Children's Home run by Benecare Limited in Kent

Unique reference number SC357981 Inspection date 10/10/2012 Inspector Mark Blesky Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 14/02/2012 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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Brief description of the service

This is a privately owned children’s home. The home caters for up to four children and young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties who have a wide range of needs.

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The inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding : a service of exceptional quality that significantly exceeds minimum requirements Good : a service of high quality 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 good .

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Overall effectiveness

Young people benefit from being cared for by staff that understand and value their diverse needs. Young people's healthcare is promoted and well maintained to ensure that young people attend regular check-ups and treatments. Education is highly valued and staff support and encourage young people in this important area.

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Overall effectiveness

Care planning is particularly well managed and supports young people's individual and more diverse needs. Young people are engaged in the care planning process and able to influence decisions and objectives. Care plans are insightful and regularly updated to ensure that young people’s current and emerging needs are being met.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people are confident and feel valued and this has encouraged them to express themselves more frequently and more effectively. Opportunities for young people to express themselves could be increased in two particular areas. Young people's meetings do not evidence the discussion or young people's views and this is an area that needs development. In addition Regulation 33 monitoring visits do not detail any discussion with the staff or young people and the absence of this the assessment of the benefits of the services provided is limited.

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Overall effectiveness

Safeguarding is rigorously monitored and young people say that they feel safe and well looked after. Behaviour management is well organised and the young people have developed their own behaviour management strategies. Young people therefore consider their own triggers, flashpoints and methods of calming down. A plan is then designed to address and accommodate their particular behaviours. This is both innovative and proactive and has resulted in reduced levels of negative behaviour. Management and leadership are strong and this has resulted in a staff team that is motivated and committed. Young people benefit from being looked after and supported by caring and insightful staff members.

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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) interview, with their consent and in private, such of the children accommodated there, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as appears necessary in order to form an opinion of the standard of care provided in the home. (Regulation 33.4(a)) 31/12/2012

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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 that the views, wishes and feelings of children and those significant to them are taken into account in monitoring staff and in developing the home (NMS 1.7)  ensure that the home provides a comfortable and homely environment and is well maintained and decorated (NMS 10.3)  ensure that there is a written development plan, reviewed annually, for the future of the home, either identifying any planned changes in the operation or resources of the service, or confirming the continuation of the home’s current operation and resource. (NMS 15.3)

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Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for children and young people are good .

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people have formed and sustained good attachments with staff and each another. This has resulted in more positive behaviour and young people have gained the confidence to express themselves productively. Conflicts are quickly settled and young people have designed their own behaviour management plans. This has allowed the young people and staff to address the more individual and diverse needs and develop effective strategies to manage behaviour.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people enjoy good general health and receive the support they need; their health is promoted. They understand both the importance of more formal routine treatments as well as the day-to-day matters such as diet and self-care. They enjoy a varied diet and benefit from healthy foods and meals. Young people understand how lifestyle choices impact on their health resulting in them making appropriate decisions and choices.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Education is valued by the staff and they encourage and support young people to strive to achieve a good education. Young people are motivated and attend training and education consistently. Rewards and praise are given to the young people which encourages their efforts and young people achieve their academic goals.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people have made friends in the local area and their membership to clubs and hobbies has further increased their connections within the wider community. The home encourages young people to bring friends home and have meals with them. Young people are supported to have contact with friends and family. Contact visits are typically enjoyable for the young people and staff work hard to make visitors feel welcome and comfortable.

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Outcomes for children and young people

All young people are supported very well through the implementation of independency plans. Plans are based on the more diverse and individual needs and abilities of each young person. Realistic and achievable goals are set and supported by staff; young people have progressed well towards reaching these goals. The plans create the best opportunities for young people to achieve and learn or develop skills for independence and mean they are better prepared for adult life as a result of this independency programme.

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Quality of care

Young people are well supported by staff that care about them and understand their needs; they have formed warm and respectful attachments to the staff. These have enabled them to gain trust and sustain positive relationships. Young people say that the staff help and support them and are always there when they need them. The trust young people have in the staff has enabled them to share their views and worries.

