Children's Home run by Durham County Council in Durham

Unique reference number SC035235 Inspection date 30/01/2013 Inspector Bill Drumm Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 08/10/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

The children's home provides care and accommodation for up to three young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The provider is a local authority.

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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 good progress .

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Progress

At the last inspection in October 2012, the overall effectiveness rating of the home was good. The home has made good progress since the last inspection. Developments and improvements ensure that young people remain well-cared for and safe. Young people appear happy living at the home and have a warm, relaxed and friendly manner with staff.

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Progress

Five recommendations were made at the last inspection and all of these matters have been addressed. Two recommendations were made in relation to the home's behaviour management procedures. Specifically, to ensure that the home's restraint records are fully compliant with national minimum standards, and that all sanctions used to help young people modify their behaviour are both reasonable and proportionate. The home's manager has reviewed the home's restraint records and they now fully comply with national minimum standards. All essential information is recorded and young people are kept safe. In addition, the home's manager has, through individual supervision sessions and team meetings, reminded staff of the home's policy and procedures relating to the issuing of sanctions. All sanctions used to help young people modify their behaviour are both reasonable and proportionate. This helps young people to understand the effect their behaviour can have on others.

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Progress

A recommendation was made to ensure that all young people who are old enough have an up-to-date pathway plan to aid their transition into adulthood. Pathway plans for all eligible young people are now in place. This means that the young people will receive the help and support necessary to make a successful transition into adulthood.

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Progress

A further recommendation was made to ensure that the written records used for recording when a young person has been missing from the home include the location where they are returning from. The home's manager has reviewed these records and all essential information is now recorded. This affords greater analysis of these incidents.

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Progress

The final recommendation was in relation to visits to the home by an independent visitor. The independent visitor did not routinely speak with staff about the quality of care in the home and the service delivered to young people. Documentation used by the independent visitor to record their visits has now been reviewed and up dated. The documentation has specific areas which they must complete in order to collate this information. This helps to ensure that all interactions are fully recorded and that the opinions of all those involved are borne in mind, particularly staff members.

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Progress

In addition to the above, the home has made further progress and improvements that enhance the quality of the care provided to young people. The home's manager has introduced a system where individual staff members look at specific procedures and then set informal quizzes for their colleagues to answer within team meetings. This initiative helps staff to understand policies and procedures and what their individual roles and responsibilities are. In addition, the staff team have looked at Ofsted's grade descriptors for achieving good and outstanding judgements. The analysis of Ofsted's grade descriptors alongside their care practice will help the home to maintain their levels of care and work towards achieving higher standards.

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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.

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