Children's Home run by Ethelbert Specialist Homes Limited in Kent

SC023740 Unique reference number 12 November 2009 Inspection date Mark Blesky Inspector Key Type of Inspection

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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You can obtain copies of The Children Act 2004, Every Child Matters and The National Minimum Standards for Children's Services from: The Stationery Office (TSO) PO Box 29, St Cripins, Duke Street, Norwich, NR3 1GN. Tel: 0870 600 5522. Online ordering: www.tso.co.uk/bookshop

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About this inspection

The purpose of this inspection is to assure children and young people, parents, the public, local authorities and government of the quality and standard of the service provided. The inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcome for children set out in the Children Act 2004 and relevant National Minimum Standards for the establishment.

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The inspection judgements and what they mean

this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is strong Good: this aspect of the provision is sound Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is not good enough Inadequate: 3 of 9 Inspection Report: SC023740

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Brief description of the service

This is a children's home for three boys or girls. The house is in a residential street in a seaside town, close to shops, recreation areas and the beach, with ample public transport nearby.

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Brief description of the service

This home appears as a well presented large domestic dwelling.

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Summary

This is an unannounced key inspection. This is a good home with some outstanding features. Young people are looked after with well planned healthcare and care planning. Staff work hard to ensure young people are treated as individuals and that their diverse and more idiosyncratic needs are met. This is evidenced by the amount of time and effort that the staff invest and the attention to detail. The importance of developing and maintaining relationships feature in much of the records and documents. Discussion and consultation support this concept. The staff must however, work in a more focussed and planned manner, to help young people develop current their skills and obtain new skills towards independency. Increased support and promotion of education within the home may compliment the education currently being undertaken by the schools. The overall quality rating is good. This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The registered person was asked to improve the recording of behaviour control and ensure documents that addressed young people being absent without authority was made clearer and detailed. It was recommended to the registered person that anti-bullying procedures would benefit from a dedicated method and system of recording and care planning records should be updated more frequently.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection, it was also recommended that 80% of the staff team should be qualified to National Vocational Qualification in caring for children and young people level three or equivalent.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The registered person has reviewed systems of recording and suitably robust procedures and practices have emerged. A dedicated anti-bullying procedure is now in place and documents to record and assess bullying are in place. Staff training continues and the home has now achieved the recommended 80% of trained staff.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The registered person has taken appropriate steps to improve the quality of the home for young people.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Food and meals are well managed. There is ample choice of nutritious and healthy food for all the young people. Young people say that staff meet with them and seek their choices. They say that there is always enough to eat and staff ensure that meals are cooked properly. All staff receive guidance in healthily living and healthy lifestyles. Staff promote healthy eating and 4 of 9 Inspection Report: SC023740 ensure young people understand the importance of a balanced diet. Staff have recently reviewed the manner in which menus are planned and are developing more colourful and interesting menus which offer pictorial images of food and meals. Young people's individual and more diverse diets are incorporated into all menus planning.

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Helping children to be healthy

All young people are supported by dedicated heath files and these documents contain historic and current health needs. All medical interventions, which include routine and more specialist treatments are clearly detailed in these health records. All young people are registered with core health services, which include the GP, dental and ophthalmic services. Young people are able to choose male or female professionals when they seek health interventions, subject to community resources.

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Helping children to be healthy

First aid and minor treatments are recorded in the homes records and all staff receive training and guidance in these areas. Medication is maintained in a secure storage area in the home and clear procedures ensure that medication is kept and administered safely. It was noted that labelling on a household remedy was absent along with limited guidance regarding a prescribed medication.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is outstanding. Young people say that staff members ensure that they have adequate privacy and confidentiality. Young people say that they are allowed time alone and staff always knock on their doors before entering. A private telephone is available for all young people and young people's information is kept secure. Access to files, outside of updating of records, must be authorised by a senior staff member and staff must sign to say that they have accessed a file.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

