Children's Home run by Norwood Ravenswood in Barnet

Unique reference number SC010415 Inspector Seka Graovac Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

p.1

Registered person Norwood Ravenswood Registered person address 80-82 The Broadway Stanmore Middlesex HA7 4HB Responsible individual Angela Duce Registered manager Annette Shimoni Date of last inspection 16/12/2013 2 of 11 Inspection date 19/09/2014

p.1

Previous inspection satisfactory progress Enforcement action since last inspection none

p.2

Overall effectiveness good

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

p.2

Overall effectiveness

The service is consistently child-centred. It is flexible, sensitive and responsive to the needs of children and young people and their families. The high quality planning includes comprehensive written individual care plans, good communication with all parties involved and swift reviews when required. An effective risk management process robustly helps to protect children and young people. The service empowers children and young people to safely try new activities. It enables them to develop further their confidence and skills, while having an enjoyable time. It makes significant contributions to their wellbeing and development. The whole experience that they have is very positive. The service greatly enhances the quality of their lives and the lives of their families. This inspection identifies two areas for improvement. The quality of the periodical monitoring reports that are sent to HMCI, Ofsted and the content of the Statement

p.2

Overall effectiveness

of Purpose require further improvement. As one of these requirements is restated from the previous inspection, the leadership and management have been judged as adequate. These breaches of regulations have not impacted negatively on the welfare of children and young people. The organisation is already implementing a development plan that aims to further strengthen its quality assurance processes. All other aspects of the service provision are either good or excellent. Children and young people are safe and happy to use the service. They, their parents and the 3 of 11 professionals are highly complimentary about the quality of the service provided. 4 of 11

p.2

Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide short breaks for up to nine children and young people who have a learning disability, physical disability or sensory impairment. The breaks are provided on a rolling programme to over 40 children and young people with profound and complex needs.

p.4

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/12/2013 Interim satisfactory progress 12/04/2013 Full good 08/01/2013 Interim good progress 01/05/2012 Full good

p.4

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.

p.4

Reg. Requirement Due date

5 (2001) keep under review and revise the Statement of Purpose in line with the recent changes in legislation (Regulation 5, Schedule 1) 22/10/2014

p.4

Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) improve the content of the three-monthly reports on the review of the quality of care to better demonstrate monitoring and evaluating the matters set out in Schedule 6, and also, consultation with children, their parents and placing authorities. (Regulation 34(1)(3)) 30/11/2014 5 of 11 6 of 11

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people good

Children and young people enjoy their short breaks. Their complex health and other needs continue to be met effectively, while they are away from their families and carers.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people good

Although the great majority of children and young people do not communicate verbally, staff enable them to actively participate in the life of the home. Children and young people contribute significantly to the decisions made about activities, food and other aspects of their short break. They engage in a wide range of activities that they themselves have chosen. Many of those activities would otherwise not be available to them.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people good

They enjoy many in-door activities, such as cooking, arts and crafts, and making music. A number of parents commented positively about the home's beautiful and well-equipped musical garden. Children and young people also love playing in the stimulating play room or relaxing in the home's sensory room.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people good

They get involved in making posters for various celebrations, seasons and religious holidays. This activity promotes their general awareness of the world around them. The posters are displayed to celebrate their joint work and achievements. A different poster that focuses on a particular communication symbol each month is also displayed. This poster focuses on supporting and improving their communication skills.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people good

Children and young people also access many leisure, cultural and learning facilities in the community, such as museums, parks, farms and zoos.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people good

They share their positive experiences with other children and young people and with the staff members. They get to safely try new things and to learn about them in the company of others. They improve their social skills and achieve better integration in the community.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people good

Children and young people are happy while using the service. The inspector observed this during the visit. A number of parents have highlighted in the Ofsted on-line survey that their children are, 'happy and always smiling' when they bring them to the service. One parent wrote: 'My daughter always seems eager to walk into the home and wonders around immediately without getting upset. There are lots of fun rooms and activities for her to engage in. The staff all seem to know her and engage with her. They organise lovely outings.'

