Children's Home run by North Lincolnshire Council in North Lincolnshire

Unique reference number SC472449 Inspector Nicola McEvinney Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person North Lincolnshire Council Registered person address North Lincolnshire Council, Pittwood House Ashby Road SCUNTHORPE South Humberside DN16 1AB Responsible individual Tracy Eaden Registered manager Fiona Elizabeth Cowan Date of last inspection 24/09/2014 2 of 9 Inspection date 26/01/2015

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Previous inspection sustained effectiveness Enforcement action since last inspection none

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Overall effectiveness good

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

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Overall effectiveness

Young people have progressed in relation to their starting points. Those young people who were admitted in a time of crisis are developing strategies to manage their extreme behaviours. This has been made possible by the consistent nurturing care provided by a highly motivated staff team who seek advice and guidance from other professionals to manage these young people’s behaviours. This has proved effective in stabilising some very complex behaviours.

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Overall effectiveness

Good detailed placement plans and behaviour management plans are highly individualised. They clearly set out how young people are to be cared for. This ensures a consistent approach to their care.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people feel safe and are safe. Staff understand the vulnerabilities of the young people and measures are in place to ensure their safety.

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Overall effectiveness

There are strong leadership and management arrangements in place. Staff feel well supported by the management team and the home continues to strive for improvement.

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Overall effectiveness

Minor shortfalls identified at this inspection relate to the Regulation 33 visits and reports. However, these do not impact on the safety or welfare of young people. 3 of 9

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Information about this children’s home

This children's home, run by a local authority, provides care for five young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/09/2014 Interim sustained effectiveness 26/02/2014 Full outstanding

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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 the regulation 33 report is forwarded to HMCI (Regulation 33 (9)(a)) 01/03/2015

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) interview parents as part of the regulation 33 visit. (Regulation 33 (8)(a)) 01/03/2015 4 of 9

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people have made significant progress since their admission to the home. Those young people who have lived at the home for an extended period have developed in confidence and have built strong attachments to the staff and each other. More recent admissions who were in crisis, resulting from traumatic experiences have gradually built trust and are starting to develop a more positive self- view. This has been helped by staff having daily consultation with these young people to plan their day. This demonstrates that staff value the wishes and feelings of the young people and this empowers them to make decisions about their lives.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people’s health needs are well met. Young people recently admitted to the home with some recently diagnosed complex health issues are well supported by staff. Staff are vigilant in communicating with health professionals to ensure that correct medication is being prescribed. Staff monitor closely the impact of medication administered to young people in regular collaboration with health professionals. Young people are encouraged to follow a healthy lifestyle. Smoking is actively discouraged and the home has achieved some success with smokers being in the minority.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

All young people have an educational placement and some are doing very well. This includes some young people who have accessed extra tuition to support them to attain their desired grades. This promotes their life choices. However, some young people have a limited educational provision which ranges from 5 hours per week to two days per week. Proactive staff actively encourage young people to enrol on further courses in college or take on additional work experience. Staff also pursue education departments to secure further provision to improve young people’s life opportunities.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Some young people have on their own initiative participated, in a charity fund raising activity. This helps them to develop social responsibility as well as boosting their self- esteem.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people’s contact arrangements are clearly set out in their care plans; although the majority are of an age where they can make their own arrangements. For some young people the Christmas contact arrangements were a source of stress. However, with support from staff they were empowered to make decisions which were right for them. Staff work hard to engage with parents and they support and facilitate contact arrangements to ensure that these are rewarding for young people and their families.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people are encouraged to develop skills that they will need to make a successful transition to adulthood. The older young people engage on an independence training course where they can access a facility where they learn the 5 of 9 necessary skills. All young people are encouraged to help with meal preparations, maintain their personal space and undertake their own laundry. The homely environment and the caring and nurturing of all staff including ancillary staff is such that young people feel well cared for. This results in staff providing good parenting and they continue to do many of the tasks for young people. However, at 18 years old, young people move to the adjacent building where they have their own tenancy and support staff who will ensure they utilise the skills that they have learnt.

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Quality of care outstanding

Young people receive excellent care from highly committed staff that provide nurturing care that enables them to thrive. The home has gone through a turbulent few months where young people have been admitted in a time of severe crisis and they have presented some extremely challenging behaviours including significant violence towards staff. The skilful staff team who were managing numerous significant incidents have drastically reduced the number from 24 a couple of months ago to 9 in January; the last being 12 days ago. It is to the credit of the staff team who have not sought to criminalise these young people which would negatively impact on their life opportunities. Instead staff have sought advice from the educational psychologist and the physical intervention trainers and this has managed to significantly improve these young people’s behaviours. Effective behaviour management plans which are implemented in practice and are regularly reviewed

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Quality of care outstanding

ensure a consistent approach is maintained. These young people as well as the other young people say ‘I love it here’. They all feel well cared for.

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Quality of care outstanding

Young people’s views are sought in all aspects of their care and day-to-day living. For example, regular house meetings where young people share their views on activities they wish to participate in or meals they wish to have. On an individual basis young people plan with staff how they are going to spend their day. Young people identify their own goals to help them to progress. The local authority has a young people’s council where young people meet with decision makers. They also participate in staff interviews where they are an integral part of the interview process; their views are valued which promotes their self-worth.