A complaints procedures is maintained in this home to ensure all young people are able to make a complaint or representation over any matter. Young people say that they do not generally want to use the formal systems; they say that if something is troubling them then any staff members will support them. Young people say that they may make complaint at any time and may use key working or house meetings as an opportunity to voice their concern. Complaints are infrequent in this home, although well managed procedures are in place to address any complaint.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Robust child protection and safeguarding procedures are in place. The home's procedures mirror those of the local authority and the home has a named, dedicated child protection co-ordinator. In addition all staff have mandatory training in safeguarding and the home has an on call and out of hours service to deal with any serious incidents or allegations.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

A dedicated anti-bullying policy, procedure, and a method of recording has been developed in this home and all staff undertake anti-bullying training. Any incidents of bullying are separated from day to day incidents in order that staff are able to support any young person that has been subjected to bullying. In addition, any young person that has been bullying is subject to supervision and the support to address this behaviour. The home make clear to all young people that bullying will not be tolerated and bullying is the subject of both staff meetings and children's meetings.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Young people are protected by well managed missing person's procedures. Detailed procedures for staff address the searching, reporting and recovery of all young people. Specific risk 5 of 9 Inspection Report: SC023740 assessment is carried out for all young people to consider the risks to them, should they go missing. When young people are returned to the home, staff will try to ascertain why the young person went missing and consider measures to counter such behaviour.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Well managed procedures and practices are in place to address young people that act in a less positive manner. The sanctions and the behaviour, which led to the sanction, are now clearly detailed. Young people say that the sanctions are fair and that staff do make the effort to warn them before a sanction is used. Sanctions are made to address negative behaviour and the manager confirmed that systems are not intended to be punitive and the measures deployed are used to modify behaviour.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Young people are kept safe by well managed risk assessment. Risk assessment is carried out for all young people and this considers historic and current behaviour. Risk assessment is insightful and detailed and includes situation and environmental risk as well as the impact of the young person's diverse behaviour. Health and safety and fire risk assessment has been carried out in this home and is regularly reviewed. Appropriate checks are carried out on electrical and gas installations with fire evacuation checks and drills undertaken regularly.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

All staff are recruited through robust employment procedures and a formal interview panel convenes to assess any new applicant. The human resources team ensure that all statutory checks are carried out before employment commences and the homes manager attends the formal interview. All visitors to the home must sign in and sign out and no visitor is allowed access to the home or any young person without supervision.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. All young people receive individual support from all staff. Young people say that all the staff are supportive and will always make time for them. Young people say that the best feature of the home is their relationships with the staff. As well as day to day support, all young people have regular key working sessions where they meet and discuss any matter they wish. Another function of the key working is to look at the young person's progress and to consider if the young person is meeting the aims of their individual care plan. Detailed and comprehensive key working records are kept and this process is well managed.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Each young person receives regular education. Provisions to support mainstream schooling and in house schooling are maintained. All young people have individual education plans and staff ensure that young people are supported in their school studies. Education is part of the young person's planning and review, as such, this is monitored by staff. Education is also monitored by regular liaison with the schools and staff, typically the key worker attends the schools for parental consultation and open days. Whist general support for the systems of education is evident, it was noted that there was little evidence to demonstrate practical and tangible promotion of study or homework in the home.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is outstanding. Care planning is well managed in this home. Each young person has a comprehensive and detailed care plan. In addition, the home maintains a 24 hour placement plan for all young people. This plan breaks down the broad tasks detailed in the care plan and provides an individual 6 of 9 Inspection Report: SC023740 and more specific profile of the young person. This plan considers the young person's diverse needs, routines, and personal characteristics. Care planning is of a very high standard.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Review is undertaken for all the young people and a review report is prepared by the home. This document is comprehensive and extremely detailed. Staff demonstrate great care in this area and work very hard to make this an insightful and useful document. Statutory review is clearly enhanced by this well prepared document.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Contact is promoted for all young people and staff receive training in promoting and supporting contact. Where contact is supervised, staff write detailed notes on the progress of contact. Contact reports are both observational and analytical and provide staff and the placing social worker useful evidence to consider contact progress.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Young people leaving and joining the home are supported by planned introductions and departures. Guidance is available for staff to ensure that newly placed young people are given extra support as well as those moving on. In the event of an emergency placement, procedures are in place to ensure placement review is conducted in accordance with the national minimum standards. Young people say that they are consulted when any new placement is being planned and that they have the opportunity to meet the new child.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

