Children's Home run by Archways Care Limited in Worcestershire

Unique reference number SC383941 Inspector Elaine Allison Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered manager POST VACANT Date of last inspection 21/01/2014 2 of 11 Inspection date 10/12/2014

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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

Young people’s plans are highly individualised and demonstrate that the staff are aware of and meet young people’s diverse and complex needs. Equality and diversity are clearly valued and promoted in the home. Difference is enjoyed and celebrated and each young person's individuality is promoted to a very good standard.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people with complex needs are cared for by committed and dedicated staff. They identify young people’s needs and they work well with other professionals to establish individual’s wishes and preferences. Consequently, care is highly personalised, with young people at the heart of care planning. Young people are happy in the home. They develop good attachments with staff and other young people, forming the basis of the emotional security they need in order to make progress.

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Overall effectiveness

Staff share information well, promoting a consistent approach to behaviour management in the home. Where incidents do occur, staff act swiftly and put actions in place to mitigate future risk. This helps young people to feel secure.

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Overall effectiveness

Staff demonstrate in-depth knowledge and understanding of most risks young people face, and work hard to ensure those risks are minimised and safely managed. 3 of 11 They work well together and use the diverse attributes and skills they have to complement each other. This in turn allows them to offer good support to the children and young people.

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Overall effectiveness

The service provides an environment where education is a central component to the personal planning and positive outcomes for the children and young people. The provider’s education coordinator has strong links with education providers. This ensures continuity to support the young people in education and to realise their own potential and promote their self-esteem.

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Overall effectiveness

The service, where appropriate, encourage family members and friends to visit the home. This creates a feeling of an open and transparent culture within the service which helps to ensure the quality of the service is maintained for young people. 4 of 11

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately owned children's home for four young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/01/2014 Interim good progress 19/06/2013 Full good 07/02/2013 Interim satisfactory progress 21/06/2012 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

7 (2001) appoint an individual to manage the children's home if there is no registered manager in respect of the home. Specifically ensure the person appointed to the role makes an application to become registered with immediate effect. (Regulation 7 (1) (a)) 02/01/2015

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s): 5 of 11  ensure that staff are aware of current legislation and government guidance on the measures they can take to prevent a child leaving without permission and do not exceed these (NMS 5.3)  ensure staff are equipped with the skills required to meet the needs of the children and purpose of the setting. (NMS18.1) 6 of 11

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Outcomes for children and young people good

All of the young people are engaged in education and are making good progress. Young people are fully involved in their education choices and as a result, they maintain good attendance at school and other educational settings. The provider has an education coordinator who works very well with education providers on behalf of all the young people and acts as a conduit for excellent communication. This ensures that young people are able to develop academically and achieve in line with their peers.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Incidents of challenging behaviour are reducing and young people are making good progress living in a group setting. Young people form trusting relationships with staff and this enables young people to discuss any worries or concerns. A social worker commented ‘this is one of the best children’s homes, staff are friendly, approachable and professional and more importantly the home itself has a lovely calming ambiance’. A young person said ‘staff are always there for us if we need to have a talk about anything’. As a result, they feel safe and emotionally secure in the home.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people’s views and opinions are encouraged and respected in the home. There are regular young people’s meetings and one to one sessions between the young person and their key worker. Young people have been involved in redecoration of the lounge area and some young people have helped with minor repairs. This encourages young people’s involvement in the home and also helps them to develop a sense of ownership and pride in it.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people who were previous missing from home have not been missing since arriving at the home. Comprehensive risk assessments are in place to ensure that young people are safe whilst in the community. The health of young people is good. All young people benefit from easy access to appropriate medical services and receive appropriate care and treatment when necessary.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Where appropriate to do so, young people maintain close contact with their families and friends. This further ensures that young people develop emotional resilience and knowledge and understanding of their backgrounds. A young person commented ‘I can have my friends over and we hang out’.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people develop independence skills in accordance with their age and ability. Consequently, young people develop skills in cooking, menu planning, shopping and in general household tasks, such as washing their clothes, and cleaning their rooms. A young person cooked a Sunday lunch for all staff and young people as part of their independence plan. Another young person commented ‘we all like cooking and baking it’s great to learn how to do this cos we need to be able to do this when we leave here’. Developing these life skills and experiences, not only prepares young people for 7 of 11 independence, but also helps them to develop confidence and self-esteem.

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Quality of care good

Strong relationships are shared between staff members and young people. This results in young people feeling secure and knowing that staff are consistently concerned about their welfare. A young person said 'I know that the staff care about us, they show it all the time’.

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Quality of care good

There are clear strategies in place to protect young people such as individual support plans and intense direct work with young people. Young people's views influence decision making. Respecting their views is part of the culture in this home. There are many opportunities for talking and being listened to. Staff treat young people's views as important and ensure that young people have access to advocacy.

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Quality of care good

There are robust systems for individualised care planning which ensures that all staff are clear and confident about young people's care. Care plans take into account young people's backgrounds and this ensures that cultural needs are understood and met. An example of this is the home ensuring that religious books such as the Koran are available to allow young people to follow their own particular religious observance.

