Children's Home run by City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council in Bradford

Unique reference number SC033628 Inspection date 04/12/2012 Inspector Paul Scott Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

p.1

Date of last inspection 08/03/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.1

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.

p.2

Brief description of the service

This local authority setting provides four overnight places for short breaks care and also day and tea-time sessions. All the children have learning disabilities and/or physical disabilities and/or complex health needs.

p.3

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

p.3

Overall effectiveness

The overall effectiveness is judged to be good .

p.3

Overall effectiveness

Young people and their families benefit from the support provided by this service. Care planning and care practice are highly individualised. Staff are knowledgeable, skilled and appropriately experienced, which enables them to meet young people's complex needs. They work closely with young people's families who are extremely complimentary about the service. As a result, young people receive a highly responsive, flexible and needs led service that is individually tailored to meet their unique needs.

p.3

Overall effectiveness

Young people enjoy positive relationships with staff. Staff genuinely care about young people's well-being and are proud of the contribution they make to young people's lives. They invest a great deal of time and effort into ensuring young people's visits to the home are enjoyable and fun, creating good opportunities for them to participate in society, irrespective of their disability.

p.3

Overall effectiveness

Young people are kept safe and made to feel safe. Robust systems and good care practice ensure the welfare of young people is promoted at all times. Staff have a good knowledge of young people's identified risks enabling them to meet young people's complex needs safely and effectively. A recommendation has been made because some staff are not up-to-date with safeguarding training.

p.3

Overall effectiveness

Young people visit a service that is well managed. There is good monitoring of young people's development and progress. The manager understands the strengths of the home and is clearly focused on improving the service further. Staff are provided with good day-to-day support and guidance to ensure they are adequately equipped to meet the immediate needs of young people. However, a recommendation has been made because some staff are not receiving regular, formal supervision.

p.3

Recommendations

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

p.4

Recommendations

 Ensure safeguarding training for all staff, including casual staff, is regularly updated (NMS 4.6)  ensure all staff, including casual staff, are provided with regular supervision by appropriately qualified and experienced staff (NMS 19.4)

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for children and young people are outstanding .

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Young people only visit the home for short periods of time as part of their short break, respite agreement. Staff are always delighted to see young people and make exceptionally good use of this time by providing them with a full range of opportunities to learn and have fun. Young people progress as a result of excellent communication and partnership- working with parents and carers. One parent said, 'The home is a big part of our lives. Staff always keep in touch. We trust staff and can rest knowing she is in a very safe place where staff have her best interests at heart.'

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are treated and respected as individuals in their own right and benefit immensely from individualised care which addresses their unique needs and choices. For example, each young person is allocated a dedicated member of staff for the duration of their visit. This ensures young people receive the right support to meet their individual needs and develop their skills. As a result, young people make very good progress because their opportunities are not limited by the inequalities associated with their disabilities.

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Staff have an excellent understanding of young people's individual mannerisms and communication style. They creatively use a number of communication support aids which enable young people to contribute positively to their day-to-day lives. They exercise genuine choice about the meals they eat; the bedrooms they prefer to sleep in; and the activities they want to do. One parent said, 'My child is always encouraged to make choices when she visits. They treat her like a young adult. They see the young person first and their disability second.'

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

The home manages young people's health well. Staff work in partnership with parents who retain primary responsibility for their child's health. This ensures continuity of care because staff are fully aware of young people's currents health needs including dietary requirements, illnesses or medication. During their visit young people are supported to access routine and specialist health services, as well as any emergency services which may be necessary.

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

As a short break service, the responsibility for young people's education remains with parents and the local authority. Staff provide appropriate levels of support by ensuring young people are always up and ready for school and by attending education reviews and meetings. The manager and staff establish good links with education providers. As a result, young people make considerable progress because good practice is shared and consistently applied across all settings.

p.5

Outcomes for children and young people

The daily life of this home provides opportunities for young people to develop social and independence skills, relative to their age and ability. Consequently, young people develop self-confidence in their ability to complete daily tasks safely and independently.

p.5

Quality of care

The quality of the care is outstanding .

p.5

Quality of care

Young people are cared for by staff that always place their individual needs at the centre of their work. Admissions are well planned. Staff work effectively with young people's families to ensure their anxieties and concerns are alleviated. They carefully assess young people's compatibility with each other. This ensures each young person’s complex needs are met in an environment that helps them foster positive relationships with each other. One parent said, 'Staff are very good at matching young people to make sure they are with people they like and who do not cause them distress. This means our child benefits from her visits to the home and has grown significantly. She is more sociable and as a result has lots more friends.'

