Children's Home run by Keys Stepping Stones Limited in Tameside

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:

 Staff provide good quality care and maintain clear boundaries and routines for young people, in line with their individual placement plans, behaviour management plans and risk assessments.  The majority of young people make progress in all aspects of their social, emotional, physical and educational development because they are supported by a small, consistent and caring staff team.  Young people are effectively supported to address their thoughts, feelings and behaviours more appropriately. As a consequence, young people better manage their behaviour and physical interventions have reduced for some young people.  Young people’s safety is maintained. Staff are clear about young people’s risks and vulnerabilities which are consistently managed through the implementation of the strategies that are outlined in young people’s risk assessments and care plans.  Family members and partner agencies are complimentary about the staff team

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The children's home provision is good because:

and the support they provide. They attribute the reduction in risk taking behaviours associated with going missing and young people stopping smoking to the care, support and guidance that is provided by the staff team.  The manager regularly uses the monitoring and reviewing systems in place to identify and address any behaviours and situations which make young people feel unsafe. However he has failed to effectively manage and improve one young person’s feelings that he has been bullied by a peer within the home.  The manager has permitted one member of staff to commence work within the home without satisfying all the requirements within Schedule 2, with specific regards to photographic identification.

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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

32: Fitness of workers ensure the manager only employs an individual within the children's home if the individual satisfies all the requirements within Schedule 2,with specific regards to photographic identification (Regulation 32 (2)(a)(3)(d)) 26/06/2015

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Requirement Due date

45: Review of quality of care ensures the manager uses the monitoring and reviewing systems to identify and address any behaviours and situations which make young people feel unsafe, with particular regard to reports of bullying. (Regulation 45 (1)(2)(a)(b)(c)) 26/06/2015

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):

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Recommendations

 ensure the manager advocates for and challenges the local authority when safe and well checks and return interviews are not carried out by the responsible organisations. (The Guide, page 45, paragraph 9.30)

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Information about this children's home

 This is a private children's home that is part of a large national organisation. It provides care and accommodation for up to four young people with emotional and /or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

20/01/2015 CH - Interim Sustained effectiveness

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good

The majority of young people continue to make good progress in relation to their health, education, emotional, social and psychological well-being. Some young people maintain exceptionally high attendance rates in education and are making progress towards their individual goals and targets. Young people and staff are proud to celebrate young peoples’ personal achievements, especially in regards to school and health issues. One young person stated, ‘I could not read or write before I came here, and I was smoking and kept running off. I do not do any of that now.’ This achievement was echoed by the young person’s parent who said, ‘The staff are brilliant. There has been a big improvement with him. He is doing really well. He goes to school, he doesn’t run away now and he has stopped smoking. He is doing so well.’

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good

Young people enjoy warm, affectionate and positive relationships with the core staff team. Staff provide good quality care and maintain clear boundaries and routines for young people, in line with their individual placement plans, behaviour management plans and risk assessments. One young person reported, ‘I have the same routines every day and I like it because I know what I am doing.’

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good

Children and young people are supported to engage in a number of meaningful activities within the local community, such as trampolining, swimming, guitar lessons and horse riding. This has increased their knowledge and skills and has developed their confidence. All young people are registered with doctors, dentists and opticians and have access to a range of health care services to meet their individual needs. Staff support and encourage young people to engage with specialist provisions which are provided from within the company such as specialist therapeutic sessions although some young people are reluctant to engage with these services. The home has a varied and balanced menu which young people help to plan and prepare their meals. This helps them develop an understanding of nutrition and health.

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good

Contact is actively promoted to increase young people’s sense of identity. Staff carefully assess the suitability of contact to ensure it is safe and well planned. They maintain positive working relationships with family members to promote good information sharing and ensure young people are supported to keep in touch with those people who are important to them. This helps young people to establish and maintain positive relationships which leads to increased contact, and for one young person a return home to live with his family.

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good

Young people are supported and encouraged to share their views in all aspects of their lives. They are supported to attend weekly resident meetings, key working sessions and have regular informal discussions where they can discuss things they wish to happen or want to change. When young people are unhappy with decisions or actions that affect them, they are confident in accessing the complaints procedure and have done so on a number of occasions. These complaints have been taken seriously by the manager, investigated and acted upon, ensuring all agencies are notified and kept informed. This effective process of consultation has resulted in the home getting a new car, a young person receiving information regarding his care plan from the local authority and staffing arrangements changing to ensure young peoples’ activities were not disrupted when monitoring checks on other young people away from the home were being undertaken.

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good

Young people are supported and encouraged to participate positively in their care planning. They say that they feel listened to and supported by the staff team. They receive a high level of support and encouragement from a small consistent staff team who ensure their social, emotional and educational needs are met. Young people benefit from good levels of close individual support from a committed and caring staff team who consistently provide boundaries and routines in line with their individual care plans and risk assessments. As a result young people feel safe and supported.

