Children's Home run by Stockton Borough Council in Stockton-on-Tees

Unique reference number SC442886 Inspector Julie Rimington Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered manager Louise Carling Date of last inspection 04/10/2013 2 of 11 Inspection date 27/01/2015

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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

Young people make exceptional progress from their starting points in all aspects of their lives. They benefit from excellent quality of care in a safe, caring and stable environment. Young people consistently express views of how well they feel cared for and listened to. They recognise the achievements they have made and take real pride in them.

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Overall effectiveness

The staff team are excellent role models and consistently demonstrate positive, warm relationships between themselves, as well as towards young people. They are valued, respected and fully understood as individuals. Young people report the staff team do not give up on them and that they are not judged on their behaviours. One young person said’ I feel I can tell them anything and it won’t change the way they look at me’

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Overall effectiveness

The staff team are child-focussed, competent, motivated, and take pride in delivering their roles and responsibilities. The team’s dedication and commitment to improving young people’s outcomes ensure that young people have every opportunity to reach their full potential. The staff team demonstrate strong models of safe practice and still provide an exceptionally nurturing environment where the young people can learn how to demonstrate how they feel. They have exceptionally 3 of 11 good working relationships with external agencies and this promotes young people’s safety and welfare. To this end, young people confirm they feel safe in the home. One young person said ‘this is the only place I have ever felt safe, I love it here ‘

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Overall effectiveness

Young people benefit immensely from strong leadership and management in the home. The Registered Manager is diligent in her commitment to improve young people’s outcomes. She is innovative and has a thorough understanding of the strengths and areas for development within the home. She continually strives to improve the individual care and outcomes for young people. As a result young people’s achievements and successes are widely acknowledged and built upon.

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Overall effectiveness

There were no breaches of regulation or shortfalls in practice identified at this inspection. 4 of 11

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Information about this children’s home

This children's home is registered to care for up to four young people with emotional or behavioural difficulties. The registered provider is a local authority.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/10/2013 Interim good progress 16/07/2013 Full good 13/12/2012 Interim good progress 29/08/2012 Full adequate 5 of 11

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Young people’s outcomes significantly improve from their starting points as they settle into life at this home. Improvements are made in relation to young people’s positive engagement in their education, re-establishing family contact and their health and well-being. The protective and nurturing home environment provides a secure base where young people can plan their future lives. This is supported by clear expectations set out in their individually tailored, high quality plans. Young people’s are developing positive attachments with the staff team and this helps them to work towards their individualised and realistic goals. This in turn, improves young people's confidence and strengthens their resilience.

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Young people’s educational performance is outstanding. All have 100% attendance, and have achieved exceptional levels of performance. This is all the more remarkable given the disrupted school career that some have experienced prior to admission. Young people who did not attend school previously have achieved GCSE results, enrolled in college courses and are eager to achieve. Younger children have been able to move from specialist provision into mainstream school and are continuing to make significant progress. They are starting to forward plan for their lives with a sense of optimism about what they might achieve. Excellent links are maintained between the staff team, specialist education services and local schools. These links work efficiently and effectively to help the staff team to maintain and improve educational outcomes for young people. Social care professionals linked to the home believe strongly that

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

young people’s learning is supported by the care they receive from the staff team

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Young people achieve excellent health outcomes. They benefit from the support available to them at the home and from specialist health care providers. Young people engage in the support offered by the home to address their emotional health needs when they struggle to manage their feelings. As such, they are developing insight into their behaviours and previous history and, with support, are finding better ways to express themselves. Young people also enjoy a very healthy and active lifestyle. They participate regularly in a good range of healthy activities both within the local community and beyond, including travelling abroad. They also enjoy a very healthy diet which takes into account their individual food preferences and any additional dietary needs

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

Young people benefit from the staff’s teams efforts to facilitate contact with their birth families and those people who are important to them. Relationships have improved for some young people and they enjoy more frequent contact with their family. Some young people have re-established links with family members that have progressed to overnight stays. The Registered Manager and staff team have gone to exceptional lengths re-establishing contact with families who live outside of the United Kingdom. The creativity and persistence of the whole staff team means that 6 of 11 young people have a true sense of their identity and develop emotional resilience. The young people have also developed friendships since coming to live in the area. This contact helps to maintain their social networks and develops their social competence, which is essential as they grow and develop.

