Children's Home run by Potton Homes Limited in Southend on Sea

Unique reference number SC438764 Inspection date 16/08/2013 Inspector Gwen Buckley Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 28/12/2012 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 home provides long-term and task-centred care to a maximum of six male or female young people who have emotional and behavioural difficulties. This is one of two residential services operated by this privately run organisation, in addition to a school adjacent to this home.

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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

The home has maintained its previous full inspection judgement of good. Children make good progress from their starting points at school or in work experience. Relationships between adults and children are strong. Children’s views are central to the development of the service and staff ensure strategies for care planning put them at the heart of the process. Children say they are happy at the home and their progress demonstrates how well they have settled. One said, ‘The staff here care it is the best home I have been in.’ Staff and children value opportunities for ordinary life and young people actively access and contribute positively to community life. The service helps children to feel a strong sense of entitlement, self-respect and self- worth.

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Overall effectiveness

There are some shortfalls in the monitoring of records which has limited impact on outcomes for young people. This information can be located, but is not always kept in the expected documents. The internal and external management monitoring systems do not always evidence robust evaluation and action to improve the service further. The fire risk assessment and guidance for staff requires updating to clearly reflect expected practice. The system supporting young people develop the skills and knowledge needed for the transition into adulthood needs to be reviewed. However, despite these shortfalls, leaders and managers do make improvements to the care provided, particularly in young people’s experience of life at the home, progress at school and in obtaining job offers.

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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

17A (2001) ensure that within 24 hours of the use of any measure of control, restraint or discipline in a children’s home, a written record is made in a volume kept for the purpose of which shall include details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure (Regulation 17B (3) (b)) 31/10/2013

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure where the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 applies to the children's home the requirements of that Order and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. This specifically relates to the fire risk assessment and procedures and guidance for staff (Regulation 32 1A (b)) 31/10/2013

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) Ensure the person carrying out the visit shall 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)) 31/10/2013

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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 visits of the home carried out under Regulation 33 include relevant checks set out in regulations and guidance and checks of any disciplinary measures and use of restraint and records of missing person’s reports. This specifically relates to the need to make sure the records maintained are in line with expected practice or Regulation (NMS 21.7)  ensure children receive care which helps to prepare for and supports them into adulthood, so that they can reach their potential and achieve economic wellbeing. This specifically relates to ensuring the young people have the skills required and information needed to take with them when they leave. (NMS 12)

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Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for young people are good . Young people make very good progress in relation to their starting points. They have strong relationships with staff who they know care for them. They say, ‘I really like it here’, and ‘It is the best home I have been in and I have been in few’. One feels ‘staff care and take us out on activities we like as they listen.’ This ensures young people feel valued and respected.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people have opportunities to lead ordinary lives play for local football teams, go to local gyms, go horse riding and have work experience opportunities. They feel pride in their achievements. Children gain confidence and show community spirit by raising money for charity and undertake voluntary work such as volunteering as a dog walker for a local charity.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are involved in health decisions and discussions, including sexual health and healthy eating. Young people achieve well in school and there is good educational attendance. All have been helped by attending the on-site school, moving on to work experience and an offer of employment as they have shown their skills in the workplace. Offending behaviour reduces over time, risk taking behaviours are discussed with the young people and they are clear what is and is not acceptable behaviour. The outcomes for young people have improved since they have been at the home.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people see the people who are important in their lives on a regular basis such as family members and previous carers. Young people get the support they need to keep these relationships positive and the frequency of visits increase. A parent said staff have, ‘worked well with her and her child to make visits positive.’ Young people get help to develop skills for their transition to adulthood and the next place they will live. They get opportunities to practise independent skills through: cooking; dealing with budgeting; washing clothes; and planning trips. In addition they get emotional support to move to the next stage of their lives. A young person moving on states they are confident about how they will manage and is looking forward to being nearer family members. However, they do not have a resource pack that they can take with them. Details of the meals they have cooked and the resources available in

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Outcomes for children and young people

the area they are to live are not provided. This means information gained overtime is not available to them as a reminder if needed and if provided may help them to feel more confident about their move to the next stage in their life.

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Quality of care

Young people know that staff respect them as individuals. The Registered Manager and staff model a nurturing approach that sees the young people as individuals and the emotional vulnerability behind often challenging behaviour. Adults give young people enough time to be heard and young people trust the adults to sort out any issue they have. All the young people say they have a member of staff they can talk with if they are sad or want to raise issues not suitable to raise in house meetings. Young people know how to complain but say they have staff who listen to them, so there is seldom any need to complain. Staff work well with young people, who at times find living in a group difficult and they ensure all the young people have a say and are supported.

