Children's Home run by Derbyshire County Council in Derbyshire

Unique reference number SC036262 Inspection date 16/02/2012 Inspector Elizabeth Tanner Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 25/05/2011 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

This children's home is owned and managed by the local authority. It can accommodate up to four young people aged between 11 to 17 years. The home provides care for young people with emotional or behavioural difficulties.

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The inspection judgements and what they mean

Good progress The children’s home has demonstrated continued improvement in quality of care and outcomes for children and young people and where appropriate has addressed all requirements and the large majority of recommendations that were raised at the previous inspection. Satisfactory progress The children’s home has maintained quality of care and outcomes for children and young people and where appropriate has addressed all requirements and the majority of recommendations that were raised at the previous inspection. Inadequate progress The children’s home has failed to address one or more requirements and/or has not met the majority of recommendations and/or the quality of care and outcomes for children and young people have declined since the last full inspection.

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Progress

Since their previous inspection the service is judged to be making satisfactory progress.

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Progress

At the last inspection in May 2011 the overall effectiveness rating for this home was judged to be satisfactory with three recommendations made. Two of these recommendations have been fully met and a third partially met.

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Progress

The registered persons were required to ensure any risk reduction measures used in the home did not lead to an institutional feel to the building. This related in particular to the window restrictors that were used in the home and to a safety rail at the front of the house. The window restrictors have been removed and the safety rail is in the process of being removed. The home is well maintained and young people are able to contribute to decisions about the décor. For example, young people were involved in discussions about the material for new dining room curtains. Young people are able to decorate and personalise their own bedrooms. This helps ensure a personalised feel to the home. Security at the home is not always maintained and the front door is not consistently secured against unauthorised access. This means the safety of young people is not as rigorously ensured as it could be. A recommendation made at the last inspection was that contact should be promoted

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Progress

and facilitated in a timely manner. This has been addressed. Care plans are reviewed regularly and practical arrangements about transport and flexibility about contact addressed. This assists young people in maintaining contact with significant people in their lives and develop a sense of identity.

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Progress

The final recommendation was to ensure the accurate recording of all medication given to children during their placement. Recording of medication taken is now effectively recorded and the recording monitored by the Registered Manager. However, it is not clear from the recording why some daily medications have not always been administered. For example, a young person may have been away from the home or refused to take their medication. This could result in staff and other professionals lacking clarity about medication taken by a young person.

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Progress

Information about the day-to-day life of young people and staff is not always maintained securely. The daily records of the home can be seen through the front window and easily read. Personal information about young people and staff could be obtained and confidentiality compromised.

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Progress

Young people are consulted and encouraged to participate in the day-to-day running of the home. The Registered Manager has arranged for staff meetings to be held following young people's meetings so that all staff are aware of the views of the residents. Young people are concerned about issues around staffing. They said that rules were applied inconsistently and that the sickness rate of staff meant that they felt continuity of care was sometimes lacking. The Registered Manager confirmed he is aware of some of these concerns. Matters are highlighted in the routine auditing of the home and plans are in place to address these concerns. The Children's Rights Officer attended a meeting with all the young people at the request of the Registered Manager and the young people say this was a positive experience and they feel their voices were heard.

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Progress

Young people feel safe in this home but are unhappy about some aspects of care in terms of the consistency offered. The Registered Manager is aware of these feelings and progress is being made in terms of addressing matters.

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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

(2001) ensure that all parts of the children's home are secure from unauthorised access. This is with particular regard to the locking of the front door (Regulation 31(2)) 16/03/2012 (2001) ensure a written record is kept of the administration of any medicine to any child. This includes the recording of when medication is not administered as prescribed. (Regulation 21(2)) 16/03/2012

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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 information about individual children is kept confidential and only shared with those who have a legitimate need to know the information. (NMS 22.3)

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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 progress made by the provider since the last full inspection, identifies any further strengths, any areas for improvement and makes judgements as outlined in the Inspection of children’s homes – framework for inspection (March 2011).

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