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Outcomes for children and young people outstanding

The Registered Manager and staff team ensure that the individual achievements of each young person are clearly documented and celebrated with them. This helps to promote their self-confidence and self-esteem. Young people feel valued, worthwhile and that they are individually important. This sense of belonging and interest enables young people, including those who have been looked after in a number of other settings, to settle and form sustainable attachments. A young person said, 'It’s ace here. I’ve never felt so happy anywhere else.' Another young person said ‘I want to stay here until I’m 157 years old’

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Quality of care outstanding

The relaxed and warm interaction between staff and the young people reflects the excellent relationships fostered in the home. The Registered Manager leads by example making time to spend with the young people, to offer advice, guidance and support where necessary. Young people live in a home that has high aspirations for them. Staff team members are knowledgeable about the young people in their care and they talk about them in very positive ways.

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Quality of care outstanding

Young people recognise and benefit from the strong commitment and high aspirations the staff team hold for them. These close and trusting bonds build young people's feelings of self-worth and empower them to take appropriate steps to independence in line with their abilities.

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Quality of care outstanding

The staff team are flexible, motivated, and enthusiastic about their role. They strive to identify particular interests of the young people and endeavour to make their choices a reality. One staff member said ‘one of the best things you can do is give them memories’. Therefore, spending time with young people in activities, taking their photographs and compiling memory books is part of the staff’s practice. The Registered Manager considers creating opportunities for young people an important aspect of the work, along with a ‘can do’ attitude to make things happen for them.

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Quality of care outstanding

Link worker sessions are used to address issues that are ‘live’ for the young people and include an educative and personal development element on issues such as missing from care, school attendance, and sexual health matters. Practice is child- centred and is focused on developing the young person’s understanding of their behaviour. The work also reflects the diverse age and level of understanding of the young people. This attention to detail allows each young person to have information available to them in a format they understand.

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Quality of care outstanding

Detailed and comprehensive residential care plans are in place. The staff team have 7 of 11 been highly innovative and creative and devising care plan formats which young people of all ages can understand. This means that young people are fully involved, and can understand the purpose of their placement and how they will benefit from it

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Quality of care outstanding

The staff team regularly update and monitor these plans in response to changes in the young people’s lives. Communication with social care professionals in developing and carrying out residential plans is a particular strength of the Registered Manager and the staff team. One social worker said, ‘Everything is done through negotiation with myself and with the child’. Records show that young people themselves do contribute directly to these plans and the staff team regularly discuss the content with them. As a result, the staff team gain a deeper and more balanced understanding of the young person’s needs.

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Quality of care outstanding

Staff actively promote an open environment where young people and adults can have honest and meaningful discussions about a range of topics. This includes listening to young people’s wishes and feelings, which are given a high priority. The frequent consultation with young people effects positive changes in the home care planning. Young people’s views are listened to and acted on wherever possible. This promotes young people’s rights. Young people know how to complain and to date have not had cause to make a complaint. Their access to an independent advocate and the independent Regulation 33 visitor provides young people with further opportunities to access advice and support when they need it

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Quality of care outstanding

Staff place great emphasis on the importance of education. They keep in close contact with schools, enabling teachers to be aware of what is going on in a young person’s life and respond more flexibly to any difficulties. Staff team members attend parents’ evenings and accompany young people to interviews. Acting as parents in these ways conveys to young people how staff value learning and the benefits that it brings.

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Quality of care outstanding

The material standards of the home are excellent. Rooms are spacious, decorated and furnished to a high standard. The Registered Manager is committed to on-going improvement in this area. This is evident in the recent refurbishing of the kitchen and living room. The young people played an active role in designing the rooms. Such attention to the environment and involvement of the young people encourages the young people to invest emotionally in their home and indicates it remains important to them long after they have left.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

The Registered Manager and staff team have a comprehensive knowledge of what they need to do to keep young people safe. Any concerns of a child protection nature are promptly reported in accordance with policy.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

