Children's Home run by Progress Children’s Services Ltd in Coventry

Unique reference number SC064117 Inspector Pete Hylton Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Email chaynes@progresscare.co.uk Registered person Progress Children's Services Ltd Registered person address Progress House, 127 Millfields Road Wolverhampton West Midlands WV4 6JG Responsible individual Claire Elizabeth Louise Haynes Registered manager POST VACANT Date of last inspection 09/10/2014 2 of 9 Inspection date 31/03/2015

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Previous inspection sustained effectiveness Enforcement action since last inspection There has been no enforcement action since the last inspection.

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Overall effectiveness good

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

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Overall effectiveness

The home was judged inadequate in February 2015. At that time, eight requirements and one recommendation was made. The provider has taken appropriate actions to improve the shortfalls. Further improvements have also been made to the service. As a result, the home is now judged to be good.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people continue to enjoy living at the home and are relaxed, happy and content in their surroundings. As a result of a more familiar staff team, the house is now a stable, consistent and calm environment. This means that young people are developing positive relationships with a smaller staff team. Consistent care is underpinned by improved care plans and stronger management oversight.

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Overall effectiveness

The home has been redecorated. All areas of the home are well kept and homely. Young people enjoy living in spacious surroundings where they can choose to spend time with peers or alone. There is a range of activities on offer and young people enjoy spending time with staff and each other.

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Overall effectiveness

The home is now safe and improved oversight ensures that regular checks are in place. An improved understanding of fire safety requirements means that young people are better protected and their safety is promoted. 3 of 9 The management team ensure that there is appropriate oversight at all times. Regular checks ensure that high standards are maintained. There have been improvements to the quality monitoring of the home. For example, files have been redesigned and are now more robustly audited.

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Overall effectiveness

As a result of this inspection, no requirements or recommendations have been made. 4 of 9

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private provider. It provides care and accommodation for up to seven children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/10/2014 Interim sustained effectiveness 12/02/2014 Interim good progress 25/07/2013 Full good 12/12/2012 Interim satisfactory progress 5 of 9

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people make good progress at the home. They enjoy spending time with staff and with each other. Improvements since the last inspection have positively impacted on the progress that young people are making at the home.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people now make better progress with their health. This is because they are encouraged to attend regular health appointments where their health needs are identified. As a result, young people receive appropriate care based on their needs and this, in turn, ensures that their needs are met. Regular one to one sessions with young people ensure that their needs are explored and recorded. This ensures that the views, wishes and feelings of young people are consistently known by the staff team. This in turn means that young people know that their voices are heard and that their choices are acted upon.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people know how to complain if they are unhappy. Appropriately presented complaints forms are readily available to all young people. This means that they have immediate access to a forum to raise their concerns. There have been no complaints since the last inspection.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Young people enjoy learning about the world around them and play an active part in the home’s cultural events. A newly added display, which shows the location of countries, enables young people to understand where such traditions originate from. This deepens young people’s understanding of the world and in turn, develops their tolerances of other faiths and traditions.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

Where young people are due to move to new placements, they are fully supported in understanding the reasons why and how the plans will impact upon them. As a result, young people’s emotions are given high regard and they are encouraged to reflect, and celebrate, on their time at the home. This helps young people to make a positive transition to their new placement. This also means that their peers are able to share in this process and support with the planned move. This, in turn, reduces anxiety and uncertainty during this time of change in young people’s lives.

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Outcomes for children and young people good

All young people are now actively engaged in educational placements. This has led to a reduction in challenging behaviours as young people now benefit from stability, familiarity and routine. This is further enhanced by the staff team being more consistent. As a result, young people are now forming relationships with a smaller, more familiar group of adults working in the home. This means that young people’s emotional attachments are better promoted and that they feel part of a small home community. 6 of 9

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Quality of care good

Since the last inspection, there have been improvements to the décor in the home. All areas of the home are now clean, well maintained and pleasantly decorated. This means that young people live in a home where it is evident there is pride in its upkeep.

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Quality of care good

Young people’s files are up to date and contain all required information. This means that key information about young people is readily accessible to the staff team. Since the last inspection, a full audit of files has ensured that care provided to young people is relevant and based on need. Health plans are similarly updated and young people are fully up to date with all medical appointments. In some cases, this has led to an improvement for some young people. For example, young people are now in receipt of medical aids where they were not before.

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Quality of care good

Locked storage in a dedicated area of the home means that young people’s medicine is secure. The staff team are all trained in how to safely dispense medication and regular audits ensure that errors are quickly identified. This promotes young people’s health and wellbeing. Where young people need to use emergency medication, there are clear systems and training in place for staff to administer safely. Regular monitoring of young people’s sleep and eating patterns ensures that any concerns are passed to the relevant health specialists.

