Children's Home run by Durham County Council in Durham

Unique reference number SC449096 Inspector Mark Broomhead Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person Durham County Council Registered person address County Hall DURHAM DH1 5UL

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Responsible individual Karen Monica Robb Registered manager Paul Austin Rudd Date of last inspection 26/11/2014 2 of 6 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

Young people continue to make very good progress as a result of living in this home. Young people have good relationships with staff at the home who encourage their contact with friends and others that are important to them. This means that young people at the home expand their social development further and as a result become more emotionally resilient. In addition, young people develop their relationships with family and friends building suitable relationships with adults and their peers. This encourages their sense of belonging both within their own family units and within the community. This also prepares them for when they leave the home and manage their own lives.

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This inspection

Young people are able to make contributions to how the home is run. For example, they are able to contribute at young people’s meetings, in addition to daily discussions, about what the staff can buy to improve the standard of living within the home and about what food they enjoy eating. This enables them to feel that their views and wishes have been listened to and acted upon. It also allows young people to take responsibility for some aspects of the home, such as meal planning, buying and preparation of the food, which improves their independence skills. The manager is also introducing a notice board in the games room and a chalk board in the kitchen. This will further allow for young people to communicate their thoughts and feelings about how the home can be run. All young people currently residing in the home are taking appropriate steps towards their independence and this is being fully supported by the managers and staff.

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This inspection

A minority of young people engage in behaviours which do not promote their health. Staff at the home work hard at building relationships with these young people and give them advice on how their behaviours impact on their health and on other young people within the home. The managers and staff are managing those concerns well and are working with other agencies and appropriate professionals to reduce the 3 of 6 risks on young people in the home. Young people in the home are able to take advantage of support given to them to manage their own mental and physical health. Young people understand what works for them and take responsibility for managing their own appointments and making the decision about when to seek treatments. Staff at the home have genuine concern about the lives of young people that live there and encourage young people to share the outcomes of meetings they have with professionals so that they can continue to support them. This means

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This inspection

young people have ongoing support and continuity of care.

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This inspection

The home has received positive feedback from social workers, parents and young people about the level of care they receive. One young person described the carers as ‘wonderful’, and the key-worker ‘fantastic’. In addition, a young person thanked the staff for ‘turning their life around’ and giving them a ‘sense of belonging’. A parent said that the home had an excellent understand of their child’s needs and that the staff had been especially supportive of the relationship between them and their child. As a result, the young person had increased contact with family which increased their self-esteem and confidence.

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This inspection

Educational attendance for nearly all young people in the home is very good. In addition, those that are in regular education have good results and have had positive feedback from their respective educational providers. In relation to a young person who currently does not attend college, the managers and staff are working with an external provider to source education that suits their needs and provide a stimulating environment. At times, the success of such arrangements is difficult to demonstrate as the young person prefers to keep information about them private. Notwithstanding this, the young person’s social worker has commented that this home provides the best support for the young person and wishes them to remain to continue to develop their skills for independent living ready for when they reach the age when they leave the home. Another young person has had great success at college and is working towards qualifications in dental health. Staff at the home

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This inspection

have good liaison with education establishments and attend parents evening to support young people’s learning.

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This inspection

Managers and staff at the home have a good understanding of safeguarding and are able to manage any concerns effectively. They have good relationships with social workers, the local authority safeguarding officer, other professionals and police. They are able to use these relationships to promote good care for young people and demonstrated their ability to react to serious incidents which place young people at risk of harm. Incidents of missing from the home continue to reduce. When a young person does go missing from the home, the staff are able to take action in line with that young person’s risk assessment.

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This inspection

The managers and staff at the home are aware of what incidents require notification to Ofsted and are able to make notification effectively. The manager has a system which keeps track of ongoing training for mandatory subjects and is able to identify other training opportunities on an 'ad hoc' basis and request attendance for staff. 4 of 6 This ensures that the home is able to understand and manage the behaviours and risk to young people effectively by implementing up to date practice. The home uses the local authority’s recruitment processes to ensure that robust checks take place to ensure that adults looking after children and young people are suitable to do so. This reduces the risk of abuse of children and young people in the home.

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This inspection

The home is well decorated and very homely. Bedrooms have tasteful decor and the manager had arranged for televisions to be installed in each bedroom. Young people are supported to keep their rooms tidy and carry out their own washing. This increases their sense of responsibility and improves their independence skills for looking after themselves once they leave the home.

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This inspection

The home has enough staff to ensure that they provide good quality and consistent care. The Registered Manager is currently away from the home. An acting manager is in place and that individual will apply to register with Ofsted. They have the appropriate experience, skills and qualifications to carry out the role effectively.

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This inspection

Two requirements were made at the last inspection, which took place in November 2014. The requirements related to updating the statement of purpose and reports about the quality of care at the home. These requirements do not need to be met until after this inspection and so remain ongoing. Progress made at the time of this inspection indicates that steps have been taken to ensure the home complies with regulations. These will be monitored at a future inspection. No additional requirements or recommendations were made at this inspection. 5 of 6

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Information about this children’s home

This children's home provides care and accommodation for up to four young people who have emotional and behavioural difficulties and who require to be looked after initially for a short period of time. The provider is a local authority.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/11/2014 Full good 30/01/2014 Interim good progress 10/09/2013 Full good 31/10/2012 Full good Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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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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