House meetings are regularly attended by all young people in the home. These meetings seek to consult with the young people and give them the opportunity to make individual or collective representations to the staff. In addition, staff use these meetings to impart information to the young people and sound out ideas and plans. Young people say that the meetings provide a good opportunity to raise issues and that the staff listen to them, value their views and record the events of the meetings.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The provision is good. Independency planning has been started in the home, but as yet clear plans have not emerged. Workbooks that detail life skills and competencies are well written and comprehensive. However, at this stage, plans are not in place and young people will be disadvantaged by this lack of clear planning.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

Young people receive adequate pocket money and support to buy their own possessions. The young people's rooms are adequately furnished with personal and individual decoration and furnishings. Young people say that they are allowed to chose their own clothes and often purchase items on their own. They say that they are supported by having much freedom of choice; they are able to express themselves through their clothes and their personal presentation. They say that they can decorate their bedrooms how they wish, They may save, or indeed spend their money largely how they wish. Young people that need more supervision or guidance in this area are supported by staff and typically their key worker.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The home is well maintained in both the common areas and the young people's bedrooms. Decoration is of high standard and the furniture in all areas is of high quality. The whole house is pleasant and staff has created a family atmosphere, similar to that of a large family home. This home provides adequately for the young people accommodated and in accordance with the homes services and provision detailed in the Statement of Purpose. 7 of 9 Inspection Report: SC023740

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Organisation

The organisation is good. The promotion of equality and diversity is good. The home has a written statement of purpose and a children’s guide which accurately describe what the home sets out to do for the young people accommodated and the manner in which care is provided.

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Organisation

All staff are appropriately supported by clear structures of management and leadership. All staff receive supervision in accordance with the national minimum standards. Supervision considers both the day to day elements of practice and it also provides evaluation of the staff member towards continued development of their practice. Formal appraisal takes place for all staff members and the assessment of this is revisited in the regular supervision and training programmes. It was noted that a matter was being addressed in supervision. This matter would have benefited form more structure and focus. All staff receive mandatory training during their induction period and continued support through instruction. All new staff members are placed on formal training with the children's workforce development council. Currently there are five staff in the home and four staff have qualified to National Vocational Qualification in caring

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Organisation

for children and young people level three or equivalent. This home has therefore achieved maintaining 80% of qualified staff.

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Organisation

There are adequate staff members in the home day and night and at times where extra staff are needed. This home operates an out of hours and on call service and as such staff can provide urgent support to the home if needed.

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Organisation

The home maintains adequate inspection under regulation 33. Each month a visit is carried out by an external visitor who reports on the conduct of the home. Action is taken to address any identified shortfall in service or provision. In addition, the manager conducts regular regulation 34 monitoring to identify any undesirable trends or patterns. Appropriate action is taken to improve or adjust provision where necessary.

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Organisation

Administration of this home is sound and the manager is appropriately qualified and experienced to manager the home. Each child has a permanent private and secure record of their history and progress, which can be seen by the child and by the child’s parents as appropriate.

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions, which must be taken so that the registered person meets the Care Standards Act 2000, The Childrens Homes Regulations 2001 and the National Minimum Standards. The Registered Provider must comply with the given timescales.

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Due date Action Standard

31 January 2010 ensure each young person has an appropriate independence plan to demonstrate proper provision for the care, education, supervision of children accommodated (Regulation 11) 8 of 9 Inspection Report: SC023740

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • ensure medications are adequately marked along with guidance for administration of medicines (National Minimum Standards 13) • ensure that education of children is actively promoted as valuable in itself and as part of their preparation for adulthood. Young people are provided facilities that are conducive to study and to do homework and are actively encouraged and supported in doing so (National Minimum Standards 14) • ensure that supervision is sufficiently structured and focussed to support staff development and evaluate practice (National Minimum Standards 28) 9 of 9 Inspection Report: SC023740

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