Children's Home run by Castle Homes Care Limited in Birmingham

Unique reference number SC377825 Inspector Denise Jolly Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person Castle Homes Care Limited Registered person address Castle Homes Care Ltd, The Manor House High Street, Rothwell KETTERING Northamptonshire NN14 6BQ Responsible individual Daniel Svennson Registered manager Rachel Chatwin Date of last inspection 27/03/2014 2 of 11 Inspection date 23/10/2014

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Previous inspection good progress Enforcement action since last inspection There has been no enforcement action since the last inspection.

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Overall effectiveness outstanding

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

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Overall effectiveness

The children's home is making a measureable difference to the lives of children and young people. Staff use their considerable knowledge of outstanding childcare practice to provide personalised, well-planned and effectively reviewed care. All professionals involved in the lives of young people say staff work tirelessly to help them overcome their difficulties to achieve their individual potential. One young person said, ‘I am so glad that I came here, staff have helped me to see my future is going to be good.’ One parent said, ‘If my child can’t come home, I would like them to stay there. They are flourishing.’

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Overall effectiveness

Young people say they feel extraordinarily safe in the home, and are confident that staff do their best to help them to be safe and happy. Staff demonstrate in-depth knowledge and understanding of the risks young people face, and always take positive action to ensure risks are minimised and safely managed. They introduce and reinforce appropriate boundaries with young people, and work creatively to sustain fragile placements when it is in the best interests of the young person. Young people enjoy warm, open and trusting relationships with staff. This means they feel confident in the support available to them, readily ask for help, and respond well to praise and encouragement given for their achievements. 3 of 11 Staff confidently communicate their vision for an exceptional service, and work in effective partnership with all stakeholders to achieve this. The qualified and experienced Registered Manager places a clear emphasis on maximising improved

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Overall effectiveness

outcomes for young people. Managers have a thorough understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the home because of effective monitoring that takes account of the views of all stakeholders. They are keen to address shortfalls and develop the service they provide in partnership with professionals and young people, to enable them to reach their full potential. The Registered Manager addressed one requirement, to address an omission in records of restraint, during the inspection. Because of the general high quality of recording that includes the views of young people, this omission has not affected the welfare of young people. 4 of 11

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Information about this children’s home

The home provides care and accommodation for up to three young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The service is owned and operated by a private company.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/03/2014 Interim good progress 17/10/2013 Full outstanding 06/03/2013 Interim satisfactory progress 15/11/2012 Full good

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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

17B (2001) ensure that within 24 hours of the use of any restraint, the written record includes confirmation that the authorised person has spoken to the child concerned about the use of the measure. (Regulation 17B (3)(h)) 22/11/2014 5 of 11

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Children and young people’s lives significantly improve from their admission to the home. They form strong, trusting and affectionate relationships with staff. They experience care that anticipates and meets their needs. They explore their history and identify ways to overcome the impact of past trauma. Together with staff, they break down barriers to their success. This gives them confidence to explore new ideas and activities that help them to progress towards happy, healthy lives.

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Young people make exceptional progress to understand the way that they relate to people, including their families. They work with staff to explore their needs, difficulties and vulnerabilities that brought them to the home. This work helps young people to make decisions about how to improve their relationships. They identify the measures of healthy, happy contact with family members, and agree plans that support positive outcomes. Because they trust staff to support them, children and young people work hard to make and sustain appropriate contact with families and friends. They develop a positive self-view. This improves their emotional resilience and increases their knowledge and understanding of their background. One young person said, ‘Before I came here, I didn’t know that I was loved, and I behaved like nothing mattered. Now I feel cared for, this makes me want to do well in my life.’

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Children and young people are engaged in full time education, often for the first time in many years. They are proud of their achievements, telling their families and staff about how well they do in their assessments and tests. This has enabled some young people to attain exam grades that have provided access to college courses. Young people plan their future careers with an anticipation of being successful. They enjoy improved social lives as they share leisure time with their friends, both within the home and in the community.

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

All young people say that staff offer friendly hospitality to their friends. They say that the home is just like any other family home, and that young people get on with each other, with older young people helping the younger ones. They are realistic about the amount of freedom they have without staff. One young person said, ‘I am learning to make the right choices, I have learned to say ‘no’, to stupid ideas, I have the right amount of freedom at the moment.’

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Children and young people trust staff to guide them to make the right choices. They encourage each other to listen to staff advice when individuals become upset. The strength of relationships in the home provides young people with nurture and a safe place to relax and explore their feelings. This helps them to cope with the demands of the world, and be successful in it. It helps them to be realistic about the work they have to do to develop into capable young adults. One young person said, ‘I am not ready yet to be independent, I have wasted too many years and have to catch up, 6 of 11 but staff will help me to get to where I want to be.’

