Children's Home run by Warrington Borough Council in Warrington

Outstanding

The children's home provides highly effective services that consistently exceeds the standards of good. The actions of the home contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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The children's home provision is outstanding because:

 Children thrive and make excellent progress because of staff’s consistent nurturing care. They are making measurable improvements in all aspects of their lives and development  Children develop warm trusting relationships with their carer’s and this is helping them feel secure, safe, happy and content. Staff are therefore able to support them children to improve their behaviour and get along with each other  Partnership working is extremely effective. Staff consistently collaborate with all relevant professionals and parents to ensure that everyone is working towards the same goals  Children benefit from increased contact with their families. This is down to staff dedicating their time and resources into ensuring contact is safe and a positive experience for all. Parents feel extremely welcomed by staff into the home  Children are safe, and they are learning how to keep themselves safe. This is because staff teach them how to reflect on their behaviour and manage

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The children's home provision is outstanding because:

their feelings in a safer way.  Children are fully supported to get involved in making decisions about their lives. They are meaningfully included in the making and reviewing of their care plans. Staff are extremely creative at devising ways to make this happen.  The home is run exceptionally well. A strong, dedicated manager leads an experienced, competent and extremely caring team. Staff receive effective training on areas specific to the needs of the children. They supplement this with their own research to broaden their knowledge and expertise  The home is well-maintained and provides a welcoming and homely environment. This shows children that they are clearly valued and deserve the very best.

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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

44: Independent person: visits and reports

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the care planning standard the registered person must ensure-

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Requirement Due date

(4) The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person’s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether— (a) children are effectively safeguarded; and (b) the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being. 30/11/2015

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Information about this children's home

This home is managed by a local authority. It provides care and accommodation for two children 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

16/03/2015 CH - Interim improved effectiveness

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outstanding

The home is providing outstanding care and support to two young children who are brother and sister. One reported that the care he receives is ‘ten out of ten.’

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outstanding

The children benefit from excellent care planning. The home’s placement plans are extremely detailed and provide a clear, personalised picture of each of their needs, journey and future plans. The children are fully included in the making and reviewing of their care plans. One child has devised her own monthly newsletter. Here she records all her achievements, activities and her views. This is an excellent example of how the home creates child centred ways to measure progress and ensure children’s involvement in care planning. A child said ‘I love my reviewing officer. I choose who can come to my review meetings and what we talk about.’

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outstanding

Children’s well-being is at the centre of staff practice. This is clearly demonstrated in the level of effort and support that they make to improve contact with families. The children’s mother visits the home every Sunday and helps staff to prepare their dinner. This has enabled contact to increase and to take place in a more ‘natural’ environment. Furthermore, the children feel more settled and at home and relationships between them, staff and parents are extremely strong. This parent said ‘I wouldn’t want my children to be anywhere else. The children love the staff and staff are loving towards them. It is as natural as it can be.’

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outstanding

Staff have exceptionally high aspirations for these children. They completely understand each child’s needs and ability and fully support them to continually develop and achieve. Staff are proactive at learning different ways of meeting their needs. For example, they have researched recent findings on meeting the needs of siblings and establishing healthy sibling relationships. This ensures that their practice and strategies are informed by current research evidence. Consequently, children benefit from being effectively cared for by a knowledgeable, competent and confident team.

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outstanding

Effective collaborative working with schools and virtual heads is ensuring that children meet their targets and realise their full potential. A member of staff said ‘We know they are extremely clever and we want them to go to university.’ This is mirrored in the children’s self-view; they believe in themselves, they are confident and ambitious. The young girl told me that she wants to be a lawyer and explained how she loves reading and ‘staff take me to the library nearly every day.’

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outstanding

Children are healthy and have a good understanding of the importance of staying well. Staff ensure that they attend all health appointments, have consistent routines and a balanced nutritious diet. Furthermore, children’s emotional well- being is promoted through staff’s reassurance and warm nurturing relationships. Referrals are made to therapeutic services such as children and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) when needed. What is more, staff have consultations with CAMHS, as well as undertaking their own research, to improve their knowledge and expertise in building emotional resilience.

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outstanding

Staff know and understand both children extremely well and ensure that they are central to the running of the home. Without doubt this is the children’s home and not a staff’s place of work. Children profit from living in a homely, well-cared for environment and this shows them that they are important, valued and respected. Consequently, they are happy, stable and content and respect their carers’ and each other. The children are fully involved in the planning of their daily routines. They confirmed they designed their own bedrooms and one said ‘my bedroom is awesome; I got to choose all of my bedding and posters.’