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Quality of care

Young people express their views about their behaviour management in dedicated behaviour management plans. This has resulted in young people and staff achieving the most effective strategies to minimise negative behaviour. Young people's behaviour has improved greatly as a result. Young people understand the complaints procedure and say that any complaint is acted upon. They feel well supported to express any concern and know it will be taken seriously. Young people say that they influence the running of the home and make choices and share opinions. Key working is extremely detailed and comprehensive and young people express themselves effectively through this medium.

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Quality of care

Young people also influence their placement plans and day-to-day care. Each young person has expressed their individual views about their care and these are used effectively by staff to understand and meet their more diverse needs. Young people say that they are consulted in residents’ meetings and express their collective views. Records of the meetings, however, do not provide evidence that young people's collective views are influential or being acted upon.

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Quality of care

Young people benefit from highly individualised care plans that are comprehensive and capture their views and opinions. They are fully engaged in the care planning process and understand their goals and how they need to develop to achieve these. This has empowered young people to express choices and make their opinions known, even if they differ from the plan.

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Quality of care

All young people are encouraged to embrace other cultures and learn about the beliefs of others. Young people say that they have themed nights during which meals are prepared and staff and young people discuss other cultures. They also say that they enjoy the meals and learn new and interesting things at the same time.

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Quality of care

Young people are kept healthy and understand the importance of healthy lifestyles. Young people have their routine healthcare needs met by regular attendance at core services such as doctors, dentists and opticians. They also benefit from the guidance and support staff provide them to understand the importance of healthcare and diet. As a result they have sufficient understanding to make informed lifestyle choices.

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Quality of care

Young people enjoy personal and group activities and staff will try and promote more healthy choices. They are enrolled in football and other clubs and enjoy these hobbies. They have also formed friendships and relationships with peers in the wider community, which has added to their enjoyment and confidence.

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Quality of care

All young people attend education or training appropriate to their plans. They achieve good attendance and academic progress and benefit from the support they receive from staff who liaise with their education providers. Staff have worked effectively with the young people to promote their education and learning. Creative reward charts and reward systems within the home have provided further reinforcement and this has motivated their learning and development. Young people take more responsibility for their own learning and make choices to support their chosen career path.

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Quality of care

Young people benefit from living in a generally well maintained and pleasant home. The home provides ample space and each young person choses how to decorate and furnish their own room. Young people have a clear sense of pride for their home and respect and value it. The hallway and stairway carpets are heavenly stained and this is the only exception to an otherwise very well-maintained home.

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Safeguarding children and young people

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

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Safeguarding children and young people

Children say they are kept safe and feel safe by being well looked after by the staff. Risk assessments are conducted on each young person and this keeps them safe from known hazards. Young people's individual and more diverse behaviours are also assessed. This is to ensure risk assessment is targeted at the most relevant areas. Young people are engaged in their own risk assessments, which has enabled them to develop an awareness of their own personal safety.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people are protected by safeguarding and anti-bullying procedures and practices within the home. All staff receive formal training in safeguarding practices and this has given them the confidence to develop their practice and awareness. Staff report any matters of concern in a timely manner and they are clear in their safeguarding responsibilities. Staff are aware of how young people can be victimised and bullied and the home has developed strategies to identify this.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Staff regularly discuss these concerns and the one-to-one working with the young people is used to discuss these matters. Staff have also benefitted from training in anti-bullying and they have gained insights into recognising the signs and symptoms young people may suffer if they are being bullied.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people rarely go missing from the home, but in the event of such an episode the home’s staff are sufficiently trained and competent to address this promptly. The staff have met with the local police and guidance and advice has been given to all staff about how to respond to this.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Staff are also aware of their roles and responsibilities to search, report and recover the missing young person. Well-written procedures and practices are in place to support and protect any young person that leaves the home unauthorised. Young people say that the staff understand their moods and support them when they feel like running off.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people are supported by a staff team that they know and trust and who remain consistent in their lives. Staff are thoroughly vetted and references are checked to ensure that young people are only looked after by appropriate adults. Young people know that the staff are all checked for their suitability and this makes them feel safer. There has been one allegation since the last inspection, not involving adults, and the matter was promptly reported and appropriately acted upon to safeguard the young person.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Staff are confident, through their training, to act diligently and they follow the safeguarding procedures and practice rigorously. Refresher training ensures that all staff continue in their development in this important area.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people enjoy a pleasant and well maintained environment which is physically safe and appropriate for the young people's needs. Young people say that the home is like a family home and it is clear that the young people respect and value this home. Young people are kept safe from hazards by practicing fire drills and evacuation procedures. Health and safety checks are also completed regularly and this ensures that day-to-day hazards are removed or reduced accordingly. Young people are kept safe and protected by staff that maintain this safe environment.