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Quality of care

The support provided to young people is very good and highly individualised. The organisation uses its own consultant who supports staff understand the young people and develop behaviour management and care planning. Staff ensure that the young people really understand the boundaries and expectation of behaviour and that they are at the heart of the planning and review of their care. Young people develop as individuals as a result they can manage previously abrupt and sometimes rude behaviours well and they can be very socially adept and learn to manage situations better. Equality and diversity is reflected in every aspect of the care, whether about their background and identity or learning needs.

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Quality of care

Visiting professionals speak very positively of how the organisation has worked with them to deliver positive changes in young people’s lives. Young people live in a house close to the sea and a wide range of amenities, which they enjoy. The house is well maintained and equipped and young people have highly personalised bedrooms that they are proud of and helped to decorate. Safety checks on equipment are carried out regularly with fire drills frequently undertaken with staff and young people. The fire risk assessment does not reflect the building as it makes reference to ‘sprinklers’ that are not fitted in the home and the staff guidance and training does not cover what staff should do if a young person refuses to leave the building should there be a fire.

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Safeguarding children and young people

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

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Safeguarding children and young people

In the recent past, the young people were demonstrating very challenging and risk taking behaviour. Due to these behaviours such as absconding and drinking alcohol in the community a review of each placement was undertaken. Reviews involved the young people and their placing authority and consultation with an educational psychologist is on-going to ensure the best outcomes for young people overtime. Action was also taken to ensure young people previously able to leave the building via a bedroom window, are no longer able to do this. These actions have resulted in an immediate reduction in absence and risk taking behaviour.

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Safeguarding children and young people

The majority of behavioural strategies are effective and assist young people to develop in line with individual needs. As a result, the frequency young people require restraining has reduced over time. Restraint recording in the restraint log does not include the reason why a restraint is needed. This information is in the related incident records. This means that an accurate record is not maintained in the log of the event. Young people consider that sanctions imposed are fair. They know that there are plenty of activities to do and they are looking forward to the summer holiday.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people say they feel safe, and they are confident that staff will take action to protect them. Young people, when needed, are encouraged to work with others to help them through counselling or therapy about risky, self-harming or sexualised behaviour. Staff support young people develop friendships both in the home and with friends in the community. Staff understand the dynamics of group living and take action to minimise the negative impact of dominant personalities and bullying in the home. Young people have occasionally gone missing, this reduced after discussions with them about the reasons why and strategies implemented to avoid recurrence. Staff have an understanding of the need to record carefully and communicate with others about increasing risk in young people’s behaviour and young people are safer as a result.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Recruitment of staff is robust and safe. Young people play an active part in choosing the people they think would be good at working with them. The Registered Manager is experienced and confident in her support of staff's safeguarding practice and she has safer recruitment training. This ensures only staff suitable to work with young people are employed.

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Leadership and management

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

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Leadership and management

Ofsted’s interim inspection found the home has made satisfactory progress and raised one action and a recommendation. These have been resolved, Ofsted receive copies of monthly monitoring reports and new staff induction is in line with the Children’s Workforce Development Council’s induction standards.

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Leadership and management

The Registered Manager is an experienced manager with the practical imagination to understand and respond to each young person's needs and motivate staff to do the same. Leadership and management systems are not always sufficiently robust. While there are aspects of management that are very good, the external and internal monitoring and reporting systems are not always effective. The external monitoring does not routinely follow up on repeated shortfalls identified in the reports and they seldom seek the views of parents or relatives on the standard of care provided. Both the internal and external monitoring of restraint records did not notice important information was missing from the restraint log. This does not enable practice development in a timely manner.

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Leadership and management

Staff deployment is good. Staffing levels provide enough competent staff to cook and care for young people and fulfil a positive parenting role. A diverse staff team provide young people with good role model. Staff report improved training and excellent professional support and supervision. All staff have first aid training and have achieved the required qualification in working with children or are on a relevant course. External consultants support staff working with young people who often present challenging complex behaviours. This ensures staff have the knowledge and ability to develop skills to meet the diverse needs of young people at any one time.

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Leadership and management

Records of achievements and photographs of their time at the home are securely maintained should young people want to access them now or in the future. Communication with placing authorities is regular and reports of incidents are included in monthly summaries. Although shortfalls in some records are noted, records for the home are generally good such as medication records.

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Leadership and management

Information about the home is good, both in the children’s guides and for placing authorities and parents. The home is operating in accordance with its conditions of registration and the registered persons remain fit for registration. This service has made a significant positive difference to the quality of the young people’s lives. The young people would score the home as nine out of 10 or 10 out of 10 for the quality of care provided.

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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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