Children's Home run by Keys Education Ltd in Herefordshire

Unique reference number SC062074 Inspector Hannah Bates Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person Keys Education Limited Registered person address Hurstwood Court, Laganwood House New Hall Hey Road ROSSENDALE Lancashire BB4 6HR Responsible individual Marc Murphy Registered manager Tracey Lorraine John Date of last inspection 11/03/2014 2 of 10 Inspection date 24/11/2014

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Previous inspection satisfactory progress Enforcement action since last inspection none

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Overall effectiveness adequate

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

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Overall effectiveness

The home is adequate at meeting the needs of young people. Staff do not consistently update important information within young people’s care planning documentation. Multi-agency working is not embedded within staff practice. This means that the home has not sufficiently promoted young people’s safety or prioritised their emotional needs.

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Overall effectiveness

The home does not consistently promote young people’s learning. Some young people do not attend education regularly. There is a lack of focus on young people learning within the home environment and there are no resources to promote ongoing learning. Young people do not reach their full potential.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people take part in risk taking activities such as going missing and substance misuse. For some young people the incidents of them going missing has decreased. This means that their safety and wellbeing has improved. The home is inconsistent in its approach to engaging young people in exploring the reasons why they run away or misuse substances. The lack of consistent consequences for them means that preventative work with young people is not reaching its full potential. Young people do not get sufficient opportunities to learn about their risk taking behaviours with support from agencies such as substance misuse or child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). This means that they continue to put themselves at risk. 3 of 10 Regular key working sessions look at topics such as sexual health, healthy eating and relationships. Young people say the key working sessions help them. This supports young people’s emotional wellbeing. There is an effective independence

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Overall effectiveness

package in place for young people. Young people learn to cook, budget and gain skills in DIY which equips them for their future.

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Overall effectiveness

The inspection has raised three requirements and two recommendations. 4 of 10

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Information about this children’s home

This privately-owned home is registered to accommodate up to four young people. The home can look after young people who may have emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/03/2014 Interim satisfactory progress 19/09/2013 Full good 27/11/2012 Interim good progress 23/08/2012 Full adequate

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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) The registered person shall ensure that the children’s home is conducted so as to make proper provision for the care, education, supervision, support and, where appropriate, treatment, of children accommodated there (reg 11(1)(b)) 12/01/2015

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) The registered person shall promote and protect the physical, emotional and mental health of the children accommodated in a children’s home (Reg 20(1)) 12/01/2015

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) If, in relation to a children’s home, any of the events listed in column 1 of the table in Schedule 5 takes place, the registered person shall without 12/01/2015 5 of 10 delay notify the persons indicated in respect of the event in column 2 of the table (Regulation 30 (1))

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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

 Children have access to a range of educational resources to support their learning and have opportunities beyond the school day to engage in activities which promote learning (NMS 8.2)  Children are supported to attend school, college or alternative provision regularly (NMS 8.3) 6 of 10

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

There is a lack of emphasis on learning and educational development outside of the formal educational settings. Some young people do not engage in a full educational timetable and not all young people are in education. There is a lack of expectation or encouragement that young people are to learn outside of their educational setting and within the home environment. They are not provided with enough opportunities to learn outside of their formal educational settings. Consequentially, young people do not develop to their full potential. This affects their self-esteem and resilience.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people’s health needs are not consistently met. Smoking is not actively discouraged and there are limited proactive smoking cessation plans in place. Young people’s health is at continued risk of harm from smoking. Young people’s emotional health needs are not consistently met, for example through receiving input from services such as child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) and substance misuse services. The lack of emphasis on young people’s holistic needs means that potentially young people leave the home with ongoing unresolved mental health needs.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

The development of independent living skills for young people is positive and a real strength of the home. Young people are encouraged to take responsibility for their own health through key working sessions. For example, young people are encouraged to make their own health appointments and to eat healthy foods. They learn skills such as cooking, cleaning and budgeting as well as DIY skills. Through equipping young people with independence skills, this promotes their wellbeing and confidence in learning how to look after themselves.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Staff support young people to develop their understanding of who they are. Staff create a safe environment where young people feel able to explore their identities. Young people are encouraged to develop a positive sense of identity regardless of their sexuality, gender or race. They are taught and encouraged to not judge or discriminate against their peers and consequentially the home has a strong ethos of acceptance. This promotes young people’s resilience and gives young people positive messages for their future.

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Quality of care adequate

Staff do not consistently record and analyse significant incidents in young people’s behaviour or explore possible triggers for young people’s behaviours. Staff are therefore unable to complete any meaningful work to enable young people to modify 7 of 10 or understand such behaviours. Staff do not consistently put into place consequences when young people demonstrate risk taking or harmful behaviours. Reducing risk taking behaviours is not consistently encouraged or developed.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people say they are unclear about their care plans and how long they will remain at the home. Staff do not robustly challenge placing authorities about this and there is a lack of consistency in staff advocating for young people’s rights. Young people become disempowered and lose confidence in the adults around them. The home is in need of redecoration and personalisation. Young people say they view the purpose of the home as a ’roof over their head’ and there is a lack of encouragement for young people to wholly invest in the placement. Young people say they would like to take part in more activities. There is a limited activity planner in place and young people do not get to enjoy as many new experiences as they would like. Young people have limited involvement within the community. This impacts on their confidence and means they do not get to have many new experiences.