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Young people develop maturity in their outlook, and understand the risks they had previously faced. They do not go missing from the home, they access sexual health advice and make relationships within appropriate peer groups. Their behaviour improves, and over time, they demonstrate fewer outbursts as their negotiation and reasoning skills improve. When they suffer setbacks in their progress, they quickly recover because they know that staff will help them to regain their confidence and self-esteem. Children and young people understand the benefits of being in the home, even when is not their ideal arrangement. For example, one said, ‘This is the right home for me, but it would be perfect if it was nearer to my family.’

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Quality of care outstanding

Staff have the quality of relationships in the home at the heart of all they do. They have high expectations for young people, and operate as highly effective role models. A key feature of staff support is the mindfulness with which they approach the needs of young people. Children and young people respond to the positive and warm environment that staff create. Staff are skilled in observing and understanding the needs and vulnerabilities of children and young people. They offer an appropriate balance of boundaries and freedoms that help young people take steps towards more settled lives. Staff use reflective practice, and are resilient in managing the varied responses of children and young people, as they come to understand life in the home. Young people say, ‘The staff are brilliant’, and, ‘This home is outstanding’.

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Quality of care outstanding

Without exception, children and young people say that staff are always available to them, listen well to them, and help them to achieve their goals. One young person said, ‘When I couldn’t decide whether to go back to my home area, or stay here, staff helped me to plan for both, so that when I made my decision, things like college were all arranged’. This is typical of the rounded approach that staff offer young people, so that they can feel empowered by their own successful choices. Independent advocates also confirm that staff work collaboratively with children and young people. One said, ‘Without the input from staff, there is no doubt that (x) would not have had the contact with the family that was so needed to progress their plans.’

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Quality of care outstanding

When there is disagreement in the home, staff work quickly to identify and address the cause of disagreement. Children and young people are confident that staff operate open and transparent communication with them. Staff also challenge young people when they behave in inappropriate ways. For example, when children are intolerant of another’s race and culture, staff work with all parties to educate them, and promote positive relationships by creating opportunities for cooperative play and activity. Staff carefully monitor improvement in relationships, to ensure the wellbeing of all. 7 of 11 Social workers and independent advocates say that staff are very adept at creating honest and open relationships with all stakeholders, and this inspires trust in the ability of the home to implement and progress plans for young people. Staff reliably recognise the steps that are necessary to engage all stakeholders. They work

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Quality of care outstanding

tirelessly to build relationships with families, schools and colleges, and with health professionals that support young people. Keyworkers conduct regular reviews of plans, so that they remain up to date and relevant to meet the changing needs of young people. They take initiatives and propose new goals and actions between formal review periods, so that young people’s development continues apace. Staff are adept at referring back to young people to verify the direction they are taking. This ensures that young people remain fully aware of their goals and plans, and are committed to working with staff.

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Quality of care outstanding

Staff expect children and young people to go to school, and are proud of their achievements. Photographic displays remind children and young people of the benefits of being part of an education community, such as being awarded prizes for achievement, or getting all dressed up for a leaver’s ball. Staff send children and young people off each day with praise and encouragement, and are ready to hear all about their day when they return. This values the experiences of young people, and helps them to value the opportunities that education provides them with.

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Quality of care outstanding

Children and young people’s emotional and physical health improves because staff support them to access appropriate health care, receive the medication they need, and work with appropriate professionals for more specialised care. Staff provide discreet advice and encouragement to young people about sensitive matters, such as sexual health and development. As a result, young people engage with health professionals to get the treatment they need to be fit and well.

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Quality of care outstanding

Staff organise a wide range of suitable activities for children and young people. This includes life skills opportunities like budgeting, shopping and cooking, as well as activities that expand their interests and knowledge of the world. One parent said, ‘My child is always doing something. I thought they would lose their childhood by going into residential care, but in fact they have lots of things to look forwards to.’ This approach helps children and young people to develop their skills and confidence to underpin successful development.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Children and young people are clear that they feel very safe and happy in the home. They say that this is because they know staff care about them. They also say that they trust staff to work well with the important people in their lives, and to represent their views openly and honestly. Professionals say that staff provide safe and nurturing care, and promote transparency in their relationships. This instils confidence in the ability of staff to keep children and young people protected from harm. Because the home provides good information about incidents and difficulties 8 of 11 experienced by young people, external professionals can assess the quality of safe practice in the home.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Staff have been appropriately trained in a range of multi-disciplinary child protection courses appropriate to their roles. They use this knowledge well, to assess the risks posed to individual children and young people, and create strategies to minimise them. Key workers devise monitor and review careful risk management plans to enhance the safety and wellbeing of young people. These typically include measures that encourage young people to identify risks themselves, and manage them safely. If young people go missing during family contact, staff ensure that they liaise effectively with out of area police, social workers, and young people’s families, to coordinate searches and contact. Strong relationships with young people mean that staff are successful in locating them, counselling them and providing for their safe return.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Children and young people take increasing responsibility for making the right choices, while remaining protected from harm. The development of young people’s awareness is apparent. because young people no longer go missing, and there has been a dramatic reduction in incidents of physical aggression or damage to the home. Staff help young people to review their friendship and contact with inappropriate individuals. This protects them from exploitation because they learn to avoid the dangers of unsafe relationships. Young people recognise the progress they have made. They say that because staff value them, they have learned to appreciate a safer and more positive lifestyle.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

