Children's Home run by Norfolk County Council in Norfolk

Unique reference number SC068076 Inspection date 09/05/2012 Inspector Dorrit Andrews Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 04/01/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

This children’s home provides short-term placements and is owned and run by the local Children's Services Department. It is registered for two young people aged from eight to 17 years.

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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 Adequate : a service that only meets minimum requirements Inadequate : a service that does not meet minimum requirements

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Overall effectiveness

The overall effectiveness is judged to be outstanding .

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Overall effectiveness

The home provides highly personalised care which takes full account of young people's individual needs and circumstances. Staff are fully committed to ensuring young people receive the support and guidance they need to work through past traumatic experiences and difficulties in their lives. As a result, young people have made significant progress during their relatively short period of living at the home.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people are genuinely cared about and placed at the centre of the home's functioning. Relationships within the home are warm, consistent, positive and nurturing. Young people enjoy spending time with staff. The team is skilled at engaging with young people in crisis and developing open and supportive relationships in often challenging circumstances.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people feel safe at the home and very well cared for. Robust care practices and effective, strong partnerships with other key agencies, particularly the local police, promote and safeguard the welfare of young people both in and outside the home. Young people report they feel safe and well cared for.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people's views and wishes about their care and the running of the home are actively sought, valued and listened to. They are fully involved in discussions about their care and planning for their future and are helped to understand why it may not always be possible to fully meet their wishes.

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Overall effectiveness

There is strong management of the home. Robust systems effectively monitor its performance and care of young people. The home has an excellent track record of responding positively to inspection. The manager has high expectations of the team and a strong commitment to the home's continuous improvement and development to secure positive outcomes for young people and improving their life chances.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for children and young people are outstanding .

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are empowered to make lifestyle choices by a well-informed staff team who are confident in discussing a wide range of topics with them and facilitating access to advice and support services. As a result, young people have made considerable progress in understanding their circumstances and have developed positive trusting relationships with staff. Risk-taking behaviour affecting young people's physical health and well-being is openly discussed and addressed with them. Such behaviours have reduced considerably. Highly effective working partnerships with the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services continue to support the work of the home and contribute greatly to the nurturing of young people's emotional and psychological well-being.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Individual health needs are extremely well met and young people are supported to understand the importance of regular health checks and a healthy lifestyle. Young people's health is improving as a result. As young people mature, they are enabled to take age-appropriate responsibility for their own health. For example, they are involved in discussions and decision making around prescribed medication currently supporting their well-being and engaging with specialist health professionals.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people's education is consistently promoted and supported by the home. Staff highly value the importance of education and its positive impact on young people's life chances. Individual effort and achievements are praised and recognised and successfully support the raising of young people's self-esteem and confidence. Recent requests to increase the education provision for some young people have had a significant positive impact on their progress and predicted attainment for the future. For example, they are recorded as making 'very good' progress and are now embarking on GCSE studies within full provision through good attendance. This is from a starting point of very poor attendance and poor engagement. Young people beyond compulsory school leaving age are actively encouraged and supported to pursue work experience opportunities, training and college courses.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are successfully supported to maintain and develop constructive contact with their families, friends and significant others in their lives. Contact is positively negotiated in partnership with young people, their families and key professionals to ensure agreed arrangements are clear. Family relationships between young people and their families are repairing and have considerably improved for individuals since being resident at the home. Improvement has been so significant for some that re-unification into the family home is being worked towards and supported by a planned programme of professional support. The home is successfully supporting some particularly complex contact arrangements through additional emotional and practical support. Such practices support the maintenance of individual placements to best effect. Young people develop and acquire practical life skills appropriate to their age to

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Outcomes for children and young people

support their self-care and develop their independence. Opportunities include preparing drinks and snacks, cooking, helping to clear away after meals, taking care of their rooms and managing their laundry. Recently, young people have been actively involved in re-decorating their own personal space which has been greatly enjoyed by all involved. Contributing to the daily life of the home in these ways also promotes young people's sense of belonging and helps to nurture positive relationships within the home. Individuals moving towards independent living receive an independence living allowance and are supported to budget and shop for food and personal requisites, and prepare and cook their own meals. In addition, young people are encouraged to arrange their own health and personal appointments as appropriate. Such practices empower young people to achieve greater independence and become more self-reliant. Regular key-worker sessions identify areas for further

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Outcomes for children and young people

development and provide an opportunity for discussing a range of matters relating to young people's emotional well-being and their future.

