Children's Home run by Shropshire Council in Shropshire

Unique reference number SC382730 Inspection date 21/02/2014 Inspector Julian Mason Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 19/07/2013 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

The home is a local authority provision that provides short-term placements for the purpose of assessment for up to four young people with emotional and/or behaviour difficulties. Placements are normally for 12 weeks but this can be extended according to individual needs and circumstances.

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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

The home was judged as outstanding overall at the last full inspection in July 2013, no requirements or recommendations were made as a result of this visit. Young people continue to benefit from a service that provides stability and a compressive focus on transitions to more permanent placements. Although each young person’s stay is short, they enjoy living at the home; they feel very safe and very well supported. Young people describe their experiences as, ‘like being in a big family’ and ‘they really understand how I am feeling.’ Young people continue to be fully involved in planning for their futures with external professionals stating how good the staff team are at promoting consultation and engagement in this process. Because of this, young people feel listened to and involved in their day-to-day care and future planning.

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Progress

Young people continue to benefit from living in a home where there is effective and efficient management and organisation of its daily operation. Monitoring and quality assurance processes are well established to support the development of the home. The Registered Manager continually gathers evidence from a wide range of sources to determine the quality of care being provided. This information also includes direct feedback from young people about their experiences of each staff team member. Recently returned surveys are very upbeat about the staff team and reflect the positive relationships that they established with their carers. In addition, the home has devised a more specific questionnaire for young people to complete when they move between homes. This is to help managers determine if young people received the right support and help at these times. Formal monitoring visits continue to be conducted monthly. The format and conduct of these visits are currently being

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Progress

reviewed with the aim of improving the range and quality of information provided.

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Progress

The staff team now have access to an electronic network where information about individual young people’s progress and development can be recorded. This has enabled a more effective and quicker way to share key information with placing social workers. One professional commented, ‘since residential workers have had access to the new system there have been more opportunities to promote and improve the sharing of information.’

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Progress

Young people’s health and well-being continues to be prioritised by ensuring the staff team have access to the right training and information. For example, staff have recently received specific training in how to support and monitor young people who have long term health conditions such as diabetes and allergies. Staff from the home are now meeting with the looked after nurse in a wider forum to discuss health related topics and practices so that this information can be shared with the rest of the team. Young people continue to be looked after by a team of staff who aim to achieve the best possible outcomes from the very start of their stay.

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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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