Children's Home run by Coventry City Council in Coventry

Unique reference number SC414347 Inspection date 19/12/2011 Inspector Jacqui Gosling / Jo Stephenson Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 31/03/2011 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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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.

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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.

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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

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Brief description of the service

The home provides up to a 12-week short term placement for up to five young people who are aged 10 to 17 years and are of mixed gender. The service is operated by the local authority.

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Overall effectiveness

The overall effectiveness is judged to be satisfactory .

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Overall effectiveness

The home provides a supportive environment where young people say they feel happy and make progress. They enjoy mostly positive relationships with staff that are experienced, suitably qualified and able to recognise their individual needs. Young people generally feel safe at the home and staff have an understanding of their responsibilities in relation to safeguarding. Staff work closely with external agencies to promote and protect the welfare of young people.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people benefit from the application of clear boundaries and staff encourage the development of positive behaviours using individualised targeted behaviour plans. As a result, young people feel respected by staff and show consideration for others. However, placement plans are not in place for all young people. Young people are not given the opportunity to contribute to these plans or other records.

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Overall effectiveness

The manager has an awareness of the home's strengths and weaknesses. However, there is no development plan in place to ensure that the service is effectively maintained and improved upon. Robust monitoring systems are not in place to assist improvements and ensure that young people gain from consistent care. Some staff have not undertaken fire training.

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Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person/s meets the Care Standards Act 2000, Children's Homes Regulations 2001 and the National Minimum Standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

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Reg. Requirement Due date

12A (2001) ensure co-operation with the child's placing authority in agreeing and signing the plan for the child's placement prepared in accordance with the provisions in regulation 9 of the Care Planning, Placement and Case Review (England) Regulations 2010 (Regulation 12A (1)) 09/03/2012 17B (2001) ensure that within 24 hours of the use of any measures of control, restraint or discipline in a children's home a written record is made in a volume kept for the purpose of which shall include confirmation that the person authorised to make the record has spoken to the child concerned (Regulation 17B(3)(h)) 09/03/2012

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) maintain in the children's home the records specified in schedule 4 and ensure that they are kept up to date; this is in particular regard to a record of all visitors to the home and to children accommodated in the home, including the names of visitors and the reason for the visit (Regulation 29(1)) 09/03/2012

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure arrangements are in place for persons working at the home to receive suitable training in fire prevention (Regulation 32(1)(d)) 09/03/2012

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure systems provide for consultation with children accommodated in the home, their parents and placing authorities. (Regulation 34(3)) 09/03/2012

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Recommendations

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

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Recommendations

 ensure children receive prompt feedback on any concerns or complaints raised and are kept informed of progress (NMS 1.6)  monitor, in line with regulations, all records kept by the home to ensure compliance with the home's policies. (NMS 21.2)

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Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for children and young people are satisfactory .

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people make satisfactory progress in developing a positive self-view and knowledge and understanding of their background. They benefit from support, which allows them to continue with their education and develop social skills. Staff are proactive and encourage young people in promoting links with the wider community. Individual activities form part of evening and weekend routines for young people as well as group activities, and young people state they feel able to strive towards their personal goals.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are achieving educational outcomes based on their starting point and there are plans in place for all young people to attend suitable education provisions. Staff are proactive in securing educational placements and as a result, young people feel encouraged in their learning and skills development, and feel ‘they are gaining independent living skills’. Health plans are in place, which ensure that the individual needs of young people are assessed and met. Staff support young people to attend all their health appointments and the home has developed strong links with more specialist services. As a result, young people receive interventions that support their emotional and complex needs and are able to engage with these services. Young people are encouraged to develop an understanding of the importance of a healthy lifestyle and they benefit from consultation relating to menu plans.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are assisted to maintain appropriate contact with their family, friends, and other people who are important to them and staff support this contact through partnership working with the placing authority. Where contact is restricted, young people say that they understand the reasons for this. Feedback from parents' surveys suggests that they feel involved in the care provided for young people.

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Quality of care

The quality of the care is satisfactory .

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Quality of care

Young people enjoy positive relationships with staff, which enables them to engage and feel supported. Staff are confident in their approach to working with young people and have a sufficient knowledge and understanding of the diverse needs of individuals. As a result, young people say they feel valued and respected in the home. Young people have developed appropriate relationships with each other and this contributes to the homely feel of the setting.

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Quality of care

Young people are encouraged to take part in their meetings and state that staff listen to them, and take their concerns seriously. However, agendas for young people’s meetings are directed by managers and staff and subsequently young people do not always feel involved in the running of the home.

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Quality of care

The home has complaints policies and procedures in place. Young people state they are aware of these and understand how to use them. The young people’s guide details information of children’s rights and advocacy services, which are supported by monthly meetings with an independent children’s right agency. However, the internal feedback systems that ensure that concerns raised by young people are dealt with in an appropriate and timely manner, which will assist them in developing emotional resilience and feelings of self worth, are not in place.

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Quality of care

Placement plans completed by the local authority are not in place for all young people although internal plans are available. Young people do not effectively contribute to their plans and consequently they do not have a sound knowledge of the assessment process they are subject to whilst in the home.

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Quality of care

Staff are able to determine young people’s progress and identify areas for additional support and as a result young people benefit from a holistic approach to recognising future placement needs. Behaviour plans and reward programmes are individualised and detail proactive methods of supporting young people. Subsequently young people generally engage in these plans, which promotes positive outcomes. The home has policies and procedures on promoting a healthy life style and staff receive training to support health and well-being. Young people benefit from links between the home and health professionals, which ensure a holistic approach to their care.

