Children's Home run by The Partnership of Care Today in Staffordshire

Unique reference number SC005050 Inspection date 23/10/2012 Inspector Rachel Ruth Britten Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 13/03/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

This children's home is run by a private sector organisation. The home provides care for five boys who have emotional or behavioural difficulties. Education is available on site as the home is also a registered school.

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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 outstanding .

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Overall effectiveness

The outcomes achieved by young people are exceptional. The effectiveness of the manager and staff are integral to these exceptional outcomes. There is unequivocal evidence of the home's enormous contribution to young people's education, family contact, and emotional resilience. Young people's excellent outcomes are underpinned by insightful planning, highly effective interagency practice and skilled outreach to young people's families.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people's needs and views are central to all aspects of how the home operates and develops practice. Young people all enjoy genuine and positive relationships with each member of staff and have a real sense of belonging here. Young people believe that the home is outstanding and can describe how they have been helped to change and achieve their best. Young people all say they feel safe here. They are kept safe through consistently high quality behaviour management and safeguarding practices.

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Overall effectiveness

The manager has an excellent knowledge of each young person's needs and how the home plans to support constantly improving outcomes for each one of them. He understands that the key strengths of the home lie in the skill, commitment and consistency of the staff team. He prioritises training, communication and sharing of all tasks. As a result, everyone has an understanding of, and insight into, the application of policies, procedures, standards, recording and communication systems. The manager is ambitious and energetic to maintain outstanding outcomes for young people through continuous monitoring, training and review. A minor oversight with respect to evidencing the vetting of staff was noted at this inspection but has no significant impact on young people.

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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 home has a record of all the details required to evidence sound vetting of staff so that CRB disclosure information can be destroyed when it is no longer needed. (NMS 16.3 & 16.4)

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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 make exceptional progress to develop emotional resilience and knowledge and understanding of their background. The manager says they 'love being here' and 'will talk to any staff'. Young people have made this progress because staff are highly skilled and approachable and take every opportunity to engage with young people. There is an atmosphere of trust, warmth and care, where young people spend time discussing, reviewing and talking things through with caring and insightful adults. Alongside this, many young people benefit from thorough forensic and psychological assessments and planned specialised external or in-house therapeutic support. As a result, young people gain perspective about their background, accept sometimes difficult family relationships, and choose to change their behaviours and improve themselves. An educational professional said that the young person they know here has 'absolutely thrived as an individual and has

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people have exceptionally good attendance at school, mostly at the home's own on-site school. This represents enormous progress because many young people were not accessing education at all prior to coming to the setting. One parent said, 'he is staying in class all day and staff are dealing with him very well - I can’t think of anything they could do more.' Equally, young people's educational attainment is excellent, given their starting points. Some young people are on track to achieve nine GCSEs and are developing their skill for languages. Other young people are doing well to improve their maths, English and outdoor education, with a view to a career in the army. Others are working towards ASDAN awards and entry level GSCEs. Young people are inspired by the clear routines provided and the norms of the group. As a result, they are able to stay in class and concentrate better. Some have improved their reading ages by as much as four years in the space of one year.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Each young person's individual learning style and preferences are capitalised upon, so that those who learn best through manual and practical tasks are supported to learn in this way as much as possible. Young people enjoy very good health and do not engage in any risk taking behaviours or offending. They have overcome significant fears and barriers so that they now attend for medical, dental and optical checks and treatment. Most young people have given up smoking in response to the home's zero tolerance policy on this. Young people's diet is excellent, with some choosing to eat fruit and vegetables for the first time. Moderation of junk food and additives means that some young people no longer require medication related to hyperactivity. Young people also enjoy significant amounts of challenging and adventurous physical activity, including rock climbing, abseiling and mountain biking. They also keep active day to day and

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Outcomes for children and young people

greatly enjoy football and woodland hide-and-seek games as well as helping out with maintenance work around the home and grounds. As a result, they enjoy a lifestyle which provides a healthy and enjoyable alternative to previous risk taking behaviour.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are able to make, sustain and develop positive attachments to staff, peers and family members. This is because the home and staff provide young people with a consistently positive role models and they are proactive to nurture improving family relationships. As a result, young people live cooperatively together and are confident that their views and feelings are intrinsic to how the home is run. Equally importantly, many young people now spend regular, good quality time with their parents, siblings and former carers. In some instances the plan is now for them to return to live with them. Managers and staff are very proactive to ensure that positive working relationships are built with family members, through regular and positive communication and consultation. They supervise contact, provide transport, and facilitate activity based visits to the home as appropriate. They also provide ample opportunity for young people to explore their feelings about family

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Outcomes for children and young people

relationships and past events. This work builds bridges and facilitates contact wherever possible as well as providing essential emotional support to young people. As a result, young people make exceptional progress to develop a positive self-view.