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good

Young people say the rules in the home are fair. They are fully involved in setting their own behaviour targets which they aspire to achieve. Achievements are rewarded with treats such as days out or additional pocket money. This incentivised approach has been effective in helping most young people modify and improve their behaviour and its effectiveness is evident in the reduction in physical interventions.

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good

When young people are not managing to regulate their emotional responses, use of physical restraint has been necessary. Staff receive appropriate training and only use this to prevent young people harming themselves or others. Effective recording of the incident highlights the method used and the duration of the incident. The record also includes who was involved and the young person’s account of the event. The manager evaluates all incidents regularly to analyse and identify any triggers and trends, and uses this information to develop care practice.

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good

Staff maintain positive working relationships with young people, their families and partner agencies to ensure any risk taking behaviours are addressed. Risk assessments are clear, understood by staff and systematically implemented, for example when young people go missing from home. This ensures a consistent and co-ordinated response is taken to any incidents of absconding behaviour, including searching the local area and following agreed reporting protocols. Staff make every effort to ascertain and understand the reasons why young people go missing, which has resulted in a reduction in absconding behaviours. However, on one occasion the local authority did not fulfil their duty to ensure the young person was seen by an independent person. This shortfall was not challenged by the manager.

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good

Young people are kept safe. Staff are aware of their safeguarding roles and responsibilities and know about the homes whistleblowing policies and safeguarding procedures. Investigations into allegations or suspicion of harm are handled fairly and quickly and in the best interest of the child. All information is shared with the relevant agencies including the Local Authority Designated Officers, placing authorities, parents and carers, who are routinely kept up to date.

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good

Young people live in a large, safe, comfortable home. There is enough space for both communal activity and privacy. The building is situated in an area convenient for public transport and local amenities. This means young people can access a broad range of services to meet their individual needs and engage regularly in their chosen activities.

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good

Young people are looked after by an experienced and stable staff team who are enthusiastically committed to driving standards of care forward. The current staff team is undergoing some changes, which the manager and deputy managers are supporting, and further recruitment is ongoing to strengthen and enhance the existing team. Whilst the homes procedures for recruiting staff are good, photographic identification for one member of staff has not been obtained prior to commencing employment.

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good

Most young people living at the home say they feel safe and secure. They say they are well supported to manager their feelings and behaviours more appropriately, which ensures they can maintain positive relationships with their peers. The majority of young people say that bullying is not an issue for them. However one young person has consistently reported that he feels threatened by another resident. The manager has taken appropriate steps to investigate these concerns but the actions identified and implemented to address this has had little impact on the young person in question. Judgement grade

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good

Young people live in a home that is managed by a Registered Manager who has been in post since August 2013. He is currently undertaking the required Level 5 Qualification and embraces the opportunity to undertake any further training which is on offer to continue to develop his practice. The manager is supported by two experienced and enthusiastic senior staff members who share the Registered Managers’ aspirations and motivation to improve care practice and drive the service forward. Child-focused practice is embedded within the home's ethos and has resulted in young people achieving positive outcomes in many aspects of their lives. The manager uses his knowledge, skills and experience to provide clear leadership and management to the dedicated and stable staff team. Partner agencies recognise this as being a contributory factor to young people’s achievements.

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good

The comprehensive Statement of Purpose and Children’s’ Guide provide detailed information about the home’s aims and objectives. This ensures that young people, families, placing authorities and other agencies are informed of the care and support young people can expect to receive. These documents are shared with placing authorities and young people when they arrive.

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good

Managers and staff receive regular supervision, annual appraisals and training linked to their role. Additional support is offered both to staff and the manager via team meetings and informal supervisions. This ensures any immediate issues or concerns about young people or staff can be addressed as and when they arise.

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good

The management and leadership team are clear and transparent about the strengths and weaknesses of the home. Shortfalls are being addressed through the homes development and training plan. For example, a new training plan has been identified to ensure all staff have the correct level of knowledge and expertise to deliver a high standard of therapeutic care to young people.

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good

Case records reflect young people’s everyday lives and the work that is undertaken by the staff team. Records are detailed and reflect young peoples’ needs, strengths and vulnerabilities as well as highlighting their achievements and future plans. All information is stored securely and only shared with authorised persons. This ensures young people's right to privacy is maintained.

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good

The manager effectively monitors serious incidents to ensure appropriate action is taken and any points of learning can be integrated into future practice. All significant events relating to the welfare and protection of young people living in the home are notified to the appropriate authorities in a timely manner.

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good

Managers utilise a number of internal and external systems to regularly monitor and review the quality of care provided for young people living at the home. An independent person undertakes the monthly monitoring visits and provides written feedback to the Registered Manager. Internal monitoring processes are in place to evaluate care practice and the experiences of young people. However these processes have not been robust in identifying the shortfall in effectively managing one young person’s feelings of being victimised by another young person.

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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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