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people good

The whole experience that children and young people have, makes significant contributions to their development. The service enhances the quality of their lives and 7 of 11 the lives of their families. It enables children and young people to develop further their confidence and skills, while having a great time.

p.6

Outcomes for children and young people good

The service also enables the parents to have a short break from the practical tasks of their caring role. This enables them to embrace this role with renewed energy and enthusiasm.

p.7

Quality of care good

Children, their parents and the professionals involved in their care have developed trust in the management and staff. They are very positive about the quality of the service provided. A parent has made a following comment in the Ofsted on-line survey: 'I feel like it is another home. I trust and believe the team and I am relaxed when my child is there.’ Another parent wrote 'I am very happy and my child has excellent support at the service.’ Another parent commented on the home's good inclusion practice.

p.7

Quality of care good

The introduction to the service is particularly well-managed. For example, this is what one child's parents wrote 'we would like to thank the manager and all the staff for providing such excellent care for our daughter over the weekend. It was her first overnight stay and from the first tea visit, we were really happy with the thought of leaving her for respite. The communication was great and the staff have taken notice of the care plan, even making part of supper different for her because of what we told them. She came home happy.' They then went on to suggest how certain aspect of the service could be improved. The home has embraced the suggestion.

p.7

Quality of care good

The service is flexible and responsive to the needs of children and young people and their families. Staff have a deep understanding of children and young people. They communicate well with them by using a range of communication tools. They work in close partnership with their parents and other professionals to ensure the continuity and consistency of care. The high quality planning includes comprehensive written individual care plans, good communication with parents and professionals and swift reviews when required. One child's social worker wrote to the home stating how they were 'very impressed at the knowledge of the staff working with the child and how the child appeared to be happy in their surroundings.’ The social worker also commented that the care plan was detailed and reflective of the child's personality and needs. Another professional said that the parent shared with them that, 'the service was seamless; all staff were professional’ and that she was impressed at how

p.7

Quality of care good

Children and young people receive highly individualised care and support from competent and caring staff. Medication and complex health needs are well managed. Children and young people receive good and wide-ranging support that enables them to enjoy their short breaks. The service consistently promotes their confidence, 8 of 11 learning and independence.

p.7

Quality of care good

There is a robust complaints procedure. Any issues, however small, are treated seriously. The home sees complaints as opportunities to improve the service and to promote positive relationships. The service also seeks views and collates and analyses feedback from children and young people, their parents and professionals about the quality of the service they receive.

p.8

Keeping children and young people safe good

The high safeguarding awareness and the proactive safeguarding practice contributes to ensuring that all children and young people are safe. This includes children and young people whose complex and profound needs make them particularly vulnerable.

p.8

Keeping children and young people safe good

An effective risk assessment and risk management process helps to protect children and young people. Clear and comprehensive written documentation is regularly reviewed and updated. Robustly recruited staff members receive regular safeguarding training through the Local Safeguarding Children Board. They also regularly receive training on other topics that equip them to safely meet the special needs of children and young people who they look after.

p.8

Keeping children and young people safe good

The home works in close partnership with other agencies to ensure the protection of children and young people and everybody else involved. An example of a proactive joint safeguarding practice is as follows: The management invited the local fire brigade to review the impact of the storage and use of oxygen cylinders on the home's fire safety plan. The fire-brigade visited and evaluated this plan with the staff, before the child who, at times, requires additional oxygen was admitted to the service.

p.8

Keeping children and young people safe good

The physical environment is kept safe at all times. It has been appropriately adapted and equipped to ensure that the needs of children and young people are safely met and that their welfare is promoted.

p.8

Keeping children and young people safe good

There have been no child protection referrals, major incidents or episodes of a child or a young person going missing. The high staffing levels and the vigilance and competence of staff contribute to the effective protection of children and young people.

