Children's Home run by Platinum Services for Children (Residential Care) Ltd in Staffordshire

Unique reference number SC378187 Inspection date 07/03/2011 Inspector Linda Brown Type of inspection Random

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Date of last inspection 29/07/2010 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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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 Crispins, 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.

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About this inspection

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 outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004 and the relevant National Minimum Standards for the service.

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The inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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Brief description of the service

The home is one of two children's homes located in a small cul-de-sac a short drive from the centre of town. It is registered to provide care for up to two children or young people aged from eight to under 18 years who have emotional or behavioural difficulties. The property is a four-bedroom, detached house that was built in 2008 and is in a suburban area with shops close-by and ready access to the countryside. Each child has their own good sized bedroom, one with an en-suite shower and toilet, and there are gardens at the front and rear.

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Summary

This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection.

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Summary

The purpose of this unannounced interim visit was to examine some of the standards in the national minimum standards for children’s homes and monitor the home’s performance against the action and recommendations made at the previous inspection. During this inspection all key standards in outcome area staying safe were examined. Judgements made at the previous inspection were good in all outcome areas. The Registered Manager, staff and young people were present during the inspection.

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Summary

This inspection found that outcomes for children are good and the service meets and exceeds many of the national minimum standards. The home is well managed and provides young people with a positive, safe and supportive environment. Behaviour management plans and assessments are completed that provide staff with guidance and strategies which enables them to manage behaviour well. Evidence is available to show that staff form positive relationships with young people.

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Summary

The outcomes for young people in relation to staying safe are judged as good; all other outcome areas were not judged. One recommendation with regard to night time fire drills is made in outcome area staying safe.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The Registered Manager is committed to developing the service to ensure that better outcomes for children are achieved. One action and two recommendations were made at the previous inspection and all have been addressed.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The behaviour management policy now contains photographs and details of the types of restraints that are permissible. All staff have been issued with a copy of this document. Placement plans have been reviewed and now show how the assessed needs of each child are met on a day to day basis. Several items of furniture have been replaced, to include, wardrobes and settees and the redecoration of a young person bedroom has taken place.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The Registered Manager and staff are able to demonstrate a clear understanding of the need to respect the privacy and dignity of the young people in their care. Issues of a sensitive nature are managed well. The manager is aware of the individual strengths of the staff and uses their skills appropriately to meet the needs of the young people. Placement plans show detailed agreements between staff and young people regarding expectations of general hygiene and access to their rooms. Should a room need to be searched, a policy is available for staff guidance and records are maintained. Contact arrangement are made at the start of the placement and reviewed appropriately. There is provision for phone calls to be made in private and visitors are welcome at the home. Young people confirm that they are treated well. Confidential information is shared and stored appropriately.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Good systems are in place to ensure that both internal and external complaints are dealt with. Records are maintained of the complaint, action taken and the outcome. Young people state that they would tell staff if they were unhappy about anything and are confident that their concern will be taken seriously and action taken to resolve them. Contact details are available for young people to access an independent advocacy service if this is required. There are no complaints recorded since the previous inspection, however, a compliment was received from a education professional praising the staff for the support and care provided to young people. The systems in place ensure that young people's concerns are listened to.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The welfare of young people is protected and safeguarded because staff receive the appropriate training in child protection and are aware of the policies and procedures to follow in the event of an incident talking place. Any allegations made are reported to the Registered Manager or senior on duty who undertakes responsibility for referring to the appropriate professionals. Staff are also aware of the dangers attributed to the use of the internet and social networking sites, they monitor this closely in order to safeguard young people.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The Registered Manager promotes an anti–oppressive atmosphere at the home. The risk of bullying at the home is low due to the ratio of staff to young people. However, staff are aware of the signs of bullying and challenge any form of behaviour that may cause concern to others. Young people state that they are happy at the home and would tell staff if they are worried about anyone or anything.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

There are minimal incidents of young people going absent from the home without authority. Robust risk assessment are completed which provide staff with detailed information and strategies regarding how to prevent a young person going missing and the action to take if an incident took place. Appropriate records are maintained.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Staff provide young people with a child focused, caring and consistent environment. The atmosphere at the home is relaxed and calm. Behaviour management plans work in conjunction with risk assessment offering strategies for managing individual behaviours. Staff understand the needs of the individual young people that they care for and are able to form positive relationships with them. Staff work on diffusion techniques and restraints are only used as a last resort to protect and prevent harm to the young people or others. Appropriate records are maintained if this takes place. There is a high level of sanctions used, however, this is balanced by a high level of rewards given. Many of the sanctions recorded are verbal reprimands. Sanction records are regularly monitored by the Registered Manager who assesses the effectiveness of the sanctions imposed. Behaviour is managed well and the reward scheme is tailored to the individual young person. This practice assists young people

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

to understand the boundaries of acceptable conduct.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The safety of young people is further supported because heath and safety records are well maintained and risk assessments are available. Annual equipment checks are completed by professional contractors. Records show that fire checks and drills take place within the required timescales. Scenarios are set for fire drills to ensure that young people are aware of the risks and the action to take in different circumstances to safely exit the building. However, a night time drill has not been held for the past twelve months. The good practice that takes place to ensure that young people live in a safe environment may be compromised if fire drills are not held during the night.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The Registered Manager is able to demonstrate a good knowledge and understanding of the recruitment and selection process. She takes an active role in the selection and appointment of staff. Recruitment files were examined fully at the previous inspection. Robust systems are followed in line with the provider's recruitment procedures. No concerns were identified. There are no newly-appointed staff at the home and, therefore, this standard is not fully examined.

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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):

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Recommendations

 ensure at least one fire drill is held at night in a 12 month period and the time at which the drills take place is recorded. (NMS 26.8)

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