Children's Home run by BREAK in Norfolk

Unique reference number SC060743 Inspector Stella Lovie Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person Break Registered person address Davison House 1 Montague Road SHERINGHAM Norfolk NR26 8WN Responsible individual Hilary Bridget Richards Registered manager Scott Patrick Olivey Date of last inspection 18/03/2014 2 of 12 Inspection date 20/01/2015

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Previous inspection good 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

All young people make some measurable progress from their starting points during their time at the home. This is most evident in young people’s enhanced participation in education. There are areas where outcomes could be further improved, particularly in relation to preparation for independence. That said, some young people make real progress with their lives and have achievable ambitions and plans for the future. Care planning effectively addresses young people's basic needs but does not capture their full engagement or show enough evidence of regular review.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people benefit from a committed and caring staff team with a strong emphasis on nurturing. This gives young people the opportunity to build trusted and secure relationships with adults, though some choose to remain somewhat detached from the home. Staff work in a non-judgemental way ensuring young people are respected as individuals. They are resilient and show a great deal of perseverance when managing young people's occasionally challenging and confrontational behaviour. Staff’s oversight of young people’s bedrooms though has failed to ensure that they are kept suitably cleaned, maintained and decorated. This does not promote young people’s self-esteem or help them prepare for moving out into independence. 3 of 12 Young people are safe within the environs of the home. Relationships with partner agencies are effective. They ensure that young people are protected and their needs met without delay. However, risk assessments in relation to individual young people

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Overall effectiveness

and to the physical location of the home are insufficiently detailed to provide robust management of known risks. This does not promote young people’s safety and welfare, though there have been no actual occasions when young people have suffered harm as a result.

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Overall effectiveness

Management arrangements are strong. Staff are well-supported through supervision to undertake their role but training needs are not fully addressed. This means that staff are not fully equipped to meet all the complex needs of the young people they care for. Monitoring of the home effectively contributes to the ongoing development of the service but has not recognised or addressed the significant range of shortfalls identified during this inspection. Consequently, three requirements and eight recommendations are made to improve practice. Although young people's actual safety has not been compromised, opportunities that are likely to promote their safety and well-being, and improve their outcomes, have been missed. 4 of 12

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Information about this children’s home

This children's home is registered to provide care and accommodation for four children who have learning disabilities, emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. It is owned by a registered charity.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/03/2014 Interim good progress 27/09/2013 Full good 03/01/2013 Interim good progress 23/08/2012 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

(2001) ensure that care workers are working towards the required care role qualification six months into their role and complete it within two years of commencing their role (Regulation 26, (4) and DFE Children's Homes amendments July 2014 guidance (3.10)) 20/03/2015

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure that the premises used for the purpose of a children's home are appropriately and suitably located, reviewed at least once in each calendar year, and take into account the views of such local bodies or persons as appropriate, with specific reference to risk assessment of the proximity of the 20/02/2015 5 of 12 sea and the cliff (Regulation 31 (1A) (a) (1b))

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure that all parts of the children's home used by children are kept clean and reasonably decorated and maintained, with specific regard to children's bedrooms. (Regulation 31 (2) (e)) 20/03/2015

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):

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Recommendations

 ensure that the home has high expectations of all children and staff, with particular regard to maintaining hygienic conditions in the children's bedrooms (NMS 3.1)  ensure children's safety and welfare is promoted in the home, with specific regard to individualised risk assessments which are reviewed and up-dated in relation to substance misuse, fire risks in bedrooms and sexualised behaviour (NMS 4.1)  ensure that children are supported to prepare for adulthood, with specific regard to structured collaborative work with each relevant young person (NMS 12.1 a-g)  ensure staff are equipped with the skills required to meet the needs of the children, with specific regard to training in the management of sexual exploitation and sexualised behaviour (NMS 18.1)  ensure staff annual appraisal takes into account any views of children the service is providing for (NMS 19.6)  ensure children in the home are regularly involved in contributing to

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Recommendations

monitoring the operation of the home (NMS 21.1)  ensure that children understand, within their level of understanding, the purpose and content of their plan, with specific regard to evidence of their involvement with their placement plans (NMS 25.1)  ensure that the result of all statutory reviews are recorded on the child's file. with specific regard to up-dating placement plans accordingly. (NMS 25.8) 6 of 12

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people are at different stages of individual growth and development. Some young people make significant strides in developing their confidence and learning more effective coping strategies. This means they are able to talk about their feelings and manage difficult emotions well. As one social worker commented: ‘It’s been a really, really positive placement for my young person. They’ve made a huge difference to her. They’ve achieved this by being very consistent over and over again. They’ve taken time with her, worked to her strengths. She is in a much better place than she ever was in before. This is down to their unconditional support.’

