Children's Home run by Care Haven (UK) Limited in Stockport

Unique reference number SC065374 Inspection date 19/09/2011 Inspector Caroline Jones Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

p.1

Date of last inspection 29/11/2010 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.1

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.

p.2

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 to assess the effectiveness of the service and to consider how well it complies with the relevant regulations and meets the national minimum standards.

p.3

About this inspection

The report details the main strengths, any areas for improvement, including any breaches of regulation, and any failure to meet national minimum standards. The judgements included in the report are made against the Inspections of children’s homes – framework for inspection (March 2011) and the evaluation schedule for children's homes.

p.3

The inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding : a service that significantly exceeds minimum requirements Good : a service that exceeds minimum requirements Satisfactory : a service that only meets minimum requirements Inadequate : a service that does not meet minimum requirements

p.3

Brief description of the service

The home provides care and accommodation for up to five young people of either gender, with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

p.4

Brief description of the service

It is a detached house that is situated in a residential area and close to the town. The location enables young people to access local amenities including; health care centres, schools, places of worships, public transport, shops and recreational activities.

p.4

Overall effectiveness

The overall effectiveness is judged to be good .

p.4

Overall effectiveness

Young people make good progress in relation to their starting points and continue to develop in a warm, nurturing and supportive environment. They achieve better outcomes in their education, safety, health and emotional development. Young people feel safe living at the home and exercise choice and responsibility in daily living.

p.4

Overall effectiveness

Young people are central to care practice and they are cared for consistently to a good standard. Anti-discriminatory practice runs through all aspects of the day-to- day care and young people continue to develop an understanding of their background and personal circumstances. However, placement plans do not reflect this work and lack full detail of young people's individual needs for identity and heritage. Moreover, young people are not always directly involved in the formulation or review of the plan and have limited knowledge of the contents and purpose.

p.4

Overall effectiveness

Staff value the importance of building relationships with young people and work hard to achieve this. As a result, young people are settled, enjoy time with staff and are confident to raise issues or worries. Staff work constructively with families to support contact and they advocate for young people to ensure that they gain the advice and support they need. Championing young people's needs, despite barriers, is a key strength of the home and is on-going, in particular to securing educational provision for young people.

p.4

Overall effectiveness

The home is effectively and efficiently run by an enthusiastic, dedicated and hands- on acting manager who emphasises high standards of care. Good monitoring scrutinises the quality of care, and plans are in place for improvement. Analysis of trends is not fully developed and the views and feedback from family and partner agencies are not routinely sort to continually improve the service to young people. Additionally, the children's guide has not been updated to provide young people with information on how to contact independent advice from advocacy services and their Independent Reviewing Officer. The routine of locking the kitchen door in late evening is restrictive and does not allow young people normal movement within their home.

p.4

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):

p.5

Recommendations

 ensure that physical restrictions on normal movement within the home are not used unless this is necessary to safeguard young people and promote their welfare. Such measures are only used where agreed with the responsible authority and if appropriate the parents. Such restrictions for one young person do not impose similar restrictions on other young people (NMS 10.4)  ensure that the views of young people, their family, social worker and Independent Reviewing Officer are sought regular on young people's care, unless in individual cases this is not appropriate (NMS 1.4)  ensure that monitoring utilises the information on emerging patterns or trends to continually improve practice, including reducing incidents of missing from home (NMS 21.2)  ensure that the children's guide sets out how young people can contact their Independent Reviewing Officer and advocacy services (NMS 13.5)  ensure that young people understand the purpose and content of their placement

p.5

Recommendations

plan (25.1)  ensure that young people's placement plans contain full detail of their individual identity and heritage (2.3)  ensure that young people who have been excluded from school have access to appropriate education and training, so that they are supported and enabled to resume full time education. (NMS 8.8)

p.5

Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for children and young people are good .

p.5

Outcomes for children and young people

Young people receive individualised, child-centred care which helps them grow in confidence. They are supported to understand their background through meaningful contact with their families and individual key working sessions. Staff promote young people's independence and they are encouraged to take acceptable risks and responsibility. They are involved in the daily running of the home, cooking, shopping, cleaning, menu and activity planning. They participate in young people's meetings and contribute their views for change and improvement. These practices empower young people to have control over their own daily lives. Staff are proactive in ensuring young people lead a healthy lifestyle. They take part in regular physical activities including outdoor play, roller skating, swimming, and dance. Young people are registered with a general medical practitioner, dentist and optician and have individual plans to target their health needs. Medication is stored

p.5

Outcomes for children and young people

safely and records are maintained on the administration of medication. All staff receive suitable training to support health and well-being and this contributes to the development of young people.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people

Staff have high expectations for young people and promote their educational achievement. Most young people have an excellent record of school attendance and significant achievement is highlighted within school reports. Staff forge relationships with professionals and advocate on behalf of young people to ensure their rights are protected. Strategies are not in place to secure some young people's access to appropriate full-time educational provision where a young person has been excluded from school.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people

Staff value the importance of contact for young people in understanding their identity and heritage. Individual contact plans are in place with local authorities to ensure young people's contact is safe, enjoyable and positive. Staff facilitate contact with family to ensure young people remain in touch with those significant to them. Moreover, staff are knowledgeable of the emotional impact of contact upon young people and ensure that they are sensitively supported.

