Children's Home run by Cornerstone Children’s Homes Limited in Stockport

Unique reference number SC394478 Inspection date 14/06/2013 Inspector Maria McGranaghan Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 20/12/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

The home is privately owned and provides care and accommodation for no more than three young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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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 live in a home that is committed to generating positive opportunities to assist young people in realising their own potential. Achievements are seen in education, emotional resilience and making a positive contribution within the community. Overall young people make good progress in the home.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people benefit from a range of external services involved in the planning and review of their care. Good partnerships are forged between staff and other agencies and this provides young people with the opportunity to get the right help, guidance and support to make significant changes in their lives. Likewise, placement plans suitably reflect young people’s needs and how they are to be met. This ensures young people are cared for in the most appropriate way.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people feel safe and protected from significant harm. They are positive about the care they receive and the trusting relationships they have formed with staff. Young people are generally settled and have made the house their home.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people benefit from an experienced and stable staff team. Targeted supervision and training is a consistent feature within the home and this is reflected in the positive work undertaken with those resident.

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Overall effectiveness

The home is suitably managed with an emphasis on generating good outcomes for young people. Monitoring systems are in place and assist to address all aspects of the running of the home.

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Overall effectiveness

Despite these strengths there are weaknesses. Although risk assessments are in place, some are not updated to reflect identified potential risks. While physical intervention is not a regular occurrence within the home, some records of such intervention taking place are not sufficiently clear and this leads to the risk of misinterpretation. Behaviour management strategies for some young people do not suitably address their behaviour in order that they can make positive and effective change. Information about the friends and acquaintances of new residents are not routinely recorded on file in order to assist in returning them to the home should they become absent without consent. As a result, four recommendations are made at this inspection.

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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 entries in records, with particular regard to the record of restraint, are legible, clearly expressed, non-stigmatising and distinguish as far as possible between fact and opinion (NMS 22.4)  ensure that young people who are absent from the home without consent but whose whereabouts are known or thought to be known by staff are protected in line with the home's written procedure. Specifically, keep a record of known friends and acquaintances who can be contacted (NMS 5.4)  ensure risk assessments are proportionate and kept up to date (NMS 4.5)  ensure sanctions are clear, reasonable and purposeful and are understood by all staff and young people. (NMS 3.8)

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Outcomes for children and young people

From their initial starting point young people make good progress in their education, emotional resilience and their understanding of their unique circumstances. Well planned and focused residential care plans identify target areas and are supported by consistent key work sessions. Young people work in partnership with staff to review their work and comment on their progress. Young people say, ‘the staff are really good, we can have a laugh and talk about stuff. It is ok here’.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people’s health care needs are suitably assessed. Health care plans are in place and work together with targeted key work sessions. Likewise, regular young people’s meetings and visits from external agencies, such as the looked after children’s nurse and community drugs worker, enable young people to discuss health care issues in a supportive and open forum. As a result, young people are well informed and receive suitable guidance at a level they understand. Young people have developed the ‘Garlic Club’ specifically designed to help less confident peers. The club enables young people to express their views, particularly their feelings about how other young people’s behaviour affects them. This has been very successful with records evidencing young people’s insight into their own behaviour and its impact on others.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are supported to attend appropriate educational provision. School feedback highlights good progress and specifically recognises the support offered by staff in assisting young people to engage positively. Similarly, staff are consistent in promoting education as an important and essential feature in all young people’s lives. Provision is made for homework and this is supported by suitable books and educational material to aid continued learning. Consequently, young people are beginning to recognise the importance of education and are developing a sense of pride in their achievements.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people benefit from planned contact with family members. Staff maintain close links with families and involve them where appropriate in the overall planning of the young people’s care. Detailed placement plans ensure contact only takes place with those it has been agreed with and arrangements are reviewed regularly.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Staff encourage young people to develop independence skills in accordance with their developmental age and abilities. Life skills assessments highlight individual tasks for young people in order to develop independent living skills. Similarly, keyworker sessions help to ensure that appropriate steps are taken to maximise individual potential. This person-centred approach assists young people to prepare for adulthood and equip them with essential life skills.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Planned and unplanned activities take place on a regular basis. Individual interests are encouraged and supported and include trips to the gym, football, go-karting, cycling and visits to places of interest. Young people have access to the internet and popular video games that are appropriately monitored by staff.

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Quality of care

Young people live in a supportive environment. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of young people’s needs and work hard to secure the best outcomes for them. Young people are happy and confident in the company of staff.