It has been some time since a young person went missing from the home. 8 of 11 Nevertheless, each young person has a detailed risk assessment which addresses this possibility, taking account of their individual circumstances. As young people have developed greater confidence and responsibility for their own behaviour, they are allowed to spend more time away from the home unsupervised. This gives them opportunities to make friends, learn how to manage their free time, and to deal with potential threats they may encounter in the community.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Excellent personalised behaviour management strategies coupled enables young people to learn safe, positive ways to manage their feelings and anger. The staff team are effective in identifying triggers for behaviour, and de-escalation techniques are recorded clearly in current behaviour management plans. As a result, although all staff are appropriately trained in physical intervention methods, the use of restraint is not necessary. Young people thrive within this positive, warm atmosphere empowering them to express any frustrations or disappointments in an appropriate and safe manner

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Young people are safeguarded by the home’s stringent attention to effective missing person procedures. Such is their feeling of belonging; young people very rarely go missing. There are times when young people are late home or want to stay with friends. The conscientious Registered Manager works closely with them, and if appropriate their social workers, to update risk assessments and allow older young people to have more freedoms. Young people learn valuable negotiation skills as a result and gain confidence in their abilities to be more independent thereby further reducing any missing episodes.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Young people are safeguarded by the good attention paid to safety and equipment checks, which maintain a healthy environment. Frequent fire drills ensure young people can safely exit the home and they understand the importance of this.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Excellent recruitment and selection procedures are in place to help ensure new staff team members are suitable to work with children. Visitors to the home are asked to provide proof of identity and are supervised by staff to help ensure that children are kept safe.

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Leadership and management outstanding

Young people benefit immensely from living in an exceptionally well-managed children’s home. Leadership and management arrangements are extremely efficient and aspirational in their outlook which promotes high expectations for all young people. This approach has led to successful outcomes for young people.

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Leadership and management outstanding

The Registered Manager has been registered with Ofsted since June 2012. . She has the relevant experience and management qualifications to manage the home. She is aspirational for the young people and has an excellent understanding of their needs and oversees and delivers high quality care with accountability. A young person said 9 of 11 that they think the manager is very good, that she talks to them and listens to what they have to say.

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Leadership and management outstanding

Staff team members’ personal attributes and commitment provides them with the necessary experience and skills to rise to the challenges facing them and deliver an efficient and motivated child focussed service. The staff team understand their roles and responsibilities. They are valued and empowered by the Registered Manager to carry out their role with confidence and flair. This ensures their effective work as a team, which improves high expectations about sustaining improvement.

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Leadership and management outstanding

A sound range of training opportunities available to the staff, team which includes mandatory and refresher training, enhances the team’s knowledge and professional development. These include first aid, fire safety, drug awareness, child sexual exploitation and safeguarding refresher training, and behaviour management. A strong and well retained staff team provide high staffing levels. This enables young people to receive consistent, well planned care in an exceedingly supportive and extremely caring environment.

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Leadership and management outstanding

The staff team speak highly about the support they receive from the Registered Manager and deputy manager. They say that the senior management team is ‘supportive, really good, really fair and lets us work on our own initiative’. Regular staff supervision, daily handovers and team meetings support the team’s efficiency, performance and positive staff morale.

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Leadership and management outstanding

The home meets the objectives set out in the Statement of Purpose, which informs how the home intends to care for young people. Effective communication in the home supports consistent practice and reinforces firm boundaries and routines that young people clearly understand. A social worker said, ‘the communication between myself and the staff was also excellent and I was kept fully informed via phone calls, emails and monthly progress reports’. Compliments received by the home about their care of young people stimulate positive morale.

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Leadership and management outstanding

Young people prosper from a strong internal and external quality assurance system that is very well integrated into the other systems used by the Registered Manager to measure the impact of interventions with young people. This includes comprehensive monthly Regulation 33 monitoring of the homes performance. The views of young people, stakeholders and the staff team are included, which inform any required changes to their care management. The Registered Manager has implemented a realistic outcome based development plan. It is regularly reviewed and shows the impact of improvements in the home. Recommendations made at the last inspection have been addressed. These centred around the Regulation 33 report. There are no recommendations following this inspection.

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Leadership and management outstanding

Young people benefit from comprehensive and well-ordered records. These documents track young people’s care journey, which provides them with an important and valuable legacy to take forward in life. Individual care is monitored on 10 of 11 a day-to-day basis and the management team regularly canvass the views of young people, their parents and professionals about the service provided. Positive comments are built upon and any identified shortfalls promptly addressed. This fully contributes to young people's explicit sense of belonging and being valued. As a result, exceptional standards are maintained and the positive impact on young people's progress and life chances over their time in the home are demonstrated. 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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