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Quality of care

Medication is stored safety and administered correctly. Staff support young people to attend their health appointments and demonstrate a detailed knowledge of the health needs of individuals. Young people say they understand the importance of regular exercise and a healthy diet, and contribute to weekly menus and activity plans.

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Quality of care

Staff promote educational achievements for young people and support their school attendance through working relationships with schools. As a result young people benefit from consistent engagement, which enhances their skills and educational development. Young people state that staff have supported them with their attendance and encourage them to improve.

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Quality of care

Young people are provided with an extensive range of organised activities that enhance learning opportunities and develop independence skills and self-confidence. Staff provide activity plans for young people that reflect their interests and support their aspirations. The home also encourages group activities for young people, which subsequently help them to build sustainable relationships with others.

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Quality of care

Equality and diversity is established within the culture of the home and staff demonstrate that they are committed to continuing to promote this. As a result, young people feel respected and confident. Staff recognise individual needs and consequently activities and individual plans reflect the personal identity and cultural background of young people.

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Quality of care

The home is decorated and furnished to a suitable standard. Maintenance repairs are addressed promptly with minimal impact on the young people. Bedrooms are individually decorated to reflect the personal tastes of the young people.

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Safeguarding children and young people

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

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people are safe and say that they feel safe. Arrangements to safeguard young people are in place and staff have knowledge of the safeguarding processes at the home. They have received training in this area and this is regularly reviewed. Staff are able to identify the vulnerabilities of young people and protect them from the risk of significant harm. However, some risk assessments do not provide sufficient detail or adequate prevention strategies to safeguard young people.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people are protected from bullying. Staff are vigilant with regard to relationships within the home and good supervision levels mean that there are limited opportunities for bullying or inappropriate relationships to develop.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Policies and procedures support and promote safe working practices. Incidences where young people go missing are appropriately managed and sound liaison with local community police ensures they are protected as far as possible. As an assessment home, the frequency of young people going missing fluctuates with some months seeing a high occurrence while other months are low. Staff are aware of factors that may trigger the absence of a young person and action plans promote safety. Staff encourage young people to manage their behaviour, providing individual plans with identified targets. There is evidence to suggest these plans are effective for young people, assisting them to consider their safety when leaving the home without permission.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Staff promote positive behaviour and use programmes effectively to support young people. Individual plans identify the aspirations of young people. Consequently, young people are able to focus on the possible outcomes of following these programmes, such as financial rewards and specific activities.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people are encouraged to develop appropriate social skills and staff are trained in physical intervention techniques and aim to de-escalate situations that arise. Incidents of restraint are recorded in a central log; however, this record is not always supported by other reports that detail the situation and record young people’s comments.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Members of staff are carefully selected, vetted, and monitored to prevent unsuitable people working at the home. There is careful vetting of visitors to the home to prevent young people being exposed to potential harm. However, the log is not solely designated for this purpose.

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Safeguarding children and young people

The home environment is physically safe and general risk assessments are in place. Young people are informed of potential hazards in order to reduce risks. Fire safety records are completed and fire drills routinely undertaken. However, the times of these drills is not recorded. This means that young people may not know what to do in the event of a night-time fire or emergency and how to respond appropriately. Training records indicate that not all staff have completed fire safety training. Fire, gas, and electrical certificates are up to date and available.

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Leadership and management

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

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Leadership and management

Young people live in a home that meets the aims and objectives of the Statement of Purpose. The young people, staff and placing authority are clear about the facilities and services the home provides and subsequently the young people understand the purpose of their placement. The home has an accessible Statement of Purpose, which underpins this by showing a commitment to meeting young people's individual needs and to tackling any form of discrimination. Young people receive a young person's guide soon after their arrival; it is a suitable account of the aims of the home. However, these documents do not reflect the recent changes to the management team at the home.

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Leadership and management

The home has taken action to address two of the three recommendations arising from the previous inspection. Written permission has been obtained for each child from a person with parental responsibility, for the administration of first aid and non- prescription medication. The bound book that records the use of physical restraint, now clearly shows on every occasion the name of staff member using the restraint and the signature of the person making the record. The remaining recommendation to develop young people's meeting minutes to show that active feedback is being given to young people has not been addressed and is, therefore, restated.

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Leadership and management

The new management team is developing monitoring systems for the home after a period when only regulation 33 monitoring has been undertaken. This does not fully ensure that the monitoring of the care provided for young people remains in line with placement plans and the home’s Statement of Purpose.

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Leadership and management

The notification of significant events to the appropriate authorities is completed as required. However, such paperwork needs to comply with guidance in this area; specifically, maintaining data protection for young people.

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Leadership and management

Young people state that they feel that their views are considered. However, records show a lack of effective consultation with young people, their families, and the placing authority. Written records provide a picture of individual progress and assist the young people’s understanding of their life.

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Leadership and management

Staff receive training that reflects the service aims and state that they are able to request additional training to support the young people. As a result, young people benefit from working with a staff team with an appropriate knowledge of their individual welfare needs. Staff are supported through regular supervision, which addresses their training needs and they state that they feel encouraged by the new management team.

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Leadership and management

The home has had a prolonged period without a Registered Manager. The local authority have now recruited a new manager, who has submitted her application to Ofsted to become the Registered Manager as required. The management team have now set aims and objectives for development but these have yet to be formalised or agreed. Managers and staff recognise the strengths and weaknesses of the home and these are discussed in regular team meetings and staff development days.

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Leadership and management

Equality and diversity practice is good .

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