Children's Home run by Nottingham City Council in Nottingham

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:

Young people’s safety and welfare is a top priority and staff understand that disabled young people are particularly vulnerable in residential care. Young people’s behaviour is seen as part of their communication and personality. Staff strive to improve young people’s communication skills to ensure that they can express their views, wishes and feelings effectively. Young people are fully respected for their own attributes and personality. Care delivered is very person centred and individualised. Young people make good progress in a number of areas, including education and behaviour. Staff monitor young people’s physical health and emotional wellbeing very effectively. There is a high level of support which enables young people to explore their feelings and emotions. Despite a period of instability for staff in the management of the home, the registered manager continues to drive forward progress. She understands

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The children's home provision is good because:

the needs of young people. She also knows how to deploy staff effectively to ensure that young people continue to make good progress. There are many opportunities for young people to be involved in the running of the home. Staff supervision and support ensures that their performance is well monitored. They are effectively trained in the skills that they need to meet young people’s specific needs. There are shortfalls in some records and in the organisation of recruitment records for agency staff.

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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

Ensure that the registered person maintains records for each child which are kept up-to-date. (Regulation 36 (1)(b)) 01/10/2015

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendations:  Ensure that the registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice, they must ensure that recruitment of staff safeguards children and minimises potential risks to them. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 61, paragraph 13.3)

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Information about this children's home

The home is owned and run by a local authority. Settled care is provided for four young people with learning disabilities.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

11/03/2015 Interim Sustained Effectiveness

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good

Young people receive good quality care from staff who know them very well. Good relationships mean that young people feel able to communicate with staff. Each young person’s chosen method of communication is always well respected. Staff understand that communication is of the utmost importance and prioritise improvements in this area, so young people can have their say. They also understand that communication is closely linked to behaviour because young people can become frustrated if they feel that they cannot communicate effectively.

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good

Routines and day-to-day living are organised around young people’s needs. Their communication aids include pictures and symbols to enable them to understand what is happening now and what will be happening for the rest of the day. This reduces anxiety and therefore behaviours are improved. Staff are creative in finding new ways to increase the young person’s understanding. Pictures and visual aids help them to express their feelings so staff can tailor and deliver the right support. For example, one young person has been helped to understand why they are in care through regular key working sessions and a creative and visual approach.

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good

Emotional wellbeing is a priority and young people are always encouraged to express their feelings so that the right support can be put in place. For example, community mental health services work directly with them and support and advise staff in their work on issues regarding emotional wellbeing. This support helps young people come to terms with their feelings, emotions and family situation.

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good

Young people enjoy school and attend well. Good working relationships with teaching staff ensure a high level of consistency in the management of educational goals and behaviour. Improved behaviour allows young people to be in a better frame of mind to learn. This is because they are more settled both in the classroom and at home. Instances of more challenging behaviour reduce soon after admission and techniques that work well are clearly recorded in care plans and records for the future.

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good

High staff ratios are deployed to ensure that young people experience a wide range of activities and experiences. Young people have recently been on trips to the seaside and on a holiday to a leisure facility. Activities in the home promote independence planning. Young people enjoy shopping and cooking and are involved in doing their washing and odd jobs around the house, which they thoroughly enjoy. For example, one young person was involved in mending the swing in the garden during the inspection and was learning about the maintenance of equipment.

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good

There is a clear focus on how young people feel on a day-to-day basis to ensure their good health and comfort. The monitoring of health conditions works effectively. For example, where a young person’s epilepsy was not well controlled, staff have raised this with relevant health professionals, resulting in medication changes. As a result, the young person is more alert and having less seizures, enabling them to have improved access to their education and activities.

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good

Where there are new admissions, the process is managed to ensure that the young person knows what is happening and when. Where a recent admission took place, the first night was very carefully considered and staff from their previous care home helped to settle them in with their new key worker. The process acknowledges that a new environment may be stressful.

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good

Young people with complex disabilities are well protected in this home. This is because staff understand the vulnerabilities for young people with complex disabilities living in residential care. Managers strive to ensure that the staff training and policy decisions are made with disabled children in mind. For example, management are aware that return interviews after a young person is missing, need to be handled differently because of their alternative communication. As a result, work is in progress to make sure that the process works as well for disabled children as it does for young people in mainstream children’s homes.

