CSCI Speaks Out On Single-Place Homes

Children with extreme, and sometimes very complex needs are being placed in single-place children’s homes without a clear idea of the impact that these placements have on those individuals, says a new report by CSCI, the social care watchdog for England.

{mosimage}Many of these children may have emotional or behavioural difficulties, learning disabilities and mental health problems. They may display challenging behaviour and may be difficult to control.

The new report: One-person children’s homes: a positive choice or last resort? questions whether local councils have thought enough about the outcomes for children who are placed in these homes.

CSCI Chair Dame Denise Platt said: “We don’t know enough about how children respond to living on their own in these one place children’s homes. While the overall number of these homes is still relatively small, there has been a growth in their number in recent years.

“It may well be convenient for local councils to place children with complex needs in these homes, but the impact on the children who live there is still unclear. These homes can be located a long way away from the child’s home community; and they are extremely expensive to run with fees between £4,000 to £6,000 per week. Are the councils who place children in these homes, or the children themselves, getting a good deal?”

Children living in one-place children’s homes may enjoy more attention from staff that work there, but can also feel lonely and miss the company of other children. Staff do not live in these homes and normally work shifts to supervise the children living there.

Evidence shows that children with extreme, complex needs may be placed in these homes at times of crisis, or holidays or for more long-term therapeutic stays.

Inspection reports show that one-person homes outperform larger homes on some standards but perform less well in a number of other areas. These include those relating to support for individual children, adequacy of staffing, staff training and competency.

The report concludes that:

• Every placement must be carefully matched to a child’s needs and be reviewed regularly
• The outcomes for children should be recorded and fed into local commissioning plans
• Local council commissioning strategies need to be more explicit about the use of one-person homes and based upon a proper analysis of the needs of children, supply of services and have effective monitoring arrangements

There should be no occasion where a one-person children’s home is used as an alternative to secure accommodation in that it places limits on a young person’s freedom without due process of law.

We need to know more about the outcomes for children and whether the money spent in this could be spend in other ways to better effect.