Children's Home run by Aspris Children’s Services Limited in Worcestershire

Unique reference number SC441514 Inspector Suzanne Young Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person Priory Education Services Ltd Registered person address 5th Floor 80 Hammersmith Road London W14 8UD Responsible individual Helen Sharpe Registered manager Andrew John Dawe Date of last inspection 10/02/2014 2 of 10 Inspection date 20/11/2014

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Previous inspection good Enforcement action since last inspection none

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Overall effectiveness good

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

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Overall effectiveness

The home was last inspected in February 2014. The overall judgement at that time was good. The home has had a new Registered Manager in post since September 2014. He is experienced and appropriately qualified. He has taken action to address the shortfall found at the last inspection and the previous requirement has been met. The manager has a good awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of the home and drives improvement. Staff feel well supported and receive regular training to enable them to meet the needs of the young people and develop their practice.

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Overall effectiveness

The home provides individualised care and support that helps young people with their education, personal, social and emotional development. Staff are focused on promoting young people’s safety and well-being. Young people are not engaging in risk taking behaviours. Instances of running away have significantly reduced. Young people currently living in the home are all relatively new. They say they feel safe in the home but have yet to develop strong relationships with staff.

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Overall effectiveness

The manager and staff team try hard to develop positive working relationships with placing social workers and parents. One parent stated, ‘All the staff are fantastic. They get back with queries quickly.’

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Overall effectiveness

One requirement and two recommendations have been made as a result of this 3 of 10 inspection. These relate to records and the young person guide and do not impact negatively on the safety of young people. 4 of 10

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Information about this children’s home

The home accommodates up to three young people with difficult and challenging behaviour. The home is owned by a private limited company.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/02/2014 Full good 08/10/2013 Interim satisfactory progress 21/11/2012 Full good 30/05/2012 Interim good progress

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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

(2001) maintain in respect of each child who is accommodated a record which includes the information documents and records specified in Schedule 3. This refers to children's care plans. (Regulation 28 (1a)) 31/12/2014

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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 the children's guide clearly sets out what services and facilities it 5 of 10 provides and detail how they can contact their independent reviewing officer (NMS 13.5)  encourage children to read their files, other than confidential or third party information and to correct errors and add personal statements. (NMS 22.5) 6 of 10

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people make adequate progress while living in the home. The young people currently living in the home are relatively new to the home and have yet to develop in emotional resilience. They are in good physical health and attend routine health appointments. Young people’s psychological and emotional needs are met through regular key worker sessions and specialist health appointments. Relationships between staff and young people are positive, although, established relationships have yet to be developed.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people’s educational progress varies as not all are attending school and some have a history of non-school attendance. Those young people who are not in school are beginning to engage with staff in planned structured activities to positively occupy their time during the school day. Plans for their education are in place but have yet to be implemented.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people develop independence skills which are appropriate to their age and abilities. They are supported in developing skills in day to day living, such as, preparing meals and doing their laundry.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people have regular contact with their family. Some young people are placed by the education department and return home at weekends and holidays. Staff promote contact with families through supporting home visits and ensuring young people can telephone family and friends. As a consequence, young people maintain their sense of identity.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people are able to make a positive contribution to their home by participating in meetings and expressing views about food and activities. They are able to personalise their bedrooms and have a say in the décor of the home. For instance, young people have been sought regarding the creation of a ‘chill out’ room in the garage.

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Quality of care good

Staff interact positively with young people and are working hard to develop constructive relationships with them. Young people are aware that staff are concerned about their wellbeing and development. Young people are aware of how to complain and are supported in having their views heard. Young people feel staff are ‘okay’ and the home ‘seems nice’.

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Quality of care good

The home provides young people with a good level of personalised care. Young 7 of 10 people’s diverse needs are identified within care planning. This is because placement plans and behaviour management plans are individual and tailored to meet the specific needs of young people. These clearly identify objectives and risk. Impact assessments are completed when young people moved into the home. This helps ensure the interests of existing young people in the home are taken into account when considering new admissions into the home. One parent stated, 'He seems to have settled really well… boundaries and rules are in place and they are beginning to help him.’

