Children's Home run by Child First Limited in West Sussex

SC044259 Unique reference number 10 May 2010 Inspection date Paul Taylor Inspector Key Type of Inspection

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25 February 2010 Date of last 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: SC044259

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Brief description of the service

This is an established children's home which can accommodate up to five young people aged between eight and 17 years old of both genders. The home's ethos is based on providing a caring and consistent environment, in which young people feel safe and secure. The home is a large detached house based in a residential area.

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Summary

At this unannounced inspection all the key standards were assessed. An assessment was also made on how the home has addressed the actions made at the last inspection when the home was judged to be providing an inadequate level of care to the young people.

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Summary

All of the actions from the last inspection have been addressed and this has led to improvements in how some aspects of the service are functioning, particularly with regards to levels of behaviour displayed by the young people and staff supervision and support.

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Summary

The overall judgement, however, remains inadequate, because hazards which had been identified by members of staff as posing a risk to the young people, had not been promptly addressed or rectified.

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Summary

Two actions have been made as a result of this inspection. One in relation to addressing and rectifying hazards promptly and the other to ensure that all sanctions imposed are correctly recorded. The overall quality rating is inadequate. This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Actions made at the last inspection have been addressed. The young people now have a room where they can make private telephone calls. They are reporting that sanctions imposed are fair and records indicate that all sanctions are appropriate.

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Improvements since the last inspection

All members of staff who work in the home are now trained in the same method of physical intervention. This includes agency staff.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The behaviour of the young people has been the subject of review and discussion by the staff team. This has resulted in the young people and members of staff reporting that the behaviour in the home is more settled than at the last inspection. Young people report that sanctions imposed are fair and that rewards are given for positive behaviour.

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Improvements since the last inspection

A rolling refurbishment program ensures that décor and furnishings in the home which need repair, replacement or refurbishment are now identified in the program.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The acting manager has instigated a supervision program and this has resulted in all members of staff now receiving supervision on a regular basis.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Reports written as a result of monitoring visits are now sent to Ofsted. The acting manager has a process in place in which he can monitor the areas outlined in Schedule 6. His line manager 4 of 9 Inspection Report: SC044259 is assisting him in embedding this practice so that all areas can be monitored both internally by the manager and externally by senior managers in the organisation.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The acting manager has applied to Ofsted to become the Registered Manager of the home.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Recommendations made at the last inspection have also been responded to. The home continues to offer a rolling program in training all members of staff to level 3 National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) in Working with Children and Young People.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Checks of fire equipment are carried out in line with the home's policy. This process has identified an issue which has not been addressed promptly.

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Improvements since the last inspection

All the young people have had their behaviour management plans reviewed and discussed by the team. This has led to an improvement in behaviour for some of the young people. Improved behaviour has led to a more settled home which in turn has meant that members of staff have not had to consistently work very long hours without rest. The organisation has also been involved in recruiting more members of staff to fill vacancies in the staff team. The duty rota has therefore not had to be changed.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Young people are encouraged to eat a healthy diet. They are actively involved in the menu planning and have the opportunity to cook for themselves as part of the process to develop their independence skills. Individual dietary needs, such as allergies or likes and dislikes, are detailed in young people's care plans.

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Helping children to be healthy

Health care needs are known to the staff who in turn ensure that the young people receive any medical treatment that they need. Appointments are made with the doctor, dentist and optician if needed and the staff support the young people at these appointments if they require it. Medical reviews are arranged for the young people, by members of staff, to be carried out by a looked after children's nurse to ensure that their health needs continue to be updated and met to a good standard.

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Helping children to be healthy

All medication is securely stored and there are clear procedures in place for its administration. The medication administration records are up-to-date and appropriately completed. Although a record is kept of medication coming into the home, the amounts in stock are now always audited to ensure that medication has not gone missing.

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Helping children to be healthy

The diet eaten by the young people, combined with the staff team ensuring that they receive good support and guidance in health issues, as well as attending regular health check ups and appointments, ensures that their health needs are promoted to a good standard.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is inadequate. All confidential information is securely stored in the office. There are clear guidelines in place regarding privacy and the need for staff sensitivity when entering a young person's room. Records are made when room searches occur and the young people are aware of why these have happened. The young people are able to make telephone calls in private using the room which has been refurbished for this purpose. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: SC044259 Staff regularly seek out the views of young people on all aspects of their lives within the home. This means that they can address any concerns and avoid them developing into formal complaints. The home has a complaints process and the young people are aware of it. Young people are seen to be confident in expressing their opinions.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Staff receive appropriate induction and training in key safeguarding and child protection matters. The staff in the home are aware of their obligations should they have concerns about a young person's welfare. The system in place ensures that the correct agencies are informed of any concerns and that the staff are able to offer support and advice to the young people if there are concerns about their safety.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The young people are aware that bullying is not tolerated in the home. No young people have reported that this is an issue. The dynamics in the home can be volatile and the staff offer supervision and support to enable the young people to address and resolve any issues causing conflict.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Clear individual protocols are in place in the event that a young person is missing from the home. Good records are kept of any incidents where young people have gone missing and relevant agencies and individuals, such as the police and parents, are promptly informed. The staff show high levels of commitment to ensure that the young people are encouraged to return home when missing and will go and collect them if necessary.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Each young person has a behaviour support plan which outlines what strategies are in place to support them during periods of distressed or challenging behaviour. The staff work hard to encourage positive behaviour and the young people earn rewards for achieving this.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Sanctions imposed are appropriate to misbehaviour and the young people report that they are fair. Not all sanctions imposed are recorded in the sanctions book.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

All members of staff are trained in the form of restraint used in the home. Records of restraint are detailed and include debriefings for the staff and young person after the incident.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