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Quality of care

The quality of the care is outstanding .

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Quality of care

Young people receive excellent individualised care tailored to their needs. Clear, consistent boundaries and positive engagement by staff enable young people to reflect, develop and progress. Staff work extremely hard to build warm and positive relationships with young people and, as a result, young people feel cared for and valued. Young people are fully involved in discussions about their care and planning for their future. Their views are regularly sought and staff help them understand why it may not always be possible to fully meet their wishes. When difficult messages have to be conveyed to young people, staff demonstrate patience and perseverance and provide time and support for young people to reflect on their circumstances and move forward. In turn, young people have increased self-control and are able to contribute to placement and residents' meetings more confidently and effectively. Young people report they feel listened to, things change as a result where possible

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Quality of care

and they receive an explanation when their ideas and suggestions are not taken up. Staff ensure young people are fully aware of the ways they can raise any issues or concerns about their care and young people feel confident in approaching staff with any issues. In addition, young people have ready access to the home's Regulation 33 visitor, complaints procedure and independent advocacy services.

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Quality of care

Staff have established exceptionally effective partnerships with a range of key professionals to support individual young people and the work of the home. Particularly strong support is provided by the local police in helping to keep young people safe and raising their awareness of the impact of risk-taking behaviour. This has included specific visits to talk to young people in general about keeping safe while in the community. Exceptional 24-hour support is extended from the local Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service to the home in their care and management of particularly vulnerable individuals. In addition, the home has been successful in their perseverance of ensuring same gender personnel from the emergency services, namely paramedics and police, attend the home when responding to the needs of extremely vulnerable young people. Such practices ensure young people feel safe and are able to accept and receive the support and treatment they need.

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Quality of care

Very good records are maintained of health checks and treatment, including times when young people have refused to attend. Records of accidents and medication are also well kept and regularly monitored to ensure consistent practice is maintained in line with the home's procedures.

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Quality of care

Equality and diversity matters are positively explored with young people from the beginning of their placement and are regularly discussed thereafter. Time is taken to gain insight into individual's preferred routine, family, likes and dislikes. In addition, care is taken to compile a more in-depth statement of equality and diversity needs to ensure these are identified and addressed in both daily living and care planning.

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Quality of care

Staff are highly committed to promoting young people's educational and individual aspirations during their stay at the home. Regular contact is maintained with schools and associated professionals to promote and support young people's attendance and progress. This practice is extended to include those times when young people are travelling to school from extended overnight stays with family. A computer with appropriate safeguards is readily available to support home learning together with a range of books. Very good use is also made of the local library. Involvement in physical and social activities outside of the home is strongly encouraged to promote young people's overall well-being and development of interests. The extent to which young people take advantage of such opportunities varies in relation to their circumstances and the proposed length of stay at the home. Staff acknowledge these potential barriers to young people and provide additional opportunities for trips out,

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Quality of care

swimming, cycling and engagement in activities closer to their own family home to aid re-unification and social development.

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Quality of care

Premises are of a domestic scale and are clean, tidy and in good order. The re- decoration of some areas and recent replacement of flooring to the conservatory ensures a welcoming environment is maintained. Each young person has their own room and report they are able to keep their possessions safe and their privacy is respected. The home is situated in a quiet rural area with good access to a range of activities and facilities in nearby villages, towns and city. The service takes community relations seriously and works hard to maintain positive relations with neighbours.