p.8

Keeping children and young people safe good

The service is also committed to having a proactive and preventative approach to behaviour management. Children and young people with significant needs in this respect have written positive behaviour support plans. Those plans provide clear detailed information and guidance to staff. They are reviewed on a monthly basis. Staff manage the challenging behaviour of children and young people effectively and with confidence, sensitivity and skills. They intervene physically only when it is necessary to prevent an injury. Incidents are well-recorded and made subject to the 9 of 11 robust scrutiny of the organisation's behaviour management panel. They are also subject to the team's reflective practice. The actions taken by the staff are reviewed to identify any lessons to be learnt. One young person's behaviour has improved so much that they do not need a positive behaviour support plan any longer.

p.8

Leadership and management adequate

The suitably qualified Registered Manager has been in post since 2005. The strong management team provides clear leadership and ensures that their vision permeates all aspects of the service. The seamlessness of a child-centred and empowering short break service is supported through regular team meetings, monthly staff supervisions, annual reviews of the individual staff performance and a comprehensive training programme.

p.9

Leadership and management adequate

Ofsted receives regular monthly monitoring reports from the home. These reports are written by an independent person and demonstrate robust monitoring. The reports evidence the good practice and the positive outcomes for children and young people who use the service. They also highlight any areas for further improvement; for example, how to embed and better evidence the team's reflective approach to care. The home takes appropriate actions to continually improve and develop the service.

p.9

Leadership and management adequate

Ofsted also receives regular reports on the review of quality of care that are periodically completed by the manager. A requirement was made at the last inspection to improve the content of these reports. The manager was asked to better demonstrate monitoring of the trends and consultation with various stakeholders.

p.9

Leadership and management adequate

The manager has made an effort to comply with the regulation and updated the format in line with the recent legislative changes. The quality of these reports has been improved, but further improvement is required. They still do not clearly show how the feedback that the home received in the review period from various stakeholders has been taken into account when the service was reviewed. These reports also do not clearly demonstrate that the manager is analysing, reflecting on and evaluating what has happened during the review period to identify any patterns and opportunities for improvement. The reports focus on explaining the arrangements that are in place, however they need to have a sharper focus on the review of the effectiveness of the arrangements and an analysis of their impact on the quality of care and outcomes for children during the review period.

p.9

Leadership and management adequate

The requirement has been repeated. There is no evidence that the breach has had a negative impact on the direct care provided to children and young people. Apart from these reports, there is plenty of evidence to demonstrate that the monitoring, consultation with stakeholders and review of care in the home are good. However, not receiving good quality reports from the manager compromises Ofsted's role in overseeing the home in between inspections. As this is a restated requirement, the leadership and management are judged to be adequate. 10 of 11 Another requirement has been made in this report regarding a minor omission in the home's Statement of Purpose. This has come about as this document has not been amended in line with the recent legislative changes. There is no impact of this breach on the welfare of children and young people.

p.9

Leadership and management adequate

The organisation has already put improving further the quality of monitoring and strengthening its quality assurance processes on its development agenda. Leaders and managers have continued to drive the service forward in many different ways. A practice monitoring initiative was introduced this summer. One of the organisation's most senior managers observed the staff practice with a specific focus on evaluating how child-centred the practice was. Some other examples of continued improvement include introducing an on-line training package for staff, developing a close relationship with another similar service to share good practice and fitting magnetic blinds to the windows. Extensive work is in progress regarding better transition planning and establishing an outreach domiciliary care provision to the families who use this service. Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.10

Leadership and management adequate

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.

p.11

Judgement Description

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

p.11

Judgement Description

Good A service of high quality that exceeds minimum requirements.

p.11

Judgement Description

Adequate A service that only meets minimum requirements.

p.11

Judgement Description

Inadequate A service that does not meet minimum requirements.

p.11

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.

p.11

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.

p.11