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Quality of care outstanding

Young people are central to how the home operates. Despite the difficulties encountered over recent months staff continues to engage effectively with young people to support them in all aspects of their lives. The staff team are resourceful and work exceptionally well with other agencies to help meet young people’s complex needs. For example, they work closely with the child and adolescent mental health service (Camhs) to support young people’s emotional needs; the educational psychologist also supports young people in this area and offers guidance to the staff team to help manage some young people’s behaviours. The youth offending service works with young people on their offending behaviour. They work closely with the staff and young people to in a restorative way to prevent young people entering the criminal justice system. The physical intervention trainers advise on managing 6 of 9 behaviours. The home enjoys good cooperative relationships with the local police

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Quality of care outstanding

who are regular social visitors to the home and engage well with the young people. This helps to build mutual understanding.

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Quality of care outstanding

Staff are proactive in working with education providers and they endeavour to secure appropriate education or work placements for young people. Staff use whatever contacts they can to secure these work placements. Young people say, ‘If it wasn’t for the staff I would not have this work placement.’ Staff have supported some young people who struggle in mainstream education to continue at an alternative education programme but with extra support to ensure they attain. Older young people are being provided with driving lessons, a skill they will have throughout their lives.

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Quality of care outstanding

Young people’s needs relating to their personal identity are highly promoted and addressed. Staff are working with some young people from different cultures in identifying places of worship to enable them to attend as they choose.

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Quality of care outstanding

Young people engage in a wealth of exciting activities. For example, they go to football and rugby matches. The majority of them took part in a talent competition over the Christmas break with a number of them winning awards which were celebrated by all. They went to the pantomime, they go fishing, ice skating and the cinema. Some young people went to Italy for their holidays and some went to Spain to see their favourite football player perform in a match.

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Quality of care outstanding

Young people enjoy living in this new purpose built home beside a nature reserve away from local housing. It has been built to a high specification and is comfortably furnished and decorated providing young people with a homely environment. It is situated within walking distance of a range of shops, the swimming pool and recreation grounds and is on a bus route to the nearby town.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Young people are safe. This is confirmed by social workers and other professionals as well as the young people. There is no bullying. Staff encourage young people to access anti-bullying ambassador training which raises their awareness of bullying. If bullying behaviours do manifest, staff use a restorative approach to manage the situation.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Young people are protected by having effective missing person’s procedures in place. Young people do not have episodes of being missing. There have been a few incidents of older young people failing to return to the home when expected or they have stayed with friends without permission. Very occasionally vulnerable young people may leave the home without staff’s consent. On these occasions staff follow the young person to assure their safety. There are detailed individual missing person’s protocols in place with clear guidance to staff as to what action to take on 7 of 9 these occasions.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

There have been a significant number of physical interventions over the last few months. However, these have drastically reduced in number and coincide with young people’s behaviour settling. The interventions used are holds which prevent young people’s behaviours from escalating further. Staff are innovative in their approach to behaviour management to ensure they effectively support young people who are in crisis. Examples include the excellent collaborations between the staff team, educational psychologist, Camhs, and an advocate which has led to the production of a strong safe handling plan. These plans include strategies to deflect situations. This demonstrates the child centred approach the home has and the commitment of the staff team to work through these difficult times despite high levels of violence directed at them.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Young people are safeguarded by the robust recruitment practices in place. These ensure that only suitable people are employed to care for young people who live at the home.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Young people are safeguarded by staff’s awareness of safeguarding issues. There are no child sexual exploitation concerns. However, staff are vigilant in reporting appropriately any safeguarding issues. The adherence to individual comprehensive risk assessments help to protect young people from potential dangers. These assessments cover young people’s behaviours activities and the premises.

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Keeping children and young people safe outstanding

Young people are protected by a range of regular health and safety checks. This includes fire evacuation drills to ensure they all know what action to take in the event of a fire. Young people also have the opportunity to access a ‘hazard house’ provided by the fire brigade to make them aware of fire hazards in domestic premises.

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Leadership and management good

This home is managed by a motivated, appropriately qualified Registered Manager who has extensive experience in residential children’s homes. She has been a Registered Manager for 13 years. She leads a sufficient number of highly skilled, motivated and well trained staff who provide nurturing care to the young people. Staff, including casual staff have good training opportunities and are well supervised. The Registered Manager keeps abreast in the changes in regulation and shares this information with the staff team.

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Leadership and management good

The Registered Manager continues to strive for improvement. A development plan is in place to improve the service. Initiatives include improved communication with young people, revamping their children’s guide to include young people’s input and to extend staff’s knowledge and skills on diversity issues. The staff team have already ‘translated’ the Regulation 33 report into a child friendly version to let young people 8 of 9 know what the visitor thinks of the home. Monthly reports are produced for each young person and these give a good overview of their progress.

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Leadership and management good

The Registered Manager undertakes robust monitoring of the home. This includes systems that the home has in place to consult with young people, their parents and placing social workers. Although the Regulation 33 visitor visits the home every month, Ofsted has not received a copy of the visit from August 2014 although a report was received for November 2014 in late January 2015. This does not allow for the regulatory body to have a timely overview of the home. Also the reports received by Ofsted do not demonstrate that there has been consultation with parents.

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Leadership and management good

Young people’s records are in good order and are easy to follow. They include a clear history of how young people have spent their time at the home. Staff have also produced a file containing all pertinent information with a good overview of their progress.

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Leadership and management good

There were no requirements or recommendations raised at the last inspection. 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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