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Leadership and management

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

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Leadership and management

Young people and staff benefit from strong management and leadership. Staff are motivated and led by a manager with high expectations of staff performance. The manager describes herself as being 'hands on' and this is evident in her focus on the young people. All young people say that they trust and respect the manager and know that she is there to represent and support them. Young people say that she is always available for them and they can talk to her about anything that they wish.

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Leadership and management

Young people are confident and make their views known and they know how to make a complaint or representation. Any complaint received is overseen by the manager and in all cases the young person is consulted about the progress and subsequent conclusion. Young people feel valued by this effective complaints procedure and say that they feel empowered to express themselves.

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Leadership and management

The home responds positively to the inspection process and the three recommendations from the last inspection visit have been addressed appropriately. These related to anti-bullying, missing persons and a minor maintenance matter. Development planning is currently being completed and at the time of the inspection the current plan could not be presented.

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Leadership and management

Reviews of key documents have been undertaken and these reviews include behaviour management systems and guidance, key working and placement planning. All documents now have a greater focus on engagement with the young person and improving outcomes. The reviewed documents demonstrate continued development of the service and impact positively on improvements. Young people benefit from living in this home which undertakes reviews and makes improvements to the quality of care.

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Leadership and management

Regulation 33 monitoring checks are undertaken and these provide a very detailed and comprehensive assessment of most aspects of the quality of care. Action is taken by the manager to respond to any areas of shortfall and this ensures that standards are kept high. Consultation and interviews with staff and young people are not being recorded in the reports made of Regulation 33 visits and this may make forming a view of the service more difficult.

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Leadership and management

Monitoring is undertaken by the manager, under Regulation 34, to support her understanding about the strengths and weakness of the home. Improvements are made to address any areas of shortfall and this ensures that the quality of care is maintained. For example, changes to procedures and practice have resulted and behaviour management strategies have directly improved and reduced negative behaviour. The placing authorities are clear about the aims and objectives of the home and are kept aware of all significant changes and developments within the home. Young people's progress and development is communicated to the social workers through regular comprehensive reports. Young people are therefore better supported by clear and frequent information sharing between the staff and the placing social workers. This allows issues or concerns to be picked up and acted upon in a prompt and in a timely manner. The Statement of Purpose makes clear the services and facilities that

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Leadership and management

Young people benefit from having high levels of staff support and one-to-one sessions. Staff that are confident and well trained provide effective day-to-day support and guidance. Young people say that the mix of staff is very good. Young people are supported with activities and hobbies and the range of staff available enables them to find the support they need.

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Leadership and management

Young people are looked after by staff that are appropriately supervised and motivated. Staff members receive regular appraisal of their performance and this supports their professional development. Staff members value the training which provides them with increased knowledge of and understanding about young people's needs.

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Leadership and management

Young people are able to gain a sense of their lives and their care history from well managed and maintained personal files. Young people are able to view their files and staff will assist them this if they need support or assistance.

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Leadership and management

Effective systems are in place to ensure agencies are aware of any serious matters in the home related to safeguarding and the protection of children. Notifications are made in timely manner providing the relevant agencies with sufficient information to act upon.

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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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