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Quality of care

The quality of the care is outstanding .

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Quality of care

Staff have consistently high aspirations for each young person in the home. They clearly place the well-being of each one at the centre of their practice and celebrate all their achievements. This is evident in young people's photo albums, memories books and displayed certificates. More importantly, it is evident in the encouraging, positive way that staff speak to young people. Meal times, break times from class, leisure time and school time are all capitalised upon by staff as opportunities to listen, guide and encourage young people to be the best they can be. As a result, young people enjoy positive and constructive relationships with staff and behave very appropriately. Social workers are convinced of this and say they have 'nothing but praise' for how the home 'meets young people's needs'. Parents too are convinced of this, saying 'I am extremely pleased and more than satisfied - staff are very positive and listen to my son. He's matured so much due to staff's support with

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Quality of care

Young people know that their views, wishes and feelings are actively sought and that they greatly influence the running of the home. They know all the staff on duty who are looking after them and they know their weekly targets, activity plans and menus. Young people were actively involved in recent recruitment interviews, and in planning the upgrade to their bedrooms and living areas. They often choose to earn extra rewards through volunteering to do tasks like washing staff cars. Regular young people's meetings are fully attended, during which clear exchanges and honest discussions take place about the previous week and the week to come. Young people are central to reviewing their behaviour, activities, menus, successes, relationships and targets in these meetings. They are helped to air grievances and resolve issues constructively by skilled and empathic staff who adopt a positive, problem solving approach. As a result, young people understand their plans and have

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Quality of care

no complaints about the home. In addition, the manager and staff make themselves available to listen to young people at any time. Independent reviewing officers note particularly how 'staff talk to young people about why things are not necessarily their way or in their time'. Staff keep up-to-date daily records of all interactions as well as key-work sessions, so that there is accurate, detailed evidence for planning. As a result, the home's contribution to planning through weekly and six monthly progress and review reports is excellent.

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Quality of care

Staff build exceptionally effective partnerships with external agencies and social work services. This ensures that each young person's individual needs relating to their personal identity and behaviour are fully met through a mix of professional therapeutic sessions and daily living. For example, young people are engaged in, and supported to attend, sessions provided to help address sexualised behaviours, relationship issues or drug misuse. In support of this, the organisation's in-house therapist offers regular sessions to young people who choose to engage. Staff also offer key working sessions aimed at training and informing young people, for example, about sexual health. Some staff have undertaken teaching assistant training, ensuring that they are properly skilled to help young people in the classroom as well as providing consistent care for them throughout the day. Social workers' visits and young people's review meetings are facilitated extremely well by

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Quality of care

the home which ensures that young people receive all the support they need from an effective team. For example, staff plan to provide transport from the railway station, a designated room and the offer of meals. As a result, young people benefit positively from the home's rural location away from damaging influences and do not miss out on the full support of an effective multi-agency team around them.

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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 have a strong sense of safety and well-being here and have made immense progress to overcome damaging and risk taking behaviours. Previous to living here, many of them were frequently going missing which resulted in risk taking and criminal behaviour. Now they are not going missing and there is a massive reduction in criminal behaviours. This is due to staff's highly effective boundaries, routines, positive fair discipline and focus on improving outcomes. If young people are anxious or frustrated and walk off, staff follow them, talk and negotiate with them to return home. Professionals acknowledge that 'staff work hard helping young people with risky behaviours to stay safe'. Police comment that the manager 'is right up there amongst the best in the area'. The home and all staff engage in regular monthly meetings with the police and other local care providers. They exchange local intelligence and train together about young people's risks of cyber bullying, sexual