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Quality of care good

Staff continue to provide regular opportunities for young people to share their views. House meetings and regular key work sessions give young people the opportunity to share their opinions and influence changes in the home. As a result, young people feel included in decisions. For example, young people are encouraged to choose activities and décor for the home.

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Quality of care good

The staff team are passionate about providing high levels of care to young people. This is reflected in warm relationships between young people and staff. The staff team is now more stable and there has been a marked reduction in the use of agency and temporary staff. This has created a more settled and stable atmosphere.

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Quality of care good

All young people are now engaged in appropriate education. The routines of the home have improved and there is now structure to the school day. This means that all staff are conversant with the routines of the home and that young people are purposefully engaged in positive activities. Leisure activities are provided for young people and reflect their individual tastes and choices. High staffing ratios mean that there is flexibility in terms of activity provision. For example, young people can chose to complete individual or group activities.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

7 of 9 The frequency of restraint has reduced since the last inspection. Where restraint does occur, all required details are recorded and the views of young people sought. Sanctions are rarely used in the home. Where they are applied, they are fair, reasonable and understood by young people. This helps young people to understand the consequences of negative behaviour. Incentives are used appropriately with young people to reward and recognise positive behaviours. Since the last inspection, challenging behaviour has reduced.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

There have been no safeguarding concerns since the last inspection. Clear policies and procedures are in place should concerns arise. This is further enhanced through high staff ratios where young people are supervised at all times. This results in an environment where young people are appropriately monitored and their welfare is promoted at all times. Young people are safe, and feel safe, at the home.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

All required checks are in place and the manager ensures that any defects are swiftly resolved. Regular checks of the environment ensure that remedial actions are taken wherever necessary. This is supplemented by close monitoring from the senior managers within the organisation. Staff recruitment is similarly robust. All required checks are undertaken on new staff prior to their employment starting in the home. This ensures that young people do not come into contact with adults who may wish to cause them harm.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Relationships between young people remain positive. A nurturing and caring atmosphere means that bullying is not experienced by young people. Where tensions do occur, they are swiftly and sensitively resolved. Staff remain vigilant, at all times, to the whereabouts of young people. As a result, there are no occasions of young people going missing from the home. Should such an incident occur, clear protocols are in place and are fully understood by all staff.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

The service now benefits from a comprehensive location risk assessment. This means that the safety of young people is now fully considered in terms of external risks to the home. The acting manager has made good links with external agencies to identify all potential risks to young people. As a result, risk reduction plans are in place and all staff are aware of potential hazards. This increased awareness ensures that young people are now better protected in the local and wider community.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Fire safety has markedly improved since the last inspection. Robust risk assessments are now in place for all young people. These clearly detail the actions to be taken should a fire occur. As a result, all staff know how to safely evacuate young people in the event of fire. An officer from the local fire and rescue service visited the setting as a result of the last inspection in February 2015. The outcome to this visit has been that fire safety advice has been swiftly acted upon by the provider. This has ensured that the home is now safe and young people are better protected. Regular fire drills continue to be held and a recent evening fire drill has ensured that young people are fully practised. 8 of 9

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Leadership and management good

The home was last inspected in February 2015 and was judged to be inadequate. Eight requirements and one recommendation were made at this time. The provider has taken appropriate action to meet all of the requirements and the recommendation.

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Leadership and management good

The home is currently without a Registered Manager and has been since December 2014. An experienced interim manager is in post and is in the process of applying to Ofsted for registration. Since the last inspection, the acting manager has ensured that improvements have been made. This shows that there is appropriate management oversight in the home. Further improvements have been identified by the acting manager. Care files have been redesigned and better links have been made with external agencies; for example, the police, fire service and local authorities. This results in a home that is now better connected to external sources of advice and support. The acting manager uses these relationships to further improve the home. For example, improved links with the fire service has led to a review of all health and safety systems in the home. Improvements have been made as a result.

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Leadership and management good

All staff are now fully up to date with their training and comprehensive systems are in place to monitor where training needs refreshing. As a result, young people are cared for by a staff team who are current in their practice. Supervision of staff is similarly monitored and delivered. All staff receive regular supervision where their practice is discussed and any areas to improve are identified. There has been active recruitment to a small number of vacant staff posts in the home. As a result, the staff team are now better supported and there is stability and consistency in the home. This means that young people are now cared for a consistent staff team and have familiarity and stability in their home.

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Leadership and management good

The acting manager has clear and realistic plans for developing the home and these are regularly monitored and evaluated. Senior managers are also closely involved in improving the service. This is an area that has significantly improved since the last inspection. Regular independent visits to the home ensure that the views of young people are regularly sought. The views of social workers and where appropriate, parents, are also considered by the visitor. This is further enhanced by detailed monitoring by the management team in the home. This results in a home where young people’s progress is carefully monitored and should concerns arise, they are swiftly identified and appropriately resolved. 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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