p.6

Quality of care

Young people enjoy warm, positive relationships with staff which are the foundation for the good standards of care received by young people. Staff are enthusiastic about their work and actively engage with young people to promote their development. Young people feel that they are listened to and that their views contribute to the running of the home. Young people comment: 'I like living here, we choose activities, they care; it’s ten out of ten.'

p.6

Quality of care

Good care planning and preparation contributes to the success achieved by young people. They are very well cared and have individual placement plans. However, young people are not directly involved in formulating or reviewing their plan therefore they can lack full understanding of its purpose. Young people have confidence in the complaints process and have used this to resolve their dissatisfaction. They comment: 'I say if I'm not happy and they sort it out.'

p.6

Quality of care

Young people live in a healthy environment where their physical, emotional and social well-being is promoted. They engage in activities, visit family regularly and have personal time with staff to discuss individual issues. Young people have access to health care services to meet their needs in all areas of their development. They are involved in menu planning and shopping to encourage their understanding of nutrition. Additionally, young people participate in educational activities to encourage their appreciation of different cultures and traditions. Staff champion young people's educational needs with teachers and social workers to ensure their educational needs are fully met. Despite challenges, most young people attend education provision regularly and make significant progress which is highlighted in school reports. Staff emphasis the value of education and provide learning experiences to compliment young people's education. These practices help

p.6

Quality of care

Young people live in a relaxed, homely environment which blends into the residential area. A warm, friendly and welcoming atmosphere was observed throughout the inspection. Young people have their own bedrooms that are personalised and reflect their interests. They are involved in decoration and furnishing of the home which provides ownerships and responsibility. They have space and privacy to see their family and to do their homework. This affords respect and dignity to young people.

p.7

Safeguarding children and young people

The service is good at keeping children and young people safe and feeling safe.

p.7

Safeguarding children and young people

There are good arrangements in place to safeguard and protect young people. Staff receive safeguarding training that is refreshed and have a good understanding of their duties in promoting young people's welfare. Young people feel safe and staff work with them individually to address any vulnerabilities and risks. Placement plans, behaviour management plans and risk assessment reports all provide a sound mechanism for responding to young people's changing needs for safety and protection.

p.7

Safeguarding children and young people

Respectful and warm relationships between staff and young people provides the basis for managing behaviour effectively. There are few incidents of restraints and staff are clear that this is only used as a very last resort to prevent harm to young people. Methods such as rewards, consequences and adult role modelling encourage young people's positive behaviour and assists them in accepting responsibility for their actions. Staff reinforce an anti-bullying culture and incidents are effectively resolved to protect young people. Sound arrangements are in place to respond and record missing from home incidents; however analysis of patterns and trends does not take place to reduce these further.

p.7

Safeguarding children and young people

Young people live in a home where health and safety matters are considered in ensuring a safe, clean and secure environment. Written records show that staff carry out routine health and safety checks around the home and safety and insurance certificates are up to date. Also, regular fire drills take place to ensure young people and staff are aware of an emergency evacuation route in the event of a fire. The routine of locking the kitchen door in late evening is restrictive and prevents free movement around the home.

p.7

Safeguarding children and young people

Young people benefit from a stable and competent staff team. A sound recruitment process, Criminal Records Bureau and reference checks are all undertaken before any appointment of staff is made. Staff are subject to an induction and probationary period of work to further ensure their competence in caring for young people. Records of visitors are maintained and identification is requested where appropriate to ensure the safety of young people.

p.7

Leadership and management

The leadership and management of the children's home are good .

p.8

Leadership and management

The home is efficiently managed and effective in meeting its Statement of Purpose. A clear vision of child-focussed practice is prevalent within the home's culture. The acting manager works directly with young people and staff to rigorously monitor young people's welfare, which ensures the good standards of care and the safety of young people. The acting manager provides leadership and accountability; therefore, staff fully understand the roles and responsibilities delegated to them. The children's guide is in place and accessible, however, it does not include information for independent advice from advocacy services and the Independent Reviewing Officer.

p.8

Leadership and management

There are various systems in place to monitor the quality of care which include monthly visits by a designated person in accordance with regulation. Although, monitoring is very good, not all the data is fully analysed to identify continual improvement. This means that any emerging patterns or trends are not always utilised to develop the service further and improve outcomes, for instance, in further reducing missing from home occurrences. Views and feedback from family and partner agencies are not routinely sought on the quality of care received by young people, which means that ideas for potential improvement can be lost. The acting manager is well aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the home and has plans for development of the service to young people.

p.8

Leadership and management

Staff confirm that they are very well supported and the organisation demonstrates a commitment to professional development. All existing staff have attained the required qualification and any new staff are to commence this with confirmation of their probation period. Regular quality supervision, team meetings and training opportunities all contribute to the competence of the staff in providing good care to young people.

p.8

Leadership and management

The diversity of the staff team ensures a range of skills and qualities in meeting the individual needs of young people. Staff have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities and have high expectations for young people. Recordings are good and provide a picture of young people's daily lives. Young people's information is securely stored and shared confidentiality to protect their safety and privacy.

p.8

Leadership and management

Equality and diversity practice is good .

p.8