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Safeguarding children and young people

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

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people feel safe and are safe at the home. Their welfare and safety are extremely high priorities and staff are highly motivated to ensure young people's welfare is protected and safeguarded. Staff support young people to take controlled risks and negotiate their place in their community through participation in activities outside of the home. Comprehensive risk assessments and 24-hour management plans identify potential safeguarding risks associated with each young person. Strategies are put in place in consultation with individual young people to counter such risks. These include contacting the home at agreed times when out in the community and key-worker discussions about keeping safe. Restorative approaches are used to enable young people to develop self-control and socially acceptable behaviour. Few sanctions are used and the use of physical intervention is rare. There has been no use of physical intervention since the last inspection, or for some

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people who go missing are protected in accordance with robust procedures and individually agreed protocols. Staff work closely and effectively with placing social workers and local police officers to locate young people when they are missing and help them understand the risks and dangers involved. Young people report they are made fully aware of the action staff will take if they fail to keep to agreed arrangements for returning to the home or go missing. Individuals are responded to positively on their return and always receive a welfare-check visit from the local police who have a good rapport with the young people. Incidents of young people going missing have significantly reduced over recent time from it being almost a weekly occurrence to none. Incidents have related to one individual and have predominantly linked to staying out beyond an agreed time of return.

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Safeguarding children and young people

There is careful selection and vetting of staff and visitors are routinely asked to sign in and show their identification. These practices reduce potential risks to the welfare of young people living at the home.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Health and safety matters continue to be taken seriously by the home and robust systems support the maintenance of a safe environment for young people, staff and visitors. Servicing records evidence regular cycles of maintenance and young people demonstrate good knowledge of fire evacuation procedures and guidelines around safe use of the kitchen. Young people confirm that staff explain safety procedures and expectations when they first arrive at the home and provide regular reminders thereafter.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Accommodation is of a domestic scale. It is clean, tidy and well maintained. Outdoor areas are also well maintained and are kept free of safety hazards.

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Leadership and management

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

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Leadership and management

The home is effectively and efficiently managed by a permanent Registered Manager and operates to the aims and objectives set out in its Statement of Purpose. The manager demonstrates strong leadership and communicates high expectations of staff. Specific areas of responsibility are designated across the team to support the development of staff and ensure the smooth running of the home in the absence of the manager. Inspection is positively embraced and there is a strong commitment to the home's continuous improvement. There were no requirements or recommendations raised at the previous inspection.

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Leadership and management

Young people are cared for by competent and resourceful staff who are committed to meeting young people's needs and helping them to progress. Staff are sufficient in number, experience and qualifications to support the work of the home and are effectively managed to provide continuity and consistency of care. Individuals are clear about their roles and responsibilities and the aims and objectives of the home. Staff report they receive extremely good management support, including regular supervision and annual performance appraisal to guide them in their work. A rolling programme of mandatory and refresher training is provided to ensure care practices are kept up to date. Specialist training is also undertaken, including restorative justice, drug and alcohol misuse and sexual health. Arrangements are made to ensure the knowledge gained is cascaded across the team. Additional training is currently being provided in relation to equality and diversity matters.

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Leadership and management

The manager and provider maintain effective oversight of staff practices and the care provided. This includes consultation with young people and their parents. Clear, robust and effective systems are in place to monitor the care of young people and the performance of the home. Reports are compiled and matters raised are acted upon and used as areas for discussion to strengthen good practice and drive improvement forward for young people. A development plan for the service is in place and is reviewed annually. These practices ensure that the care provided is continually reviewed and delivered to meet the individual needs of young people and the development of the home.

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Leadership and management

Few complaints have been received by the home since the last inspection. These have been appropriately addressed and resolved. Significant events are notified to the relevant authorities to promote the safeguarding of young people. Appropriate follow-up action is taken where necessary. The home demonstrates continuous improvement since the last inspection. This includes additional monitoring of newly established systems such as revised recording tools, to ensure their fitness for purpose, the on-going re-decoration of the home and the provision of new flooring in the conservatory. Staff report positively on the recent changes made to the recording of individual work conducted with young people. Reports are considered to be more focused and outcome centred and are thereby contributing more effectively to placement meetings.

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Leadership and management

Records are well maintained, shared with young people as appropriate and securely stored. Case files examined reflect the individuality of young people and contribute well to an understanding of young people's backgrounds, care planning and progress.

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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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