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outstanding

Children enjoy a variety of enrichment activities where they learn new skills and share experiences with their friends. They know what they like, such as building with Lego, music club, reading and playing out in the local park. These opportunities provide them with greater confidence and develops their social skills. As a result, children are better prepared to interact with others and face new challenges without fear.

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outstanding

Children are safe because staff are extremely vigilant and alert to potential dangers. Staff are experts at keeping children safe while ensuring that they still have opportunities to learn and develop. For example, staff undertake regular key work sessions on stranger danger, crossing the road and keeping safe in the community. Because the children trust staff they take on board their advice. Consequently, children therefore learn how to keep themselves safe and benefit from having opportunities to socialise in their community independently and safely.

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outstanding

There have not been any incidents of missing, child sexual exploitation or substance misuse in this home for some time. There are clear policies and procedures in place for tackling such risks, and staff receive effective training in these areas.

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outstanding

Risk assessments are excellent. They are clear, detailed and constantly updated. Staff are therefore completely aware of the potential dangers and how to prevent them. Staff swiftly follow up risk taking behaviours with the children through key work sessions. They teach the children how to reflect on their actions and empathise with others. This is clearly working as children who were frequently restrained in previous placements have never been restrained since moving to this home. Furthermore, effective behaviour management strategies are improving children’s behaviour. The reward system in place is encouraging the children to consider their actions and take responsibility for improving their behaviour. Improvements in the children’s behaviour are making the home a safer and happier environment.

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outstanding

Children’s safety is strengthened by exceptional partnership working with other safeguarding professionals, such as social workers. All significant incidents are clearly recorded and shared with the child’s social worker and parent. When necessary the manager ensures that Ofsted is notified. This enables external scrutiny of the homes safeguarding practice.

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outstanding

Complaints are rare, when made they are managed appropriately and resolved quickly. Children are fully aware of who they can go to should they have a complaint, no matter how small. Children have very close relationships with the Registered Manager and the principal manager of the service. The principal manager visits the home on a regular basis and has developed extremely warm trusting relationships with the children. This is further enhancing children’s safety within this home.

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outstanding

Children benefit from being cared for by a team that is effectively managed and well supported. All leaders are experienced, strong and passionate about improving the lives of the children they care for. Without a doubt, children are at the heart of this service and their needs are rigorously assessed and met. This was confirmed in the positive feedback from other professionals and parents. The children’s social worker said, ‘they have created a nurturing, natural home environment with consistent boundaries, warmth and care. Staff have built good relationships with the children’s mum. I can’t believe how well they have settled.’

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outstanding

Through excellent staff care, support and dedication, children continue to make impressive progress. They are physically fit and their emotional well-being is improving. They are achieving well in school, one child recently was entered for a reward at school for her ‘outstanding’ work in maths. Outcomes for children living in this home are impressive and sustained.

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outstanding

The staff team is consistent and stable. They are all suitably qualified and experienced, and receive relevant training to support them to meet children’s specific needs. For example, training on supervising and recording contact has enabled staff to increase family contact within the home; ensuring that it is a safe and enjoyable experience for all.

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outstanding

Professional supervision is provided to all staff, including managers, on a monthly basis. Staff report that this is reflective and extremely beneficial to their learning and development. Furthermore, the manager ensures that team meetings are productive and a good use of staff’s time. Monthly staff meetings often involve looking at current research, such as meeting the needs of siblings placed together, and building children’s emotional resilience. This promotes staff’s continued development, which in turn, equips them with further knowledge and skills to take on new challenges and meet children’s needs.

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outstanding

The Registered Manager has a clear understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. This is reflected in the home’s development plan that sets out targets for the coming year. One of the targets is to improve the quality of the independent monitoring visits. The effectiveness of these visits varies as they are undertaken by different members of the local council. Some have more experience than other’s in children’s residential services which impacts on the consistency and effectiveness of this monitoring. This can be improved to ensure that the independent monitoring of the service consistently meets the Children’s Homes Regulations 2015.

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outstanding

Excellent working relationships with other professionals have been achieved. The manager has forged strong links with partner agencies such as CAMHS, schools and the virtual head. This effective joint working is most definitely improving and sustaining excellent outcomes for children living in this home.

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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

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Information about this inspection

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Information about this inspection

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