Children's Home run by Fairfield Residential Limited in Cheshire West and Chester

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 manager and staff team communicate effectively with young people, which promotes trust, choice and a good understanding of their individual needs.  Young people experience positive social interactions in the local community and are supported to develop peer relationships.  Transitional planning is prioritised by the manager and staff team, supporting young people to be prepared for and manage change.  The manager and staff team work closely with parents and partner agencies to provide consistent routines, which reduces individual anxieties and enables young people to develop confidence.  The manager is passionate about achieving positive outcomes for each young person living at the home. She is a strong advocate and leads by example providing a strong role model for the staff team.  Staff report feeling supported in their role and have access to supervision and training to ensure they are equipped to meet the

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The children's home provision is good because:

individual needs of the young people living in the home.  The manager addresses any shortfalls identified through regular monitoring. However, some further areas for improvement have been raised at this inspection. These shortfalls have not impacted on the welfare of the young person living in the home.

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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 records are kept up to date and signed and dated by the author (Regulation 36 (1)(b)(c)) 30/11/2015

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the local authority for the area in which the children's home is located is notified of every admission of a child into the home and every discharge of a child from the home (Regulation 41 (1)) 30/11/2015

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Information about this children's home

The home is privately owned and is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to two children with learning difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

24/03/2015 CH - Interim sustained effectiveness

p.5

good

Two young people have lived at this home for several years. One young person has recently moved on from the home into their long term adult provision. Given their individual starting points they have both made very good progress, One social worker commented, ‘we can see real progress in X, particularly around his mobility and communication.’

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good

Young people benefit from individualised care, provided by a small but consistent staff team who know the young people well. This promotes quality relationships, trust and stability for young people. As a result, they remain settled in the home and parents feel that their children are safe and happy.

p.6

good

Young people have excellent school attendance and are meeting their individual targets. Staff and parents have good relationships with education providers, the use of the home / school communication book underpins effective communication. Young people are well supported by the staff team to be ready for school through consistent routines, including the use of a regular escort for school transportation.

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good

Due to the disabilities of the young people staff and parents work together to ensure that their individual health needs are met. Young people are supported to attend all health appointments and are encouraged to maintain healthy lifestyles through diet and regular activities.

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good

Young people are routinely encouraged to share their views and make choices in their everyday life. This supports young people to develop a sense of their own identity, for example by choosing the clothes they want to wear.

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good

A key strength of the home is its engagement with families, through regular communication, including the sharing of photographs of young people enjoying activities, and regular visits to the home and family home. Consequently, this has maintained family relationships and supports young people to retain a strong sense of identity. One parent commented, ’my son is doing very well, it’s a shame he has to move on. The communication is very good; they do everything I ask them to.’

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good

Young people are encouraged to develop independence skills at a level and pace which suits their individual needs, such as making drinks and helping with their own laundry. This promotes independence and choice for them.

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good

Young people are very well supported to understand their individual transitional plans. Through the use of social stories and intelligence sharing one young person has successfully moved into their permanent adult placement. Staff spent time sharing their in-depth knowledge around the individual’s preferences, complex behaviour and health needs with the new staff team which resulted in the young person having a smooth transition into their new home.

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good

Individual activities are promoted for young people, this builds confidence and links in the local community. Young people enjoy going to the cinema, local parks and the beach. Staff regularly take photographs of young people enjoying activities, which helps to maintain a meaningful record of their experiences and can then be shared with their families. These photographs also demonstrate their individual progress and achievements, for example, one young person would refuse to go onto the sand but they now enjoy paddling in the sea, this is because of consistent support and reassurance from the staff team.

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good

Young people are supported to take age and ability appropriate risks, this means they are able to experience new opportunities which builds their confidence and broadens their life experiences.

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good

Young people benefit from being supported by individual staff members and an appropriately secure environment which protects them from going missing. Due to the level of their disabilities they do not currently present a risk of going missing from the home. However, the manager ensures that individual team members are fully aware of what they should do in any such event.

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good

Due to the disabilities of the young people sanctions are not used, however, positive rewards are regularly used to reinforce positive behaviour and positive choices. Physical restraint has not been used for some time as the behaviour of the young people does not warrant these interventions. However, staff have recently received updated training, should the need arise they are trained to safely manage challenging behaviour. Staff receive safeguarding training and demonstrate a good understanding of the whistleblowing and safeguarding procedures.

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good

Recruitment procedures are well established and appropriate checks are made prior to staff commencing employment. Visitors to the home are verified on arrival to the home. This helps to safeguard young people, who have limited communication skills.

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good

Regular health and safety checks are carried out by staff in the house, to maintain a safe environment. Young people have individual emergency evacuation plans which identify the support they may require in the event of an emergency.

p.7

good

Young people are supported by a staff team who maintain a clear structure and routine to their day, this helps young people to feel safe and secure, resulting in positive behaviour. Parents and professionals confirm that they feel young people are protected in the home.

p.8

good

The home is managed by a Registered Manager who has the necessary skills and experience to provide clear leadership and management of the home. She holds a degree in Social Work and has recently completed the Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management, she is awaiting her certificate. She has been registered as manager at the home since July 2013.

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good

Since the last inspection, the manager has addressed each of the recommendations, as a result a stable staff team have been recruited to care for the young people. Young people have and continue to be, supported by a mixed gender staff team and through developing links within the organisation young people are developing appropriate peer friendships.

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good

The manager continually reviews and amends the Statement of Purpose, as required in line with regulations. However, a system has not yet been implemented to notify the local authority, in which the home is located in, of the admission and discharge of young people to the home. The environment has benefited from some improvements to the décor, the manager has a development plan in place to secure continuous improvement in the home.

p.8

good

The manager consistently puts the individual needs of the young people at the core of the ethos of the home. She consistently strives for improved outcomes for the young people; this has resulted in young people making significant progress from their individual starting points. Internal care plans are in place for young people; however they are not regularly reviewed and updated with any changes. This has not impacted on the progress of the young people or on the quality of care provided. However, it is a missed opportunity to document and plan for continual targeted development.

p.8

good

The quality of relationships between the manager, staff and other professionals is excellent. One member of staff commented that they feel well supported by the manager and that she is very inclusive of the whole staff team. One professional said, ‘the staff team work well with me and school and parents to support X.′ Individual staff members report systems are in place to support them, including regular handovers, supervisions, team meetings and training days.

p.8

good

The manager regularly monitors the home and has recently introduced a system for the senior to monitor day to day records. The organisation has commissioned an external company to undertaken independent monthly visits. These reports reflect areas for development and demonstrate improvements made.

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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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