to children safely.

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

The registered manager oversees the running of two homes. Leaders and managers have not adequately addressed gaps in management oversight of this home. This is particularly the case when the manager is absent from the home. Furthermore, there is limited evidence of any additional management capacity to improve oversight of the home.

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

The manager is committed to the children and staff team. She is realistic about the challenges in the home and about the areas that require improvement. Professionals speak highly of the manager, the core staff and their commitment to children. They acknowledge that staff are working through challenging circumstances.

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

Staff receive regular practice-related supervision, which gives them opportunities to reflect on their practice. Staff say they feel supported by the manager. However, they acknowledge the impact of the staffing challenges they are currently experiencing.

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

Staff annual appraisals are out of date. This prevents the manager from being able to assess the fitness of staff to continue to perform their roles and promote continuous professional development.

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

Team meetings take place and focus on children’s needs and how to respond to these. The meetings include reflections with a child psychologist linked to the home. This provides staff with an opportunity to reflect on the needs of children and plan their care. However, low staffing levels mean the impact of these is limited.

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

The manager ensures that staff have access to relevant training opportunities. However, two staff members are over timescales to achieve the required qualification. The manager has addressed this concern with the training provider and ensures that the staff members have protected time to help them complete the qualification.

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

The manager has not ensured that the most recently reviewed statement of purpose has been submitted to Ofsted. Changes included staff who work at the home and their qualifications. This prevents the regulator from having oversight of the structure and staffing in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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

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

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)(v)(b)) 31 October 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

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 the home has sufficient staff to provide care for 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 31 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 7 and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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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)(d)(e)(f)(h) The registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(vii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the records of any consequences given to children to address unwanted behaviour. 31 October 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(c)) 31 October 2025

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(b)) 31 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 8

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that will be helpful to the child and distinguishes between fact and opinion. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person must ensure that records are kept detailing all individual incidents when children go missing from the home. Evaluation of missing incidents should be undertaken to identify any gaps in training, skills or knowledge for staff or to record and retain evidence of what worked well. This evaluation should inform the review of the quality of care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.31)  The registered person should ensure that notifications to Ofsted include details of the action taken by the home’s staff in response to the event. (‘Guide to the Children’s

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Recommendations

Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.10)

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Information about this inspection

The inspector has 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: 2712872 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Guildhall, Alfred Gelder Street, Hull HU1 2AA

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Inspector

Mark Cryer, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2712872 10 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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