There are risk assessments completed on specific behaviours which the young people may exhibit and how they should be addressed. An analysis of a hazard identified after an incident involving a young person, was not the subject of a risk assessment and no control measures were put in place. This meant that the risk continued.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Regular testing of fire equipment and fire drills are carried out. A check of the automatic closures of fire doors carried out over a week before the inspection revealed that the one to the kitchen was not working. This had not been rectified at the time of the inspection. The lack of a prompt response to identified hazards does not promote the safety of the young people to an adequate standard.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The organisation has a thorough recruitment process. This ensues that all the necessary checks required by regulation are carried out prior to a member of staff starting work.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. 6 of 9 Inspection Report: SC044259 Young people have their individual needs met to a good standard. Consistently high levels of support are provided with key working and individual attention playing a important role of the service. Young people are living in a home with staff providing them with support and guidance to match their individual circumstances. Staff clearly understand the particular needs of young people extremely well and offer one to one support when it is needed.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Education is valued and promoted and the young people have this message clearly given to them by the staff team. All the young people have educational placements and are offered guidance, support and encouragement to attend them. Each young person has a personal education plan that clearly defines the type of programme they should be receiving. Liaison is maintained with their placements to ensure that any issues can be resolved.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Young people are offered a variety of activities and outings as well as being able to go out unsupervised with friends in the community. Regular visits take place to local places of interest, such as the cinema and leisure centres and the young people are encouraged to partake in hobbies such as fishing and ice skating.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Young people benefit from well planned individual support which encourages them to attend education and partake in positive activities.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Wherever possible all placements are planned in advance, although young people can be accommodated at short notice if the necessary information is forthcoming from the placing authority. Young people are only admitted into the home once a full assessment of their care needs has been completed. Placements are subject to regular review in accordance with legislative requirements and any recommendations arising are incorporated into the care planning process. Good quality reports are prepared by key workers on each young person's progress to present to reviews. Where necessary the acting manager will call for meetings involving relevant professionals, such as social workers and education staff, in order to discuss the developing needs of young people in the home.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The home endeavours to support young people to move on in a planned way which is commensurate with the young person's ability to cope with transition and change. Contact is maintained with placing authorities about the plans for the young people so that they have an opportunity to visit prospective placements. No young people have moved from the home since the last inspection.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Young people are encouraged, when appropriate, to maintain regular contact with their family, friends and significant others. Any restrictions regarding access are, when appropriate, made clear to all parties. Excellent records are made of contact visits when these have had to be supervised or supported. The staff's approach ensures the young people do not feel isolated from significant others. The young people feel that the staff appreciate how important to them their families are, even though they are not living with them.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Young people are involved in the running of the home and there are mechanisms in place, such as house meetings and key-worker sessions, to ensure their views are regularly sought. Young people are confident and they have no difficulty in raising personal worries or concerns with any of the staff. 7 of 9 Inspection Report: SC044259 Interactions between the members of staff and the young people are on the whole relaxed and good humoured. The staff work hard to ensure that behavioural boundaries are maintained in a supportive and reassuring manner and clearly understand that positive relationships form the basis of running the home smoothly.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The provision is good. Procedures are in place to support young people as they approach adulthood. This means staff are fully aware of the need to consider any life skills work or the necessity to liaise with placing authorities if a young person is due to leave care at any point in the near future. This approach also ensures young people are given every opportunity to engage in the process as early as possible and to contribute to any proposed plans. The young people feel that the staff support them well in developing their life skills and in preparation for independence.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The size of the home allows young people considerable space with good sized bedrooms and spacious communal areas. Each young person is afforded the opportunity to personalise their own rooms with posters and pictures, while they can choose the colour of the décor should they wish.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

An ongoing refurbishment program ensures that the home is kept comfortably furnished and decorated.

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Organisation

The organisation is inadequate. The home has a Statement of Purpose that details the nature of the service. The home has also produced a children's guide that details what it is like to live in the home, the routines and rules, and who the young people can approach for support and advice.

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Organisation

The home has sufficient members of staff to meet the needs of the young people living there. The staff team is diverse in terms of age, gender and experience. Members of staff receive opportunities to attend training in a number of key areas such as behaviour management, report writing, child protection and first aid. There is a rolling programme to ensure that all members of staff obtain the National Vocational Qualification in Working with Children and Young People (NVQ) at Level 3.

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Organisation

Members of staff report that they receive regular supervision and that the team and acting manager work well together in order to support the young people.

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Organisation

The acting manager has been in role for three months and has applied to Ofsted to become the Registered Manager.

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Organisation

Monitoring visits are carried out by a senior manager from the organisation. Reports written as a result of these visits are detailed and comprehensive. The acting manager has a system in place to monitor key records such as restraints, care plans, complaints and supervision. Hazards identified in other records, such as accident reports and fire monitoring systems, had not been the subject of action plans to rectify them. This has an impact on the safety of young people in the home. 8 of 9 Inspection Report: SC044259 Each young person has a dedicated record that contains the information required in Schedule 3. This ensures that the staff and other relevant professionals are able to access key information if they require it.

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Organisation

The promotion of equality and diversity is good. Each young person's individual needs are known and met to a good standard. It is clear that the differing backgrounds of the young people are valued and that the staff work to enable them to learn about their individual backgrounds as well as others.

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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

4 June 2010 ensure that all sanctions which have been imposed on the young people are recorded in the book kept for that purpose (Regulation 17 (4) ) 14 May 2010 ensure that all hazards which are identified as posing a risk to the young people are addressed and rectified promptly. (Regulation 23 (c) )

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Recommendations

There are no recommendations. 9 of 9 Inspection Report: SC044259

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