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Quality of care good

Incidents of challenging behaviour are reducing and young people are making good progress living in a group setting. Young people form trusting relationships with staff and this enables young people to discuss any worries or concerns. A social worker commented ‘on my visits to the home it is evident that it has a real sense of homeliness and young people have formed good relationships with each other and staff ’. A young person said ‘We are like one big family here’. As a result, they feel safe and emotionally secure in the home.

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Quality of care good

Risk assessments and behaviour support plans provide dynamic tools which help staff to be mindful of current risks and behaviours and agree means of managing these safely. These are supported by a comprehensive profile listing historical concerns, providing a context for current work and recognising young people's progress. Very good attention is given to identifying with young people, strategies that help them to feel safe. Young people acknowledged they had sometimes needed a lot of support and their comments include ‘Staff help me to get back on track’.

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Quality of care good

Medication, where used, is safely stored and carefully administered. Detailed records of medication are routinely checked for accuracy. This ensures that any errors, should they occur, would be quickly identified and promptly resolved. The staff team promote the health of young people at all times. All medical appointments are up to 8 of 11 date and the staff team are diligent in ensuring that young people attend. As a result, young people enjoy good health and any concerns are quickly resolved. Young people are encouraged to develop their emotional well-being because they benefit from regular, high quality discussions with their key workers. As a result, they form strong attachments to the staff team and are able to discuss a range of feelings, worries and concerns.

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Quality of care good

Generally, the food for meals and snacks had been varied and nutritious. The home is particularly good at addressing young people’s cultural needs in the food provided. Separate cooking utensils are available within the home, specifically to cook Halal food. This ensures that young people’s identity and cultural needs are addressed.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Each young person has a detailed behaviour management plan in place. This contains what strategies are needed to encourage positive behaviour. These plans are effective and young people's abilities to manage their own behaviour have improved as a result of their successful implementation.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

The home’s recording system is appropriate and ensures that should restraint occur, all appropriate details can be recorded. Positive behaviour is recognised and rewarded in the home. The service has a 'mystery box' which young people can access to reward good behaviour. A young person commented 'I like when a get a good surprise when I'm good'. Where sanctions are used, they are fair and proportionate. This ensures that young people are encouraged to display and maintain socially acceptable behaviour.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

The home has clear protocols with the local police should a young person go missing. Very good links have been established with the police missing co-ordinator which ensures a speedy co-ordinated response to any missing episode, reducing the risk for young people. Incidents of young people going missing from home have reduced.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

When serious incidents occur, the staff team ensure that prompt and appropriate action is taken to ensure the safety of young people. Furthermore, all required serious incident notifications are made to the appropriate services. As a result, young people’s safety is promoted at all times.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Risk assessments outlines what measures need to be in place to support the young people in their environment, in the community and in various activities. These ensure that the welfare and safety of the young people is not compromised and is maintained and most were to a good standard. Some of these risk assessments were not robust. This meant staff did not have sufficient guidance in the alternative measures to safeguard young people when leaving the home and while in the community. 9 of 11 Regular fire drills take place in both day and evening times. This ensures that young people and staff are practised in safe evacuation. All areas of the home are safely maintained and appropriate checks ensure any defects are identified and resolved. This ensures that young people live in a safe home environment.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Managers maintain robust recruitment and selection procedures that help prevent unsuitable people from having access to young people. Managers carefully induct and support new staff into their role to ensure they acquire the skills necessary to care safely for young people. A staff member commented ‘I was particularly impressed with the induction process it not only looked at the policies but had practical stuff like where the gas mains and water cut off points were. This is really vital to know to keep young people safe'.

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Leadership and management good

The home is effectively managed. It is operated in accordance with the aims and objectives of its Statement of Purpose and children’s guide. The interim manager has been in post since September 2014 and holds the appropriate qualification. They must now make application to be registered with Ofsted.

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Leadership and management good

The Statement of Purpose has been updated to reflect staff changes. It provides an accurate and comprehensive picture of the home and of the services it provides.

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Leadership and management good

Staff morale is high. An experienced and effective management team ensures staff are well motivated and maintain their enthusiasm. Staff supervision and appraisal takes place regularly and staff say they feel well supported. A staff member commented ‘the new manager is a breath of fresh air and has the children's best interest at heart, I feel very supported in my role'.

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Leadership and management good

Staff practice is supported by comprehensive guidance, policies and procedures. Overall, the home’s written records are completed and audited to a good standard, being stored with due regard for confidentiality. The well-structured files and placement plans give a very good oversight of each young person's progress and history of their time at the home.

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Leadership and management good

Staff training lacks sufficient emphasis on the potential risks of self-harm and CSE. Some staff were able to demonstrate an adequate knowledge of these subjects. This lack of comprehensive knowledge throughout the staff team may have an impact on the consistent care of the young people.

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Leadership and management good

There are regular visits to monitor the conduct of the home under Regulation 33 of the Children’s Homes Regulations, and the interim manager undertakes quality assurance monitoring checks in line with Regulation 34 on a regular basis. These visits and checks include consultation with stakeholders, parents and children, and observation of, young people. The manager examines trends and patterns during 10 of 11 these processes and information is shared with the staff team.

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Leadership and management good

The home has appropriate systems in place to notify Ofsted and other relevant bodies of significant events that occur within the home or with young people. This ensures that those with an interest in young people’s welfare are kept appropriately informed. Records kept in the home are clear, accurate and up to date. No complaints have been received between inspections. 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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