Children's Home run by Inroads Essex Limited in Suffolk

Good

The children's home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Good quality care planning and assessment means that staff have a clear understanding of, and are equipped to meet, young people’s individual needs.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people receive highly individualised, child-focused care, which has a positive impact on their life.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people are making good progress from their starting points and have good opportunities to develop lasting friendships.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people feel safe and are safer as a result of staying at the home. Staff constantly seek their thoughts, wishes and feelings.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The home is extremely highly thought of by families and partner agencies who say young people's well-being and progress is central to the service delivered.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 This is a well led and resourced home. High staffing levels and the strong commitment staff display mean that complex individual needs are well met.  Staff are strong at working effectively in partnership with families and professionals ensuring young people receive the support they need.  Significant improvements in the building have enhanced the quality of environment since the last inspection.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The home is well managed. The manager has a clear overview of both the strengths and areas for development in the home and has driven forward improvement.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 In order to improve the service further, the manager has been asked to provide suitable screening at bedroom windows.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 In order to improve staff support, the manager has been asked to ensure all staff receive sufficiently regular supervision.  The manager has been asked to improve the recording of restraint.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The provider has been asked to ensure the independent person provides a copy of the monthly independent person's report to Ofsted, to enable the regulator to have sufficient overview of the service.

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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 (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so has spoken to the user about the measure and has signed the record to confirm it is accurate (Regulation 35 (3) (b)(i)(ii)) 23/07/2015

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person's report to HMCI. (Regulation 44 (7)(a)) 10/08/2015

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  Ensure the design of the home includes any necessary adaptation to meet the needs of children with disabilities. In particular; in order to promote children’s dignity provide suitable screening at the windows. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 17, paragraph 3.24)

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Recommendations

 Provide systems so that all staff receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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Information about this children's home

The home is a privately owned residential service for up to six children and young people with learning difficulties and challenging behaviour. The home provides a range of services including respite care, assessment and longer-term care.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

02/03/2015 CH - Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

13/03/2014 CH - Interim Satisfactory Progress

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Good

Improvements in the building mean that some areas are almost unrecognisable from the last inspection. The repainting and carpeting of key areas, new decorative accessories and the refurbishment of bathrooms, significantly enhance the standard of environment. Young people's privacy, however, continues to be compromised, as it is possible to see into their bedrooms. This is of particular concern where young people remove their clothes without being aware of the appropriateness of closing curtains. This was raised as a concern at the last inspection. The manager now plans to provide privacy film to the outside of bedroom windows to address this.

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Good

Good quality assessments and care planning systems provide staff with effective guidance on how to meet young people’s individual complex needs. One social worker stated: ‘Staff understand him very well. Staff have a constant dynamic approach to supporting him.’ As a result of the good support provided by staff, young people develop and mature. One teacher stated: ‘Support and care in placement for one young person was brilliant. In the time he was there, he made superb progress.’

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Good

Well-planned transition arrangements mean young people are well prepared and supported when they move back to their families or on to other services. This enables them to feel more secure and confident for their future. Some staff continue to provide ongoing support to one young person who now lives with foster carers. When individuals move on they continue to be invited to attend social events and are supported to keep in contact with each other via social media. This enables them to maintain the relationships with people who are important to them.

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Good

Staff work collaboratively with parents, ensuring that the family unit as a whole is well supported, assisting their ability to meet the young person’s individual needs. This is particularly important where the plan is for them to return to the family home. Strong partnership working enables families to remain absolutely positive about the home and how their child is cared for, even where there are particular difficulties, such as, complex care proceedings. The majority of young people have excellent attendance at school and are progressing well. Staff have high aspirations for the young people and advocate for their rights to receive better services. This has had direct impact for one young person who is now engaging in a plan for reintegration into full-time education after a substantial gap. Staff provide a learning environment, enabling young people to have a better understanding of the world around them, ensuring they

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Good

Young people enjoy active and varied lives. Good staffing levels mean that even those with complex needs are able to participate in a wide selection of activities safely. One parent commented that their child ‘now has a great social schedule’.

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Good

The nurturing and warm nature of social interaction in the home is seen through freely available appropriate hugs and praise. This provides an environment where young people are helped to understand the needs of others and develop empathy. As a result, genuine friendships flourish.

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Good

Staff members are committed to building trusting relationships with individual young people. They encourage them to make progress in achieving their personal goals, such as, disco dancing. Staff constantly seek their thoughts, wishes and feelings through direct discussion and observation of their non-verbal communication. Young people therefore feel valued and develop positive relationships with staff. The development of pictorial communication regimes to provide key information, such as, how to tell someone if they are not happy, promote young people’s ability to express themselves and any worries they may have.

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Good

Young people are healthy and enjoy healthy lifestyles. One young person significantly reduced their weight through the healthy meals and active lifestyle they enjoyed during their stay, which has had positive health benefits for them.

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Good

Extremely positive feedback from all of the professionals involved in the home and from families demonstrates staff have young people's well-being at the centre their practice. For example, one teacher reflected that a young person was ‘a transformed child in such a short period of time’, and one said parent said ‘it is amazing, I have absolute confidence in all of the staff’.