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Quality of care

Young people’s placement plans are regularly reviewed to ensure the care offered meets their individual needs. Effective partnership working with an array of external agencies assists to highlight the changing needs of young people and on the whole ensure that appropriate steps are taken to address them.

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Quality of care

Young people know how to complain. Such information is available and includes contact numbers for external agencies. Young people are also supported by an independent advocate with whom they can share any worries or concerns independently from the home. Records of internal and external complaints demonstrate that all concerns are suitably managed and concluded.

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Quality of care

Young people’s positive behaviour is consistently acknowledged and praised within the home. Individual behaviour management plans and personal incentive schemes are in place to help young people develop an understanding of what is acceptable behaviour. However, strategies for managing some behaviours lack consistency and are not suitably effective. For example, some risk assessments highlighting the potential for risk taking behaviours are not consistently updated in order to assist in reducing risk. Similarly, behaviour management strategies, such as sanctions, do not always suitably address the behaviours being displayed. Consequently, on occasions, the strategies imposed are a reactive response to behaviour rather than a planned and focused response.

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Quality of care

Young people benefit from an environment committed to respecting and celebrating diversity. Young people have taken part in charity fund raising and frequently offer help in the community, such as baking cakes and cutting grass for the elderly. Furthermore, young people regularly invite neighbours to the home for afternoon tea where they take the opportunity to proudly share their achievements and aspirations. Consequently, the home demonstrates a commitment to ensuring young people are afforded opportunities both to understand and belong to their diverse community.

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Quality of care

Young people live in a spacious home that blends well into the local community. They are encouraged and supported to make the house into their home and play a significant role in the decision making process around décor and furnishings.

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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

Staff are suitably trained in child protection in order that they are able to respond to suspicions or allegations of abuse. Regular team meetings with guest speakers also take place and provide opportunities for staff to discuss matters of concern in a collective forum. The home is supported by appropriate policies and this ensures the correct procedures are undertaken without delay should a concern arise.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Staff focus on redirection and de-escalation techniques in order to defuse situations between young people and on the whole this has proven successful. Annual training is provided to staff in the area of safe physical intervention and staff confirm such intervention is only ever used should a young person be harming themselves or others. However, while records of physical intervention are generally good, some records are not clear. For example, they contain confusing information and personal views about the situation. Consequently, those records are open to misinterpretation and may confuse a young person should they wish to view their file now or in the future.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people live in a home where their safety and well-being is suitably supported. Individual missing from home plans are in place to ensure the correct procedures are followed without delay in such situations. Local police say, ‘There have been no young people missing overnight for a considerable time and we have no concerns about how the home manages young people.’ However, strategies for managing some young people who are absent without permission are inconsistent. For example, insufficient information about the friends and acquaintances of new admissions to the home reduces the likelihood of seeking out a young person should they be absent from the home.

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Safeguarding children and young people

The home employs a robust recruitment procedure that ensures young people are looked after by staff that are appropriately checked in order to work in the home. Young people are invited to write interview questions and take part in the interview process where appropriate. This process empowers young people and enables them to understand just how important their safety is in the home.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Staff promote young people’s on-going protection by undertaking regular fire drills and service tests making sure that all faults are suitably addressed. Good monitoring systems are in place and include the safe administration of medication. Staff receive the appropriate training to ensure visitors’ identity is suitably verified in order to protect young people.

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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 live in a home that is suitably managed. The home meets the aims and objectives of the Statement of Purpose, and young people, social workers and families are clear about the service and support the home provides.

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Leadership and management

Internal and external monitoring systems on the whole provide the home with a clear approach to the overall monitoring of care. Monitoring records highlight areas for development and the manager’s action plan details the methods used to enhance the service. The manager makes good use of reflective practice; the views of external services and families are regularly sought and inform the continued development of the home.

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Leadership and management

The home employs a strong committed staff team who are suitably qualified at level three, which ensures that they are competent in the care and management of young people. Staff receive suitable support from the manager. Supervision takes place regularly and serves to identify training needs and personal development targets.

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Leadership and management

The manager and staff demonstrate commitment to delivering good child care practice tailored to the individual and personal needs of the young people they look after. The effectiveness of this approach is measurable in the good progress young people make from their initial starting point.

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Leadership and management

The manager is aware of the requirement for notifying relevant authorities, including Ofsted, of significant incidents and has been consistent in reporting such incidents occurring in the home. This practice ensures that information is shared with the appropriate authorities in order that the actions taken and outcomes for young people can be suitably overseen.

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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 and the evaluation schedule for the inspection of children's homes.

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