Children's Home run by Ethelbert Specialist Homes Limited in Kent

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:

 A strong Registered Manager provides effective leadership to staff who are motivated to provide high quality care and promote positive outcomes for children.   Through close, individualised support, children are developing trusting relationships with staff and a sense of stability and security. Within a short time from admission, children are showing improvements in their behaviour.   Children enjoy living in the home. Staff actively engage with them in play and meaningful activities so they have positive childhood experiences, build self-confidence, a sense of identity and appropriate social skills.   Comprehensive individual care plans guide staff to support children. Staff regularly review strategies to minimise any risk of harm.   Staff work proactively with external professionals to promote positive outcomes for children. 

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Information about this children's home

This children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is privately owned.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

19/03/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

26/02/2014 Interim Satisfactory progress

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Good

A new group of children are settling in to the home and staff are focusing on developing positive, trusting relationships with them. Initially the group presented very challenging behaviour but children are now responding to staff’s close attention to meeting their needs. Incidents of challenging behaviour are decreasing as they build confidence in the staff who care for them. They are realising they can talk to staff about their feelings and staff will listen and take action. Staff closely supervise children, engaging them in meaningful dialogue and activities, protecting them and promoting their welfare. Staff place their well-being at the centre of practice.

p.5

Good

All children engage in education and are making progress. One child began his new school placement and was only able to engage in the process for a few minutes. He has made significant progress and is now able to participate for five hours. Effective links on a daily basis with school staff foster partnership working to ensure children’s individual needs are met and approaches are consistent.

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Good

Access to a wide range of recreational and social activities is integral in strategies to promote children’s positive outcomes. With an emphasis on physical activities, staff encourage children to try new sports and pursue their specific interests. Mountain biking is a favourite activity. One child stated that he ‘likes it at the home because he does stuff’ and added that he particularly likes mountain biking in the rain and the mud. Other activities include trampolining, basketball, football and rock climbing. Staff recognise when children have particular skills and have plans to arrange coaching to foster these talents. Consequently, they develop self- confidence, self-esteem and a sense of belonging in the local community.

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Good

Detailed health plans with individual targets ensure children receive health services according to their specific needs. Staff work in partnership with external health professionals to provide specialist assessments and with the organisation’s therapy team to plan relevant therapeutic interventions to promote their emotional and psychological well-being. Staff are vigilant in responding to signs of children’s emotional distress. They monitor them closely whilst waiting for expert assessment and treatment plans.

p.5

Good

Staff view healthy eating as a central part of promoting a healthy lifestyle. Staff encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables and try new foods. Recent focus on blackberries and mangoes on the menu is an example of a proactive approach to a healthy diet, educating children to think about the food they eat and establishing good habits. Children have requested healthy options such as more fish dishes on their menu through their group meetings.

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Good

Staff work proactively with parents and carers to enable children to maintain positive and meaningful relationships.

p.6

Good

The home provides a safe environment for children who have experienced unpredictable and unsafe situations in their past. Through close supervision from thoughtful and consistent staff with strong boundaries, routines and structure, they develop a sense of safety, protection and trust in the adults who care for them. Staff are open and honest with children. Consequently, children are clear about what aspects of their behaviour causes concern and are building confidence in staff’s responsiveness to their individual needs. They are beginning to make attachments and developing skills to regulate their emotions and behaviour.

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Good

With warmth, good humour and patience, staff manage children’s boisterous and often volatile behaviour so that they learn to live together as a group and begin to develop an understanding of how their behaviour affects others. The new group of children have little understanding of bullying. Staff are making continuous efforts to educate them and raise their perception and awareness of such behaviour. Staff address issues in children’s meetings, key work sessions and through immediate intervention when such behaviour is evident. Staff have contacted the local police liaison officer to visit and discuss issues around bullying to reinforce staff’s messages that bullying is not acceptable. Children are thus learning tolerance, respect for others and appropriate ways of interacting with their peers.

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Good

Staff identify and understand any risks associated with each child. Appropriate measures protect them from harm. Individualised risk assessments are current. Behaviour management strategies provide staff with supportive interventions specific to each child. Children receive appropriate support to manage their behaviour and emotions effectively. The staff team regularly review such support in team meetings and supervision sessions to ensure they are receiving effective responses to their difficulties. Strategies focus on reinforcing positive behaviour rather than punishment for inappropriate behaviour.

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Good

Physical intervention is used only when necessary to reduce the risk of harm to children and others or serious damage to property. The Registered Manger, who is a trained instructor in behaviour management, has correctly focused on closely monitoring incidents resulting in physical intervention and providing staff with support and training to manage such incidents safely and reduce their occurrence. Incidents are properly recorded, including an explanation and discussion with the child and details of the debrief with staff to allow reflection, improve supportive strategies and ensure safe practice.

