Dirty private children's home condemned by Ofsted
Published by Professional Social Work magazine, 10 August, 2022
A private children's home in Birmingham housing four children with trauma and complex needs has been condemned as inadequate by Ofsted.
The home run by DMR Services was found to have "serious and widespread failures that mean children are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded".
In addition "the care and experiences of children are poor and they are not making progress".
Conditions at the home have deteriorated since a 'good' rating in June 2021. Since then, inadequate leadership and management has compromised children's safety, according to the report.
The home is "dirty and in a poor state. Children's bedrooms have mould on the window frames and ledges, there are stains on the carpets and there are marks and damage to the walls. The condition of the home environment does not help children to feel valued."
The report also lists mould in bathrooms, dirty toilets, dirty dining facilities, and bare living areas.
Staff are "not consistent in their approach to supporting children" and the registered manager has not done a quality of care review or updated children's placement plans.
Inspectors ruled the home was 'inadequate' on all three key measures of: overall experiences and progress of children and young people; how well children and young people are helped and protected; and the effectiveness of leaders and managers.
Birmingham's Children's Trust has confirmed the children will remain at the home, with no plans to move them.
The news comes as Ofsted revealed the number of unregistered children’s homes more than doubled from 2020-21 to 2021-22.
In its annual children’s social care data report, Ofsted said it had found 292 settings that should have been registered as children’s homes following investigation in 2021-22, up from 136 in 2020-21.
And the number of children waiting for a place in a secure children’s home has doubled in the past year. Around 50 children each day are waiting for a place in secure accommodation – an increase from 25 last year.
The Local Government Association is calling for the introduction of a national commissioning service.