p.5

Quality of care

Staff show a genuine commitment to young people. This is evident in the warm, positive relationships between staff and young people. Staff work hard to ensure young people's needs are met in line with their short break care plan. Young people's needs arising from culture and disability are clearly identified and this ensures their needs are promoted effectively.

p.5

Quality of care

Staff consistently deliver high-quality, child-focused care that places young people's individual needs and welfare at the centre of their practice. They work closely with families and partner agencies to ensure young people get the right support, guidance and help to lead positive and fulfilling lives. One social worker said, 'Staff are fully involved in a multi-agency approach. Keyworkers attend relevant meetings for, which they are well prepared. They put agreed strategies into practice ensuring a consistent approach. This has led to a significant improvement in my young person’s self-control and behaviour.'

p.5

Quality of care

Young people receive considerable support to express themselves so they can make informed decisions and choices. Every effort is made to consult with them and involve them. Young people's families are routinely involved in consultation, as expert voices. This empowers young people and their families in the knowledge that their views and opinions are actively sought and considered. The home ensures that young people and their families are familiar with the complaints procedure. Complaints, while rare, are handled sensitively and fairly to and any conflicts or concerns are resolved effectively.

p.5

Quality of care

Staff ensure young people benefit from a good range of purposeful and enjoyable learning activities during their short break. Staff obviously enjoy spending quality time with young people and make their visits stimulating and fun. They make good use of the resources available within the home and the wider community. One parent said, 'There is always lots going on at the home. Young people have fun. Staff are very good at getting them out in the community so they enjoy the same experience as their peers.'

p.6

Quality of care

The location of the service ensures young people have access to local amenities and places of interest. All aspects of the service, including the recently built extension, are purposely designed to cater for the complex needs of young people, in particular, those arising from disability. The home is maintained well and decorated and furnished to a very high standard. It provides an excellent environment for young people visiting the home.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

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

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

Young people are protected well from harm. High staffing ratios ensure young people receive the supervision and support they need to stay safe and feel protected. Safeguarding training for a small number of casual staff has not been recently updated. This has not compromised the welfare of young people because staff routinely discuss risk management as part of daily handovers and weekly staff meetings. Also, comprehensive risk assessments used as working documents, inform staff of how to safely manage young people's known behaviours, risks and vulnerabilities.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

There has been only one incident of young people going missing from the home since the service opened. Staff followed agreed protocols and took the right action to minimise the risk and secure the young person’s safe return quickly.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

There is a calm, effective and gentle approach towards behaviour management and staff are appropriately trained. Every effort is made to reinforce positive behaviour, which has the desired effect. The excellent knowledge that staff have of each young person’s specific triggers, and their competence in diffusing challenging behaviours means restraint is rarely used. On rare occasions, it has been used professionally to prevent young people causing harm to themselves or others.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

The home provides young people with a safe place to stay. Young people are protected by a good range of health and safety procedures, risk assessments and routine checks. Fire drills are regularly practiced to ensure staff and young people know how to safely evacuate the building in the event of a fire. There are well- established and effective recruitment and selection processes in place. This ensures a safe and competent workforce.

p.6

Leadership and management

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

p.7

Leadership and management

The home’s Statement of Purpose is regularly updated to ensure it accurately reflects the home's aims and objectives. Parents and social workers confirm they are clear about the services provided and are extremely complimentary about the effectiveness of the home.

p.7

Leadership and management

The home is managed well by a suitably qualified, experienced and child-focused individual. Young people benefit from being cared for by a stable, competent and well-qualified staff team. All staff show a strong commitment and contribute positively to the young people's lives. They understand their day-to-day roles and responsibilities because, they get clear direction and good support from the management team through regular meetings, which review and discuss young people's development; and formal supervision for permanent staff. However, a number of casual staff have not been given individual supervision. This means staff do not have the opportunity to routinely discuss their individual development needs.

p.7

Leadership and management

The manager makes good use of external and internal monitoring systems which identify the homes strengths and areas for improvement. Detailed service plans identify achievable targets. The manager and staff enthusiastically strive to achieve these to secure further improvement to the service. As a result, young people are provided with high standards of quality care that enable them to achieve exceedingly good outcomes.

p.7

Leadership and management

The home's written records are generally good and provide a picture of young people's daily living during their stay. Records are securely stored and information is confidentially managed to protect young people's privacy.

p.7

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.

p.8

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 and the evaluation schedule for children's homes.

p.8