Children's Home run by Ethelbert Specialist Homes Limited in Kent

Unique reference number SC023746 Inspector Melissa McMillan Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person Ethelbert Specialist Homes Limited Registered person address Cheesemans Farmhouse Alland Grange Lane, Manston Ramsgate Kent CT12 5BZ Responsible individual Leslie Peter Davenport Registered manager Martin Ian Jones Date of last inspection 06/01/2015 2 of 5 Inspection date 17/03/2015

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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 improved effectiveness .

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This inspection

Young people are able to develop their skills in preparation for adult life. Young people work with their keyworkers to identify what areas they need to improve and develop goals to achieve this. Staff assist young people to develop their daily living, self-care and budgeting skills. Staff encourage young people to put the evidence of achieving their goals into their transition portfolio. This provides young people with a sense of achievement and promotes their self-esteem. Young people are fully involved in their transition planning and staff support them to attend their planning meetings and to put their views across. Young people are able to visit their new placements and staff share information with new staff to ensure the transition of care is successful.

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This inspection

Staff have close working relationships with external professionals. These relationships have enabled staff to develop their understanding of young people’s difficulties and work with them to develop strategies to meet their developmental needs. Staff assist young people to attend their medical appointments and voice their views about their medical treatment. Through effective liaison with medical professionals there has been a reduction in the amount of medication young people are talking which benefits their long-term health. Staff are actively working with education professionals to obtain the necessary education placements for all young people. Whilst young people are not in fulltime education staff support them to engage with their tutors who attend the home. Staff also assist young people to complete computer work and attend a local project to improve their literacy and numeracy skills.

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This inspection

Young people are able to have regular interactions with people who they consider important to them. This ensures they are able to maintain and improve their relationships with family members, which provides a sense of belonging. 3 of 5 Young people’s care plans are highly individualised and provide a detailed picture of the young person and their particular needs. Care plans are comprehensive and ensure staff have a good understanding about the needs and circumstances of each individual young person. Young people enjoy a positive relationship with staff where humour and banter is enjoyed. Young people are able to develop trusting relationships with staff and feel confident to express their feelings. The Registered Manager has an excellent rapport with the young people and regularly works directly with them. This enables him to have a good oversight of the service and an excellent understanding of the young people and their needs. As a result, the care

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This inspection

provided to young people remains up to date and effective.

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This inspection

Staff use a consistent approach and identified support strategies to assist young people to develop positive behaviour. Young people have regular opportunities to discuss their feelings and emotions and how to manage these constructively. Staff focus on minimising incidents of harmful behaviour through de-escalation techniques. This has resulted in no physical interventions and three sanctions since the previous inspection. Staff use sanctions appropriately and offer young people the opportunity to discuss the sanction to aid their understanding of the consequences of their actions.

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This inspection

The Registered Manager is taking action to address the recommendations made at the previous inspection. He has ensured that the children’s guide contains the contact details of the independent reviewing officer should a young people wish to raise a concern. The home is also in the process of being redecorated. The young people are fully involved in choosing the colour scheme and furnishings of each room. As a result, young people know that their wishes and their opinion count and in turn build on their confidence and self-esteem. 4 of 5

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private organisation. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for a maximum of three children, who may have emotional and behavioural difficulties. Children living in the home are able to access education through separately registered provision which is managed by the same organisation. Therapy or counselling is also available to children if this is appropriate.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/01/2015 Full good 24/02/2014 Interim satisfactory progress 19/09/2013 Full outstanding 26/03/2013 Interim good progress 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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