Children's Home run by Island Choices Ltd in Isle of Wight

Unique reference number SC399866 Inspector Brian Mcquoid Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered manager Lisa Jane Stanbridge Date of last inspection 04/11/2013 2 of 9 Inspection date 21/05/2014

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Previous inspection good progress Enforcement action since last inspection none

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Overall effectiveness good

Outcomes for children and young people good Quality of care good Keeping children and young people safe good Leadership and management good

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Overall effectiveness

Overall effectiveness of the service is good with young people making real progress when considering their starting points upon arrival at the home. 'The home has helped me become more mature', was one of many positive comments received from young people. Young people enjoy excellent relationships with the staff who care for them, they feel safe living at the home and the majority have extremely positive views about the care they are receiving. 'It's the best place I have lived', was a comment from one young person that was also echoed by another. Care planning is highly individualised and staff work very closely with external agencies to ensure the needs of young people are effectively addressed.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people are very clear about the expectations of the home and feel they are benefitting from the consistent application of behaviour boundaries. Staff have a very good understanding of safe working practice and adopt a positive and encouraging approach to working with young people. Challenging situations are handled extremely well. Leadership and management arrangements are good with staffing a real strength of the home. There is a clear understanding of areas for development and a commitment to the continuing improvement of the service. There are no breaches of regulations or failure to meet national minimum standards that impact adversely on young people's welfare. There are three recommendations to improve the home further relating to maintenance of the garden, carrying out 3 of 9 audits and including all improvements in the development plan. 4 of 9

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned and is registered for up to eight young people with no specific condition. The main premises accommodates four young people as does the satellite home which is a short distance away.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/11/2013 Interim good progress 08/04/2013 Full good 20/11/2012 Interim good progress 15/05/2012 Full good

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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 all areas of the home are maintained to a satisfactory standard, specifically the rear garden at the main premises ( NMS 10.3)  ensure that the development plan contains all aspects of planned improvemen for the homes (NMS 15.2)  adopt a more rigorous approach to the maintaining of young people's case records, specifically carry out regular file audits. (NMS 22.1) 5 of 9

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Outcomes for young people at the home are good. They are happy living there, they feel safe and they have developed meaningful and beneficial relationships with the staff who care for them. Overall attendance at educational placements is good for the majority of young people, while those in work related training are doing exceptionally well by taking responsibility for preparing themselves and getting to work on time. 'I have become more mature and independent', said one young person, while another reported now being able to do her own washing and cooking. Young people feel valued and can to express their views freely, they feel listened to and able to influence events within the home.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Becoming more sociable, more confident, more independent and more mature are some of the positive outcomes for young people at the home. Staff deliver an accredited life-skills programme for young people which is an important element in developing their levels of independence and which is successfully preparing them for the transition to independent living. Young people at the home enjoy good health and have a very good understanding of the importance of healthy lifestyles. Risk taking behaviours such as taking drugs and going missing have either ceased altogether or decreased significantly for the majority. Young people have appropriate contact with their families and friends.

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Quality of care good

The quality of care received by young people is extremely good. The home provides a very child-centred environment where the welfare of young people is central to practice, and where young people enjoy extremely positive and beneficial relationships with the staff who care for them. 'I have been supported really well, and have learnt so much here', said one young person. Young people are able to talk freely and openly to staff and seeking their views is an integral aspect of how the home operates. They are involved in the care planning process, meet regularly with their key workers, attend and contribute to their reviews, talk to their social workers who visit regularly, and have young people's meetings within the home. There is an awareness of how to make a complaint should anyone wish to, however any concerns are usually dealt with effectively and the level of complaints is extremely low. Staff are strong advocates for young people in all aspects of their lives and fully

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Quality of care good

support them in complaining to their placing authority should it be necessary. Young people's social workers have very good communication with the home and feel positively about the care being provided there. The home provides comfortable and homely accommodation of a good standard. 6 of 9 Care planning at the home is highly individualised with good quality plans addressing the diverse and sometimes complex needs of young people very successfully, and plans being reviewed frequently in consultation with young people. Behaviour plans identify positive strategies for working with young people, helping them to develop and sustain positive relationships and more socially acceptable behaviours. Staff work very closely with the placing authority and external agencies to ensure that young people have all the support that they need in relation to all aspects of their lives, most notably education and health. Healthy lifestyles are actively promoted within

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Quality of care good

the home and there is good access to external specialist services to address young people's physical and emotional well-being. Arrangements for the management and administration of medication are good.