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

However, other young people make only limited progress in developing their emotional resilience. They have minimal engagement with key workers in structured work related to significant underlying emotional, social and health issues. Psychological support is on offer but is currently being declined. This means important psychological health issues remain unaddressed. Overall, aspirations for these young people are too low. As one parent confirmed: ‘I can’t see any real progression in him since he’s been in the home. He had made improvements but he’s going backwards at the moment.’ That said, young people respond well to the calm, non-confrontational style used by staff and show significantly reduced levels of aggression in comparison to their behaviour in previous care homes. As a result, they learn better control of impulses and difficult emotions so they are more equipped for successful adult life.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Some young people show great determination in their participation and attainment in education. They are motivated by clear ambitions to do well in their chosen careers and are on track to starting apprenticeships. Other young people also make good progress educationally in relation to their very low starting points prior to coming to live in the home. However, their commitment to education is still quite fragile and only very recently showing signs of improvement. It is too soon to say whether it can be sustained and built upon. Young people’s health in general is sound. They are offered a balanced diet and encouraged to take regular exercise. All the young people smoke and most use various substances on occasion. They have access to specialist advice and support to help them to change these behaviours but all currently decline to avail themselves of this. Some young people also refuse routine health appointments to ensure their

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

health is being maintained. This does not promote a good pattern for future life.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people are regularly consulted about their care and how it is delivered. They are encouraged to take responsibility in the decision-making processes in order to develop a sense of mutual respect and ownership. Young people understand how to complain and feel able to do so. They have access to a telephone without needing to ask staff. Grumbles are managed well so that they do not escalate into actual 7 of 12 complaints. This reflects the respectful and clear communication between the young people and staff and the positive culture in place. Young people can easily access an advocate, the Independent Reviewing Officer and the independent visitor who can provide the advice and support they need and pursue matters on their behalf if necessary. Consultation with young people is mostly done on an informal, unplanned basis as most young people are resistant to cooperating with structured direct work

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

sessions. Similarly, they currently choose not to have residents meetings as these are seen as too rigid and indicative of being in care. There are however plans in place to re-introduce such meetings as a means of tackling some clear tensions that exist between the young people over communal living issues such as food, noise, perceptions about favouritism and impact of substance misuse. Residents meetings would enable matters like this to be discussed with a view to resolution.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people enjoy regular positive contact with family and friends, have overnight stays and maintain their social networks. They are encouraged to have friends in the home where appropriate. This ensures that important attachments are supported and promotes emotional well-being.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people have the chance to gain independent life and social skills to help and equip them to cope with the transition into independent living. They learn practical skills such as independent travel and cooking. However, that learning is not being maximised through structured and focussed interventions. Young people have only partial engagement with planned work around their preparation for independence, despite potentially imminent timescales of moving on. Without this work, they are likely to struggle to cope on their own in the community.

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Quality of care adequate

Relationships between staff and young people aim to ensure that young people feel cared for. Staff members are sympathetic, comforting, consistent and pay individual attention to each young person living in the home. They work hard to understand situations from the young people’s perspective. This provides young people with good opportunities to form and develop appropriate attachments and trust. As a result, high levels of negative behaviour in previous care homes has considerably diminished. As one young person commented: ‘Where I live staff are really good at what they do and know how to deal with most things. They are all lovely people and understand when we need them most. Staff listen to me when I want to go to the stables for the day they make sure this day is possible.’ Staff keep frequent contact with ex-residents. This further indicates that most young people value the positive relationships they establish with staff. As one social worker said: ‘I feel they have

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Quality of care adequate

given him stability, predictability and a sense of belonging. They have been very consistent and positive for him. They have stuck with him.’

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Quality of care adequate

Staff promote a social pedagogy model of care which is very much based on positive relationships with the young people and their full involvement in their care. However, 8 of 12 there has been limited success recently in getting young people to provide their full or best cooperation with this approach. Currently the majority of the young people do not present as much invested in the home. This is evidenced by daily records that show a number of occasions when young people have displayed anti-social behaviour in the home, and some clear friction between the young people as a group. Staff expectations about maintaining bedrooms to at least a level that is not a health hazard are not consistently achieved. All the bedrooms require considerable cleaning, repair and redecoration. Again, daily records confirm that the poor state of the bedrooms have been an issue for many months. In addition, some young people

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Quality of care adequate

appear to be living relatively detached lives from the unit: they do not engage in direct work sessions, eat in their rooms and stay out a lot. This does not promote self-esteem or help young people to practice their social skills.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people are offered a wide range of activities such as rock climbing, horse- riding and camping. Some young people fully take up these pursuits but others do not always select to do the activities on offer. This can lead to boredom, unsocial behaviours and conflict.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people benefit from the services of a learning support worker attached to the home who deals with all aspects of their education. This ensures that all the young people have individual education packages tailored to their particular interests. As a result, she has managed to get some young people with a significant history of school refusal back into education. She creates useful networks with education professionals which are effective in overcoming barriers to participation by hard-to- place young people. That said, some young people have shown intermittent commitment to their personal education plans and this means learning and attendance have not been as good as they could be.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people are cared for in line with their individual placement plans. In those sampled, they are focused on clear, measurable outcomes. However, this was undermined by lack of evidence of young people’s involvement with them, and plans are not always up-dated in relation to statutory reviews. This shows that opportunities are missed to engage young people with their care planning.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Young people report that they feel safe in the home and in the local area. They are confident that staff would act to protect them if they were worried about anything. Young people confirm that there is no bullying in the home despite the disagreements within the peer group. Feedback from relatives and external professionals further endorses this: ‘I think he’s safe there. He can engage in unsafe behaviours but the home works well with the local police and promotes engagement other relevant services. I think the risks are well-managed.’