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Quality of care adequate

Staff work closely with parents and strongly support contact. The home establishes good working relationships with parents. Young people are able to see how adults around them work together. This is positive role modelling and promotes young people’s sense of identity. Staff encourage young people to have contact with their families and staff ensure that families are kept up to date with weekly telephone calls. Weekly summaries are competed for placing authorities. Social workers say they find these helpful. For young people, this means that there is effective joined up working between their social worker and the home.

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Quality of care adequate

Staff develop relationships with young people and young people confide in staff. Some staff are knowledgeable about some of the young people’s needs and support them wherever possible. Staff say, ‘We spend time with them and get to know them, we interact well with the young people and that is something we do really well’. There is a focus on talking things through. This approach has shown itself to be effective for some young people. Young people feel that they have more control and feel empowered.

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Quality of care adequate

Key working sessions are regular. Young people say, ‘I like key working sessions. They help me think things through and help me to do things’. There a wide range of topics covered within key working sessions such as sexual health, healthy eating, identity, and family relationships. Young people’s emotional wellbeing, in this respect, is promoted. There is a behaviour management reward system in place. Young people like being able to earn money for completing certain tasks and this encourages positive behaviour.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

8 of 10 Young people say they get pulled into their peer’s problems. This can cause arguments and on occasion, physically aggressive outbursts. This has a detrimental impact on young people’s emotional wellbeing and has affected how some young people view their placement. It can mean a loss of trust in the staff team to keep them safe. As a result some young people develop a sense of apathy within the home.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Young people participate in risk taking behaviours, for example through substance misuse. The response from staff to this behaviour is inconsistent and does not involve the input of other agencies such as the substance misuse team or the Looked After Nurse. Multi-agency working is not embedded within the practice of the staff team. This means that the home does not consistently address all young people’s mental health needs.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Staff do not always provide consistent boundaries and responses to risk taking behaviours. Risk management plans are not always updated about the care of young people. Staff shortages negatively impact on the quality of care young people receive. Inconsistent staffing means that some staff may be unfamiliar with the young people, the risks they pose and how to safely care for them. Young people’s safety has been placed at risk as a direct result of this.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Young people have reduced the frequency with which they go missing and some young people have worked with staff to stop running away. This demonstrates the strong relationship that some staff have with some of the young people. Missing from Care protocols are in place. The home communicates with the police in order to get young people back safely and has good relationships with the local police. This promotes the safety and wellbeing of young people.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Young people know how to make complaints and do so. The home listens to their complaints, investigates them and then ensures that young people are given feedback on the outcome of their complaint. This empowers young people and safeguards them. Staff frequently talk about the issue of bullying with young people and encourage them to talk to them. This does not always resolve peer group difficulties but it ensures that young people are aware that bullying is not tolerated. Young people’s emotional wellbeing is promoted in this regard.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

The staff team are up to date with safeguarding training and are aware of whistleblowing procedures. Staff are safely recruited and agency staff are appropriately vetted prior to them working within the home. All staff are trained in the use of physical interventions although physical interventions rarely take place. There is a strong emphasis on talking to young people and building relationships. This promotes young people’s safety within the home.

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Leadership and management adequate

9 of 10 The Registered Manager is qualified at NVQ Level 4 and is in the process of gaining her NVQ Level 5 in leadership and management. She has been in post since January 2013. The Registered Manager has put into place recommendations from previous inspections.

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Leadership and management adequate

There is a lack of a robust leadership team within the home and an over-reliance on the Registered Manager. This means that when the Registered Manager is absent, the home does not run smoothly; information cannot always be located and young people’s risk assessments are not robustly adhered to. This results in inconsistency of care and safeguarding incidents not being rigorously prevented. On occasion, the home has not formally shared important safeguarding information with placing authorities in a timely and consistent manner. This is ineffective partnership working and does not promote the needs and wellbeing of young people.

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Leadership and management adequate

There is a development plan in place and regular monitoring of the running of the home. Whilst these highlight the areas for development within the home, these have not been actioned by the staff team as a whole. Improvements in the home remain ongoing and in some cases, the delay impact negatively on the delivery of care to young people within the home.

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Leadership and management adequate

Supervision and training is regular and of good quality. Staff say that they find supervision helpful and that they can talk about anything Staff have had training in areas such as attachment, self-harm and child sexual exploitation. This gives staff the knowledge they need to work with the young people in their care. Team meetings are regular and consistently address young people’s behaviours and safeguarding. They are child focused and staff are encouraged to share their observations of young people’s behaviour.

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Leadership and management adequate

The Registered Manager has oversight of the daily running of the home and is involved with the care provided to young people. The Registered Manager demonstrates a commitment to wanting to prepare young people for adult life through effective care planning. The Registered Manager oversees any physical interventions or incidents as well as young people’s meetings. The Registered Manager encourages young people to get involved within the running of the home; for example through developing the young person’s guide. This means that young people have opportunity to develop the home and this promotes their feelings of self- worth. Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Leadership and management adequate

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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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