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Good

Prior to the admission of this new group of children, there were frequent incidents of young people leaving the home without permission. Records demonstrate that staff effectively apply agreed procedures with the local police to ensure their safe return. Staff routinely offer return interviews but records show that young people frequently decline the opportunity to discuss the episode when they are away from the home. Managers agree the arrangements for return interviews at the initial placement meeting. Some local authorities agree that an area manager from the organisation, who is not overseeing the home, conducts the return interview. Area managers have undertaken training to perform this role. When young people decline to discuss the incident, staff and key workers endeavour to obtain information to ensure effective strategies safeguard young people. There have been no incidents involving current children being reported missing.

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Good

Staff have undertaken training in safeguarding children and are aware of the risks facing them, including the risk of child sexual exploitation. They have completed the local authority’s risk assessment toolkit for child sexual exploitation for each child and have measures to safeguard their welfare.

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Good

Robust recruitment processes are in place to protect children from unsuitable adults working with them. All checks on prospective employees are undertaken before they commence work at the home.

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Good

Health and safety checks are up to date. Appropriate fire safety measures are routinely applied.

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Outstanding

An experienced and qualified Registered Manager has been in post since 2012. She provides strong, effective leadership and support for the staff team based on a clear understanding of the individual needs of children. Staff report she is ‘very supportive and is available 24/7 for advice, guidance and support’. Working with a new group of younger children and some new staff, she inspires staff to use their initiative and provide children with positive, appropriate childhood experiences. With a focus on developing strong, trusting relationships and an understanding of the meaning of their challenging behaviour, staff are enabling children to settle and begin to talk about their feelings rather than be violent and aggressive.

p.8

Outstanding

Staff follow a comprehensive induction programme and training relevant to their role to ensure they are competent and confident in meeting children’s needs. They receive regular supervision. Records demonstrate detailed discussion of issues affecting children, including matters affecting their safety and well-being. Staff are motivated, resilient and keen to provide children with opportunities to achieve positive outcomes.

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Outstanding

Continuous, active monitoring by the Registered Manager of the functioning of the home drives forward improvement focused on the needs of children. She has a thorough understanding of activity within the home, the needs of children living at the home and of staff performance. Effective challenge of staff practice supports children to maximise their progress. Staff meetings are extremely child-focused with discussion focusing on improvements to care practices to ensure children receive effective support to promote their development.

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Outstanding

Quarterly internal monitoring reports and monthly reports by an independent visitor contribute to a quality assurance system that addresses any issues and results in improvements to the service. The Registered Manager is implementing a development plan to promote and develop positive relationships and provide children with consistent care within a warm and secure environment where they develop a sense of belonging. She recognises that the transition within the home to accommodate a new group of younger children has required a fresh approach to meet their needs. Consequently, she is focusing on monitoring and evaluating all aspects of their care and changing strategies to ensure they receive positive and meaningful interventions. In a short period, children are making good progress.

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Outstanding

Staff have meaningful consultation with children. Records of children’s meetings demonstrate that staff actively seek their views on menus, activities and the home environment. Their ideas and feedback influence the day-to-day running of the home and show them that their views are important. Individual key work sessions give children individual opportunities to express their feelings and opinions. The Registered Manager and staff consider this feedback at team meetings and make appropriate amendments to care plans to ensure strategies are relevant to their changing needs. There have been no complaints from children since the last inspection.

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Outstanding

The home has received two complaints from neighbours since the last inspection relating to loud music and rubbish left outside the home. Both complaints have been dealt with and resolved satisfactorily, including a personal apology to the neighbour by the young person responsible for the loud music.

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Outstanding

The Registered Manager takes an active role in reviewing and evaluating children’s care plans to ensure strategies promote their progress. Proactive work with other professionals and agencies such as the child and adolescent mental health service, school staff and health professionals enhances the support the home offers for children with complex emotional needs.

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Outstanding

Despite damage caused to the home by children displaying extremely challenging behaviour on admission, the Registered Manager is ensuring the home provides a welcoming and relaxing environment. Damage is promptly rectified to show them that staff value the environment where they live and they deserve a pleasant, well maintained home in which staff care for them and help them flourish.

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Outstanding

The home’s statement of purpose is clear and informative. The home meets the expressed aim of providing a caring, nurturing ‘family’ environment where children feel healthy, safe and secure and where they are able to grow, develop and achieve.

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Outstanding

The recommendation made at the last inspection has been met and there are no requirements or recommendations made at 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

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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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