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Safeguarding children and young people

exploitation, drug and alcohol misuse and criminal activity. As a result, the number of calls to the police from the home is minimal and police say staff 'work well to reduce mispers (missing person episodes) and criminality'.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people are not at risk of harm here. They do not engage in aggressive, bullying or anti-social behaviour in the home because the staff team provide teaching and an atmosphere which enables young people to choose positive behaviour. For example, young people have undertaken project work about bullying and the forms it takes and now do not tolerate this between one another. They have also watched a DVD with staff about the effects of alcohol and drugs on drivers. This had a good impact on young people's understanding of potentially fatal consequences. Staff also create an atmosphere where young people feel able to ask for help and attention when they are struggling with issues. Staff look for patterns of behaviour, perhaps attached to family contact visits, and create an atmosphere where young people can make disclosures about present or past abuse. A social worker said, 'the staff team know X really well and can predict his behaviour; his good relationship with them all

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Safeguarding children and young people

has enabled him to change for the better.' Young people do a self-assessment of their week, reviewing what has gone well and less well. One young person describes his week as 'a rubbish start, better later'. Ample opportunities to reflect on situations take place and young people are inspired to achieve privileges, big activities, electrical goods, films and money rewards which they want. If they have a 'blip', they are able to learn from it and return to following the house rules with increased understanding of why the rules are in place.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people benefit from the safety afforded by the home's remote location, away from previously unsafe or abusive urban situations. However, a busy main road and frequently adverse weather pose hazards which staff effectively risk assess and plan for. Young people's safety is addressed well in relation to all outward bound activity and with respect to young people going missing. Staff provide around-the-clock supervision for young people and balance their privacy appropriately with clear guidance about room searches if there are concerns about smoking, drugs, alcohol, adult films, or aerosol sniffing. Young people also benefit from staff who are carefully vetted and selected in a process that involves them. Vetting processes successfully prevent unsuitable people from being recruited and robust action is taken about any new concerns arising after employment. As a result, young people stay safe. However, the staff files kept in the home contain copies of Criminal Records Bureau

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Safeguarding children and young people

(CRB) disclosure notices and there is insufficient detail kept about these and other checks to ensure that the minimum standard is fully met. This shortfall has no direct adverse impact on young people because actual vetting processes are robust enough to ensure that they are cared for by suitable people.

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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

Young people benefit from a manager who has an excellent grasp of each one of their individual histories and needs. He can identify in detail the progress that they are making and demonstrate the home's enormous contribution to this progress. This knowledge is effectively used with staff to secure further development and improvement in the home. The manager is developing his career by supporting the establishment of a new home within the organisation. Nevertheless, he continues to stimulate the enthusiasm of staff and leads them by example to work very effectively as a team. Young people benefit enormously from this because they trust all staff to act consistently towards them and know that this continues to happen when the manager is not present.

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Leadership and management

The manager ensures that staff receive support, supervision and appraisal which is of excellent quality. This, along with the provision of group and individual training, inspires staff to continuously and positively improve on their already strong practice. For example, staff have undertaken group training recently about sexual exploitation and being alert to both the possible triggers and the responses needed, to avert young people's risk taking behaviours. Staff are also involved in regular reflective practice sessions, helping them to identify their own strengths and weaknesses and to share and learn new ways of working as a trusting staff group. The manager has also produced prompt cards and induction packs to help new staff know exactly what to do for each incident. This training and support benefits young people enormously because staff are well equipped for their work and provide consistency of care.

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Leadership and management

The home has a track record of outstanding performance over time and has maintained this through continuing attention to individual young people's needs and the development of even stronger inter-agency links. There is also a strong focus on all staff understanding all aspects of the home's operations and how they meet with, and exceed, the national minimum standards. The manager said, 'I do a constant review most days,’ and he takes time to analyse and seek explanations for incidents or shortfalls. He continuously improves his monitoring activities by seeking trends and patterns. As a result, he is confident that the few recent isolated incidents are the result of young people's individual circumstances and not indicative of any reduction in standards of care. The manager continues to obtain the views of young people, parents and stakeholders about the quality of care as part of his monitoring activity. He has also implemented new ways of linking all monitoring reports and

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Leadership and management

development plans, matching these to the grade descriptors in Ofsted's inspection evaluation schedule. This helps the manager to benchmark the home against measurable standards and drives improvements forward in a coordinated way.

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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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