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Staff know the young people well and are able to anticipate challenging behaviour 9 of 12 and use effective diversion. They are clear that physical intervention is very much a last resort and are more comfortable using the positive relationships built up with young people to diffuse difficult situations. Consequently, restraint has not been used since the last inspection and there is only very minimal use of sanctions. Staff take a restorative approach to matters that could otherwise become criminal issues. This helps young people to reflect on their behaviour and make amends.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Episodes when young people go missing are infrequent. On the very rare occasion it does happen, there is good evidence of prompt and effective working together with police and the local authority to safeguard the young people. The home benefits from having a designated police officer who visits regularly to talk informally with young people and staff. This helps with relationship-building and communication. It also helps to challenge stereo-types young people may hold about the police so that they feel more able to approach them when in need.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Staff have an satisfactory understanding of young people's vulnerabilities and risks they may face but there are shortfalls in the assessment, review and management of some of those risks. For example, risk assessments in relation to individual young people’s substance misuse do not detail action staff need to take if those young people return to the home under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Overall, risk assessments are insufficiently detailed and do not promote enough active work with the young people in relation to known risks. Opportunities are thereby missed to identify how young people’s behaviour is to be managed proactively to effect change and promote their welfare.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

The home appears to be a warm and welcoming environment with good facilities, in complete contrast to the poor condition of the young people’s bedrooms. It is located in a semi-rural area, very close to the sea and an unstable cliff. Although the manager has completed a location risk assessment, there is insufficient detail about the risks associated with the local physical environment. It fails to identify how young people will be advised about how to keep themselves safe in light of these risk factors. Although this potentially compromises young people’s safety, there have been no actual causes for concern arising from the location as staff routinely ensure the young people are informed about the area.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Staff are trained in all aspects of safeguarding young people and are alert to their vulnerabilities and risks of harm. They are knowledgeable about how to implement safeguarding children procedures. That said, they have yet to have specific training in respect of sexual exploitation, though they were able to demonstrate a sound awareness of signs and symptoms, and the home has been proactive in the management of such concerns. Staff would also benefit from training in the management of sexually harmful behaviour given the range of needs they deal with in the home.

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Keeping children and young people safe adequate

Robust and thorough vetting of new staff ensure that young people are appropriately safeguarded. Recruitment practices ensure that new members are the right fit for the 10 of 12 existing team. This means that recruitment and selection procedures are rigorous and create a high threshold of entry to deter abusers.

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Leadership and management adequate

The home has a Registered Manager who is suitably qualified and experienced. Good support is provided by the deputy manager and senior support staff. The manager endeavours to develop a collaborative culture with a flat hierarchy so that staff take ownership and responsibility in the running of the home. He is clear though that he has the final say. This helps to create a committed and dedicated staff group. The manager is appropriately assertive with placing authorities when their response to young people falls below acceptable standards. This reflects his determination and commitment to improve provision for young people. He has been effective in bringing about required improvements so that young people are better served.

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Leadership and management adequate

The home seeks to incorporate theory and research into how staff practice. This is evident in team discussions and training about adolescent brain development and attachment theory. All staff adhere to the values around restorative practices, good parenting, being honest and trustworthy. They get on well together, enjoy what they do, and feel able to challenge each other constructively. This provides good role modelling for the young people and promotes a harmonious atmosphere in the home.

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Leadership and management adequate

Staff feel they receive effective support and are valued in the role that they play. They appreciate the approachability and support of managers. Staffing levels are sufficient to meet the needs of the young people. Staff receive regular supervision and have their performance individually and formally appraised at least annually. However, young people are not invited to contribute their views to this process. This means that significant information is not taken into account in monitoring staff.

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Leadership and management adequate

Staff receive sufficient training to enable them to meet most of the needs of the young people. However, they are not fully trained to work with all the complex needs of the young people they care for. This inhibits their competency in managing some associated behaviours. In addition, despite recommendations from the last two inspections, there remains some staff who have yet to start their professional qualifications six months after starting to work in the home. The manager has tried to get this situation sorted out but has been constrained by wider organisational decisions about the sourcing of this essential training. This potentially means those staff do not have up-to-date knowledge for their role.

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Leadership and management adequate

There are clear and effective procedures for monitoring and controlling the activities of the home. This includes the financial viability of the home, any serious incidents and the quality of the provision. However, internal monitoring activities do not always 11 of 12 capture the range of views held by young people. This means opportunities to drive forward improvement for young people are diminished. 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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