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people are helped and protected

Young people feel safe because staff provide an environment where there are consistent boundaries and routines. One young person who has returned to their family makes almost daily requests to return to the home. This indicates how safe and nurtured they felt during their stay.

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people are helped and protected

Young people are safer as a result of using the service. Staff support families to understand their child and to develop skills in setting consistent boundaries and manage behaviour. Some young people begin to develop increased awareness of their own behaviour and the impact it has on others. They are supported to develop their own strategies and personal self-regulation skills to manage their emotions.

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people are helped and protected

Thresholds for physical or environmental restraint are clear and staff use appropriate interventions. Whilst children's views are central to the way the home operates, their specific thoughts about any physical intervention are not always evidenced as having been sought. Furthermore, the manager has not recorded that they have reviewed each physical restraint in a timely way. This does not offer the additional safeguards intended by such review. This may undermine the identification of any patterns and trends.

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people are helped and protected

The manager has robust plans in place to ensure the very small number of staff who have yet to complete physical intervention or child protection training, do so within the next two weeks.

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people are helped and protected

Good pre-admission risk assessment and management plans, which are readily updated, guide staff effectively in how to manage challenges and risk.

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people are helped and protected

The manager is clear that medication management is a key area of risk. As a result, she has arranged an independent review of medication management to identify any areas in which the home can improve safety. This demonstrates the manager is committed to reviewing practice and improving children's safety and well-being.

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people are helped and protected

Staff recruitment procedures have improved since the last inspection and now ensure children are effectively safeguarded from unsuitable people gaining employment within the home.

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people are helped and protected

Families and partner professionals have absolute confidence in the ability of staff to keep the vulnerable young people safe. One parent reflected that she had refused for her child to stay anywhere previously; however, staff have helped her develop this confidence. Parent’s comments include: ‘The home is a warm, friendly and loving environment; I have absolute confidence in the staff to keep my child safe.’

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Good

The suitably qualified and experienced Registered Manager has been in post for two years and provides consistent good quality leadership to staff.

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Good

The manager has acted positively on previous inspection feedback and, in a relatively short time, driven forward improvements addressing the vast majority of requirements and recommendations set. In particular areas, such as, training and supervision, improvements have yet to be fully embedded. However, the manager is knowledgeable about the strengths and areas for growth within the home and has effective and timely plans in place to continue to develop the service.

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Good

The organisation has not ensured that copies of the independent visitor's review of quality within the home are sent to Ofsted each month in a timely manner. This has been raised with the provider previously. This has little direct impact on the care provided to children and young people. However, it does not provide Ofsted with the opportunity to have sufficient overview of the service.

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Good

Whilst a minority of staff have yet to undertake all required training, this is predominantly in relation to night staff. The provider has responded imaginatively, scheduling the delivery of particular training, such as, physical intervention and restraint training at night to ensure all staff are trained.

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Good

The manager is beginning to implement a formal staff supervision plan. A proportion of staff have received suitable supervision within the past three months but the majority of staff have not. The lack of good quality supervision reduces opportunities to reflect on practice with the manager, to enhance personal and professional development. The potential impact is reduced as staff say they benefit from the leadership of a passionate and committed manager. They say the manager has high expectations of them to deliver good quality, individualised care.

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Good

Staffing changes are few and staffing levels are high. This allows staff to spend valuable time supporting each of the young people, developing a comprehensive knowledge of their individual needs and aspirations. Staff deliver child focused individualised care. Parents, social workers and teachers all commented on the high calibre and caring nature of staff employed.

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Good

Strong partnership working with agencies and families means the vulnerable young people are effectively safeguarded and their individual progress and development promoted.

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Good

The manager has made significant improvements to record keeping since the last inspection and evidences the quality of care and support provided. Some specific areas for improvement remain, in particular, records of physical intervention require more robust recording to evidence suitable overview.

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Good

The home is suitably resourced to ensure that the service meets the aims and objectives as set out in the Statement of Purpose. Significant investment in the building has enhanced both the living and working environment greatly.

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What the inspection judgements mean

The experiences and progress of children and young people are at the centre of the inspection. Inspectors will use their professional judgement to determine the weight and significance of their findings in this respect. The judgements included in the report are made against Inspection of children's homes: framework for inspection.

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What the inspection judgements mean

An outstanding children's home provides highly effective services that contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help and protection and care. Their progress exceeds expectations and is sustained over time. A good children's home provides effective services that help, protect and care for children and young people and have their welfare safeguarded and promoted. In a children's home that requires improvement , there are no widespread or serious failures that create or leave children being harmed or at risk of harm. The welfare of looked after children is safeguarded and promoted. Minimum requirements are in place, however, the children's home is not yet delivering good protection, help and care for children and young people. A children's home that is inadequate is providing services where there are widespread or serious failures that create or leave children and young people being

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What the inspection judgements mean

harmed or at risk of harm or result in children looked after not having their welfare safeguarded and promoted.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people living in the children's home. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference adults make to the lives of children and young people. They read case files, watched how professional staff work with children, young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care given to children and young people. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people and their families. In addition the inspectors have tried to understand what the children's home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people who it is trying to help, protect and look after. This 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 Children's

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Information about this inspection

Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. the guidance raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, workbased learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for looked after children and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Information about this inspection

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

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Information about this inspection

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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