Children's Home run by Barnardo’s in Oxfordshire

Unique reference number SC069128 Inspector Nicola Lownds Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person Barnardo's Registered person address Barnardos, Head Office Tanners Lane, Barkingside ILFORD Essex IG6 1QG Responsible individual Julie Carole Gibbard Registered manager Susan Winifred Morris Date of last inspection 19/08/2014 2 of 7 Inspection date 10/02/2015

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Previous inspection good Enforcement action since last inspection none

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This inspection

This home was judged good at the last full inspection. At this interim inspection Ofsted judge that it has sustained effectiveness .

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This inspection

The home was last inspected in August 2014 when it was judged as good with an outstanding judgment in quality of care. The one requirement and four recommendations from the previous inspection have all been met. The registered manager ensures notifications are submitted without delay, these have mostly related to young people being admitted to hospital due to their complex health needs. There is a written policy in place which sets out the use of electronic listening devices, this includes how to safeguard young people and ensure appropriate use to monitor their health needs in relation to epilepsy management. The Statement of Purpose includes details of the management team and staffing establishment. The Children’s Guide has a clear staffing list with photographs of the staff team. Regulation 33 reports include details of physical intervention carried out in the home and these are now being sent in a timely manner. A draft addendum to the

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This inspection

organisations corporate Safeguarding Policy which includes details on child sexual exploitation has been submitted to stakeholders including the Local Area Designated Officer for comments.

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This inspection

The home provides short breaks for young people and their families. It had been closed the evening before this inspection because it was the monthly team day. Three young people were due to arrive for overnight stays after school on the inspection day.

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This inspection

The environment is welcoming and bright with pictures on the walls. Bedrooms are personalised for each young person. One young person had a small tent set up in his room and others have certain teddies or blankets that they like. This shows staff are attentive to the needs and individuality of each young person and ensure personal preferences are met which assists young people to have an enjoyable stay and build positive relationships. Moving and handling equipment is available throughout the home such as hoists, tracking and specialist beds with wide corridors 3 of 7 and doors which means all areas of the home are accessible. All equipment meets safety requirements and is serviced regularly.

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This inspection

Young people benefit from high staffing ratios which means they are well cared for and have access to activities in the home, garden and community. The staff team have a diverse range of skills; some are trained nurses and other project workers which gives a good balance of expertise to manage young people with complex needs. Staff were observed to use creative methods to communicate with young people such as the Picture Exchange Communication System (known as PECS) and objects of reference. Young people are encouraged to communicate with staff on their preferences, routines and needs. Practice such as this instils a safeguard to vulnerable young people whose communication can be limited as well as increasing life chances, opportunities and self-esteem. One young person was smiling a lot at the member of staff working with him, when asked how he was feeling to be visiting the home they young person smiled, had a drink and flicked through his toys on the

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This inspection

Detailed profiles are held on each young person’s file which describes how they like to be cared for. Parents are the main contributor to these which ensures young people’s care is consistent to that which they receive at home. This provides young people with stability and enables the service to provide a home from home care package. Some records do not explicitly cover areas of significance such as details as to why a young person needs a high sided bed, or evidence of parental agreement to their use. Young people will benefit from these being recorded to ensure all staff understand the rationale for the use of such equipment. This will also enable the registered manager to monitor the use of restrictive equipment in the home.

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This inspection

The matching of young people is managed well, bookings are well planned to take into account individual’s needs. Records show an incident occurred where one young person was targeting another. The bullying policy was utilised and wherever possible these young people no longer have short breaks together. This shows that whilst bullying maybe difficult to communicate for young people staff are diligent in observing behaviour and advocating for young people.

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This inspection

The Registered Manager has submitted notifications appropriately since the last inspection. One notification was in relation to concerns about the health of a member of staff. Supervision files show that this member of staff has received regular and effective supervision during their probationary period. The registered manager has acted suitably to review the recruitment processes in relation to fitness of staff. This means young people will consistently be provided with good quality staff through thorough selection processes.

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This inspection

Monthly team days are held which focuses on training needs and the development of the home. The majority of staff refreshed their Safeguarding training in October 2014. This is a generic training and staff and staff records confirmed specialist training has not been available to them in relation to Safeguarding Disabled Children 4 of 7 or Child Sexual Exploitation. Young people would benefit from staff undertaking this training to ensure staff are developed to their full potential and are trained to identify risks specific to disabled children.

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This inspection

Regulation 34 reports are completed by the Registered Manager to ensure a review of the home and its effectiveness. There has been a recent delay in this practice due to streamlining with corporate reports. This means the Registered Manager has been unable to carry out a full review of the quality of care being provided by the home. A recommendation has been made to provide regulation 34 reports in a timely manner to the regulator. 5 of 7

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Information about this children’s home

The service caters for a maximum of seven children and young people at any one time, including one emergency bed. It provides a residential short break service and a domiciliary care service that is inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

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Information about this children’s home

The service is provided by a national charity in partnership with a local authority and a primary care trust. Children and young people can therefore be provided with care and health packages. Most of the children and young people using the service have complex health needs, or are on the autistic spectrum and have associated challenging behaviour.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/08/2014 Full good 12/12/2013 Interim good progress 17/04/2013 Full good 09/01/2013 Interim satisfactory progress

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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 staff are equipped with the skills to meet the needs of the children and purpose of the setting, and training keeps them up to date with developments, in particular provide specialist training in Safeguarding Disabled Children and Child Sexual Exploitation (NMS 18.1)  ensure records are clear, up to date and contribute to an understanding of the child's life; specifically recording the reason for the use of specialist beds and obtain parents signatures on care plans and risk assessments (NMS 22.1)  ensure that the Registered Manager establishes and maintains a system to regularly monitor the effectiveness of the home; in particular complete regulation 34 reports in a timely manner and send them to HMCI. (NMS 6 of 7 21.1) Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Recommendations

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What inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspections we make a judgement on whether the home has improved in effectiveness, sustained effectiveness, or declined in effectiveness since the previous full inspection. This is in line with the Inspection of children’s homes: framework for inspection.

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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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