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Quality of care good

Staff are proactive in seeking appropriate educational provision for young people and successfully support and promote attendance for the great majority. Young people have access to a wide range of activities and are actively encouraged to develop new interests, for example learning to play a musical instrument. The home has good links with the local community, with recreational facilities being frequently used, and some young people working regularly at a local charity shop.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Arrangements for ensuring the safety of young people are good. They feel totally safe living at the home and receive good information, guidance and support about personal safety, keeping themselves safe in the community, and about the major risks to health. Relationships between young people are on the whole very positive with any incidents of bullying being treated seriously and immediately addressed. Staff work very closely with external agencies and there is clear evidence that risk- taking behaviours have reduced significantly over time for young people. The majority of young people return to the home on time after being out and do not go missing. In isolated cases where young people do not return and staff do not know their whereabouts, they are reported as missing and staff follow the protocol agreed with the local police, with whom the home have a very positive working relationship. Individual risk assessments for young people are comprehensive and identify clearly

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Keeping children and young people safe good

the strategies for managing and minimising the risks that they present. Staff are well trained in relation to all aspects of safeguarding, and the home deals with any allegations appropriately and according to procedures, ensuring the protection of young people is the priority at all times.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Young people at the home feel fairly treated and appreciate the consistent application of boundaries by staff, saying they have become more mature and responsible as a result. Staff adopt a positive approach to their interaction with young people, fostering relationships successfully and using incentives to encourage good behaviours. Sanctions are being fairly applied and there have been no incidents of physical restraint being used at the home since the last full inspection carried out during April 2013. Young people are relaxed and comfortable in the company of staff 7 of 9 and are able to find someone to talk to if they have any personal problems or feel unsafe for any reason.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

The home provides a safe and secure physical environment for young people where there is good provision for the management of risk associated with the premises and activities undertaken by them both on and off site. Health and safety arrangements, including fire safety, are good with all checks and tests up to date, and young people being well aware of the fire evacuation procedures which are practised regularly. Recruitment procedures provide the required safeguards for the welfare of young people and are being effectively implemented.

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Leadership and management good

Leadership and management of the service is good. The registered manager has been in post for over four years, she is suitably qualified, has significant experience, and is providing clear and effective leadership. Well established operational systems are implemented effectively and the home runs very smoothly on a day-to- day basis. The home has a good track record of addressing requirements and recommendations from previous inspections and a small number of complaints received since the last inspection have been satisfactorily addressed and resolved. A recently reviewed and revised statement of purpose provides excellent information about the service and the stated aims and objectives are clearly being met. Young people are very clear about what the home sets out to do for them and are generally extremely positive about living there. The provider has acquired ownership of the main premises since the last inspection. Both premises are now owned and resourced very adequately to

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Leadership and management good

meet the needs of young people being cared for. Both premises are generally being maintained to a good standard, with the exception of the rear garden at one.

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Leadership and management good

The experience and enthusiasm of staff is a strength of the home. The strong team engage positively with young people and form meaningful and productive relationships with them. 'I love working here', was a comment received from several staff during the inspection. Good support is provided for staff in the form of regular supervision and good quality training which enables them to effectively address the varied and complex needs of young people. 'Youth Mental Health First Aid' training is an example of this. Young people routinely attend and contribute to their reviews and there is clear evidence of the positive impact that living at the home has had for them. Effective monitoring includes twice yearly questionnaires completed by young people, parents, and social workers, with Regulation 33 and 34 reports also reflecting positively on the quality of care being provided. Individual case records are generally

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Leadership and management good

well maintained although regular auditing is not routinely undertaken to ensure up- to-date information is available and easily accessible. There is a clear commitment to the continuing improvement and development of the service, however this needs to be reflected in the home's development plan which for instance does not contain details of the scheduled refurbishment of the main premises recently purchased. 8 of 9 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Leadership and management good

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Judgement Description

Outstanding A service of exceptional quality that significantly exceeds minimum requirements.

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Judgement Description

Good A service of high quality that exceeds minimum requirements.

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Judgement Description

Adequate A service that only meets minimum requirements.

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Judgement Description

Inadequate A service that does not meet minimum requirements.

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Information 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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Information 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 framework of inspection for children's homes.

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