The Registered Manager employs staff by using safer recruitment processes that help prevent unsuitable adults from working in the home. In addition, thorough and demanding induction assessments ensure that staff are equipped with the knowledge and skills to work safely and competently with vulnerable children and young people. Continuous supervision and feedback from managers underlines the importance of open, reflective and transparent practice, to help keep children safe. Independent advocates say that the skills staff have in protecting children is a considerable strength of the home.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

There have been no allegations made in the home, but staff confidently outlined the procedures that they would follow should any safeguarding matter come to light. They apply rigour to their recording of incidents and staff interventions. Social workers say that they receive all reports within 24 hours, and this helps them to assess the suitability of staff approaches to the management of children and young people.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Staff use restraint rarely, and usually within the settling in period for young people. There has been no restraint for some months because children and young people have learned skills such as listening and negotiation to promote their views and feelings, and staff provide a safe base for their angry and emotional outbursts to be explored. When staff restrain young people, they complete clear and detailed records 9 of 11 about the incident, to ensure that managers can analyse the records, and identify any trends or patterns emerging. Staff have thoughtful discussion about any serious incident to identify ways their practice can improve. Staff engage young people in talking about their feelings and behaviour that led to a restraint, but the record of restraint does not always confirm this review has taken place. This causes delays when independent persons assess the appropriateness of the restraint, because

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

some information is kept elsewhere. This omission has not affected the safety or welfare of children, particularly as they confirm in the debriefs that they have been satisfied the restraint did not harm them. Children and young people say that staff have only ever intervened to help keep them from harm.

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Leadership and management outstanding

A dynamic, experienced and suitably qualified Registered Manager has been in post since February 2010. She has been consistently providing visionary and enabling leadership to an extremely stable, committed and competent staff team. Staff respond enthusiastically to her expectation that they will deliver outstanding care to complex and vulnerable young people. Young people benefit from a placement that fully supports their emotional, safety and learning needs, and helps them to progress in leaps and bounds. Staff recognise and celebrate the efforts of young people to improve their knowledge and understanding of the world, and their interaction with it.

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Leadership and management outstanding

Parents and professionals say that the home exceeds their expectations for the quality of care provided. Independent advocates say staff are extremely supportive of their role, and always contribute to an holistic approach to meeting need. Placing authorities are equally complimentary about the home, and say that staff are highly skilled in offering safe, personalised and developmental care to young people.

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Leadership and management outstanding

The Registered Manager conducts thorough and transparently recorded monitoring of the home. Through reflective discussions and carefully planned approaches, the home continues to develop and deliver services that have proven benefit to young people, who say that all staff are there to help them to progress. Because of consistent and responsive consultation with all stakeholders, there have been no complaints about the home.

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Leadership and management outstanding

The Registered Manager works with independent visitors, who visit on behalf of the provider, to assess the quality of care provided and to identify any development need required for the home to continue to progress. Added to outcomes from manager monitoring of the home, any actions that are identified are absorbed into improvements in the conduct of the home. The Registered Manager collects the views of young people in regular individual meetings with them. They see her as central to their lives, and speak warmly of her and the efforts she makes on their behalf. Because staff focus on individual need in a highly skilled and consistent way, the development of the home continues when those living in the home change. 10 of 11 Staff carefully assess and record the progress made by young people against their placement plan. This information is shared with all stakeholders so that placing authorities are clear about the impact the home is having. When children experience

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Leadership and management outstanding

barriers to success, staff’s natural ‘can-do’ attitude, and excellent analysis of the difficulty, helps them to overcome those barriers. For example, when families have difficulty relating to professionals, the home offers a different opportunity for them to work with their child’s plans. This approach works because the Registered Manager has a clear understanding of the scope of her responsibility to support the placing authority’s plan for the child.

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Leadership and management outstanding

Staff benefit from regular and developmental supervision. They say that this helps them to reflect on their performance, and ensures they continually improve the quality of care they provide. The Registered Manager works with the provider to identify training and development needs for the team and ensures this is reflected in the development plan for the home. She is aspirational for both staff and young people’s development. She leads training about leadership and management skills, and the changing regulatory childcare agenda. Staff approach their work with young people with increased knowledge and understanding about the background to their work. This helps them to be confident in the way they support young people, and work with other professionals to achieve continuing progress.

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Leadership and management outstanding

Staff maintain excellent quality records, that capture each child’s life vividly and in detail. They include the views of children and their families. They share information appropriately with relevant stakeholders. This ensures that all parties have an understanding of the child’s life, experiences and plans for the future. The highly effective partnership working that the home promotes underpins the excellent progress children and young people are making. Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Leadership and management outstanding

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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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