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good

Staff are aware of what they must do if there is a safeguarding issue in the home and are confident in using the procedures. They know that the young people very often are not able to tell staff of any concerns in a conventional way and that this puts them at greater risk. The focus on communication emphasises good practice in safeguarding and keeps young people increasingly safe. One young person’s vocabulary is increasing and another is starting to take more responsibility for communicating their views to staff, increasing their safety for now and in the future. A member of staff commented that one young person was ‘doing massively well’ in this area.

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good

Behavioural incidents in the home are managed pro-actively through the care planning and risk assessment process. Behaviour is seen as positive and always part of a child’s communication and personality. As a result, young people are always valued and respected. Where there are incidents of difficult behaviour, staff are fully trained and know that they can use restraint as a last resort. They always use the minimum intervention and respect the young person throughout. Young people are fully able to express their views afterwards. This protects them and ensures that they feel safe. One parent commented very positively on their young person’s improvement in behaviour saying ’her behaviour is totally different now’.

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good

Health and safety is well managed through the individual risk assessment process ensuring that young people are well protected. The building is also safe and there are processes that keep it that way. Young people’s needs are always well considered and their understanding of how to keep themselves safe is a priority. For example, they have recently worn the high visibility jacket to role play the fire warden’s job if the fire alarm goes off. As a result, they are fully conversant in what they should do should there be a fire.

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good

The recruitment procedure is effective and ensures that no unsuitable people work with the young people. However, the organisation of personnel and recruitment records for some agency staff is poor and makes it difficult to access records if needed.

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good

All the requirements from the last inspection are met. There have been improvements to restraints where young people are now asked for their views about the method used. The health and safety and fabric of the building is improved and in particular, young people’s bedrooms are well furnished and reflect their personality.

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good

There has been a period of instability for staff regarding the home’s management. The registered manager has been with the home since it opened in 2013 and is suitably qualified and experienced. However, this has been a temporary arrangement as she has always planned to return to her substantive post at another home. In the last year, another manager was appointed, but left before submitting his application to become registered. The registered manager remains committed but feels that the past year may have led to staff feeling unsettled and indeed some negative comments about management arrangements were made by staff. There has been another manager appointment and they are preparing their application to Ofsted to become registered. This will ensure a more settled management structure. Staff already report that they are confident in this new manager and that they are already rising to the challenge. One staff said ‘I have

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good

The registered manager has identified that there have been some problems in the team involving different personalities and team dynamics. She has been instrumental in ensuring that the team are managed and led to provide a consistently good service to young people. The management of staff is excellent and they are supported and monitored through effective supervision, where their performance is scrutinised and issues are discussed. Staff always feel able to talk to their manager, through a wide range of opportunities such as team meetings and the managers own monitoring process. An independent visitor also visits the home once a month and ascertains the views of staff. It is evident that if staff are concerned about anything in the home, they do raise this with management, who deal with the matter confidently and competently. There are some extremely positive comments about the staff team from parents and staff themselves

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good

including, ‘the staff team are beyond committed’ and ‘I can’t fault them’

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good

Managers always have young people’s best interests at heart and lead the team to ensure that their focus remains on young people. This ensures that they make good progress in a number of areas. The registered manager has complete autonomy and is fully able to refuse new admissions if she feels that the needs of any one young person will be negatively affected. She is open to new ideas and drives forward the profile of disabled children within the local authority and the importance of particular resources and training, for example work on missing children and on communication.

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good

Staff feel able to try out new ideas. This motivates them to improve their practice and to focus more on young people’s views and wishes. For example, one staff has been able to lead the purchase of a new symbols computer programme to further promote young people’s understanding of their care. In addition, another staff has been responsible for involving a young person in the recent staff recruitment process, ensuring that they have their say about which staff should work in their home.

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good

Good joint working with other professionals optimises progress because relevant professionals can ensure that young people are making the best progress possible. For example, monthly reports are sent to placing social workers and independent reviewing officers, so that progress can be scrutinised and barriers quickly identified. One professional said ‘the keyworker, staff and managers report any issues promptly to myself’.

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good

The majority of records in the home are detailed and show progress and any significant issues. They also demonstrate that the home’s statement of purpose is being met, for example how staff work in partnership with parents in order to promote progress. However, one young person’s records were not up-to-date and there were two reports from night staff that were not added to their daily records. In addition, one body map had the incorrect date on which made it difficult to establish what happened and when. Should the young person or a professional wish to look at this record in the future, they would not be able to gain a clear picture of events.

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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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