Children's Home run by Duty of Care Limited in Durham

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:

 The home is newly registered and has only just started looking after children and young people. The manager and staff have made an excellent start.  The children and young people are kept very safe.  The home is cosy and has a warm, homely atmosphere created by the staff which enables children and young people to feel relaxed.  The manager and staff team are very experienced and are working together well to provide consistent care for the children and young people.  Children and young people’s individual needs are given a high priority and care planning is effective.  Children and young people are supported to keep in good contact with their families.  The manager engages well with external agencies to ensure they provide the support necessary for the children and young people.

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Information about this children's home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties (EBD) 

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Recent inspection history

This is the first inspection since the home was registered with Ofsted.

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good

The home is newly registered and only began admitting children and young people in June 2015. This is therefore the first inspection.

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good

The Registered Manager has recruited a strong and experienced team of staff and has been able spend time training and supporting them prior to the arrival of any children and young people. The manager and staff have made an excellent start to caring for children and young people and have set high standards for the care they offer.

p.4

good

The home has been refurbished and decorated to a high standard. It is cosy and homely, and has a large garden and play area.

p.4

good

The manager has introduced a very good system of recording and as a result, the standards of recording are high as well.

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good

The children and young people have good quality placement plans and even in the short space of time since their arrival progress is clear. All the children and young people have goals that they work towards. One child has settled well and his challenging behaviour is reducing. He is clearly feeling safe enough to start talking about past difficulties. Another young person has settled well and after a period of being very quiet and isolated within the home is now engaging well with staff. He has been able to make a significant break with his past and to stop participating in the risky activities he was involved in prior to admission.

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good

This progress is supported well by the manager and staff who have provided a relaxed, happy atmosphere but with clear boundaries and expectations around behaviour. The mother of one young person said that she was ‘really happy with the home, they were absolutely brilliant.’ She went on to say, ‘They are the best people and doing a great job, he has changed and I can see he is doing well.’ The social worker of another child said, ‘The home is brilliant.’ This social worker had particular praise for the manager who she said was ‘strong on protection work’.

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good

One child who has come from a particularly difficult background simply said, ‘staff are fun’. This perhaps says a great deal about his willingness to trust these adults. The children and young people are able to have their say in many ways. They help choose menus and activities and are starting to personalise and decorate their bedrooms to their own taste. One child was working on the computer with staff to produce a chart of activities for the summer holidays. All the children and young people have been able to choose a number of activities that they particularly like. These involve trips away, more exciting activities like quad biking and rock climbing, and more day to day activities like walking and fishing. There is a nearby deer park and one child had been out feeding the deer during the day of the inspection.

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good

The staff have been able to ensure that the children and young people have maintained good contact with their families. One young person has helped organised this with staff to ensure arrangements are to his liking and this has worked well.

p.5

good

One older young person who wants to move to a position of semi-independence is being well supported. The manager has designed a comprehensive workbook of independence skills which acts as both assessment and prompts for action. He has begun working his way through a range of skills and knowledge situations. Staff are also encouraging him to think about future education, training and work possibilities.

p.5

good

On a day-to-day basis the children and young people have had appropriate education placements arranged for them and they have access to a range of activities which they can do with staff. Staff are addressing difficult areas with them through regular key-work sessions and progress is evident. The staff have created an atmosphere of support and respect and this means that the children and young people are able to relax and enjoy living in the home.

p.5

Good

Children and young people are kept very safe.

p.5

Good

The manager and staff understand what risks the children and young people face and have made good quality assessments of these. They have put in place a range of measures to be able to minimise these risks.

p.5

Good

No children or young people have gone missing and there have been no child protection incidents at all. The manager has put good policies and procedures into place around safeguarding and behaviour management. Staff are familiar with them and understand what action to take should any be needed. One child with a history of challenging behaviour has been supported well and has been able to control his behaviour better and reduce the number of episodes requiring restraint significantly. Another young person who previously engaged in some risk taking behaviour has been able to stop this activity completely so that he is now significantly safer.

p.5

Good

The home is well managed and expectations around behaviour are clear and reinforced which means the children and young people are able to feel cared for, happy and safe.

p.6

Good

The home is well maintained and free of any health and safety hazards and all the relevant checks are up to date.

p.6

Good

The leadership and management has been strong. The responsible individual and the Registered Manager have taken time to prepare the home and to build a strong staff team prior to accepting any children or young people for admission. They could have accepted admissions more quickly but have resisted this, wanting to ensure everything was in place first. They have also taken extra time to recruit staff that they are confident can undertake the role, rather than taking on anyone where there were any doubts. This approach has been thorough and professional and has set the tone for their future practice and aspirations. Once the staff team was recruited, the manager has taken time to ensure they are all trained and up to date with current practice and the new regulations as well as the organisation’s recording system and expectations.

p.6

Good

The approach of the staff team is very child-centred and clearly the children and young people’s needs are given a high priority. Progress is clear even in this short space of time and the children and young people are clearly happy with their care.

p.6

Good

The manager monitors the practice thoroughly and also maintains a close relationship with the children and young people by covering some shifts.  Staff say that the manager is supportive and approachable. Staff have been provided with a wide range of training during the induction period. This has included safeguarding training and behaviour management training. All staff have a first aid qualification and have been trained in the administration of medication. More training is planned and this includes training for life story work. New staff have made good progress working through the organisation’s extensive induction workbook and they have been registered for the appropriate level 3 diploma. Formal supervision is being carried out regularly and the content of this is good.  The manager has made a very good start to running this home and has a number of ideas for continuing to develop the service. She was registered on 5 March 2015

p.6

Good

and has a good deal of relevant experience in addition to the appropriate qualifications. This is really positive and will further enhance the work. The manager has been very selective over recruitment and has made a number of clear decisions around employment which are positive.

p.7

Good

The statement of purpose is clear and the staff are clearly working to the stated aims and objectives.

p.7

Good

The manager has established professional relationships with local schools, colleges and local health services and has ensured that the children and young people receive appropriate services. They have also ensured that both the children and young people have education places available for after the summer holidays. All children and young people have had timely statutory reviews.

p.7

Good

There are no requirements or recommendations made as a result of this inspection.

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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

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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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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