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Quality of care good

Young people’s statutory placement and review meetings are occurring as required. Although the home is given adequate information to safely care for young people when they are admitted, a copy of the local authority care plan is not always included. This is important to ensure young people's needs are met appropriately.

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Quality of care good

Key worker sessions are taking place regularly with young people to ensure their views and feelings are sought about aspects of their care. Young people are not encouraged to read and sign their placement plans or other documents pertaining to them. As a result, they are not encouraged to become fully involved in all aspects of their care.

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Quality of care good

Staff ensure that the health needs of young people are positively addressed within the home. All medication is safely stored in individual locked cabinets for each young person. Staff work with other professionals to ensure that young people receive the support they need. They encourage young people to attend routine and specialist health appointments. They work alongside the company’s in-house therapy team who visit the home regularly to speak with staff and young people. This ensures that young people have access to services and support to meet their emotional and psychological needs.

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Quality of care good

Staff promote and encourage young people’s attendance in school and provide a structure for those who are not in school. They actively work to engage young people in positive activities and develop interests and activities outside of the home, such as, having music and horse riding lessons.

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Quality of care good

The home is in a rural location with easy access to a range of local facilities. It is homely and well maintained. The décor and furnishings are of a good standard which ensures young people live in a home which is comfortable and a pleasant environment in which to live.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Young people feel safe in the home. They are able to talk to members of staff if they have any concerns. Staff receive safeguarding training to ensure they are aware of the procedures to ensure young people’s safety. Young people currently in the home do not engage in risk taking behaviours, such as running away and going missing. 8 of 10 Staff work closely with police, placing authorities and safeguarding teams when young people do display this behaviour. Since the last inspection, the home had a period of a month when a young person was frequently going missing. Staff managed to significantly reduce these episodes.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Behaviour guidance plans and risk assessments accurately identify risks to young people. This helps staff successfully manage young people’s behaviour. Staff promote young people’s positive behaviour and as a result, the use of physical intervention is low.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

The home environment is safe and secure. Risk assessments are reviewed. Health and safety and fire checks are completed regularly. All young people participate in fire drills to ensure they can evacuate the home in an emergency.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

All visitors to the home are appropriately checked. There are clear procedures for the recruitment and vetting of staff. Young people who attend the company's own school become involved in the recruitment process of new staff and interview prospective candidates. As a result, staff recruitment is robust and take into account young people's views.

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Leadership and management good

Management arrangements in the home are good. Since the last inspection the home has had a new Registered Manager in post. He has been managing the home since September 2014 and is appropriately qualified and experienced. The manager has a development plan in place. He evaluates the activities of the home and reviews the development plan on a monthly basis, monitoring patterns and trends within the home. This ensures he has a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the home to drive improvement.

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Leadership and management good

The statutory requirement made at the previous inspection to notify Ofsted of any review of the Statement of Purpose has been met. The home’s Statement of Purpose accurately reflects the home and gives clear information for placing social workers and parents. The home has a young person's guide to inform young people when they first arrive about the home. This does not clearly state the expectations and routines of the home. It also does not contain details of how young people may contact their independent reviewing officer if they have any concerns.

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Leadership and management good

The home’s staffing levels meet the needs of the young people. There are no vacancies. Staff working in the home feel well supported and receive regular supervision. One member of staff stated she was, ‘Feeling very positive about the home.’ Another commented, ‘I love working here and look forward to coming to work.’

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Leadership and management good

There is a comprehensive range of on-line and face to face training available for staff 9 of 10 pertinent to the needs of the young people in the home. Although there is a mix of qualified and newly appointed staff working within the home a qualified member of staff is on duty at all times. As a result, young people are receiving care and support from trained staff that are professionally up-to-date.

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Leadership and management good

The manager and staff develop positive relationships with parents and other professionals. One parent stated communication is ‘Brilliant’ while another felt staff communication could be more consistent. Placing social workers feel that communication from staff has improved. 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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