Amber House

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 make good progress in all aspects of their lives. In particular, their education, reduction in behaviours that affect their health, self-esteem and social development.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The staff work hard to develop positive interaction between staff, young people and their peers. This builds trusting relationships which encourages young people to become increasingly safe.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Managers of the home are able to have an increased level of autonomy and can make decisions about new referrals. They understand when young people should leave the home based on their knowledge and understanding of young people‟s needs being met.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 There is a well-established staff team. They know each other‟s strengths and work well together to ensure that boundaries are consistently used and that positive behaviour is rewarded using various methods. They are also supportive of each other and ensure the care of young people is their first concern.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The staff at the home have good links with education providers, including the company‟s academy. This allows for good transitions between the home and education, so that they fully understand events that might influence the young person‟s day.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Staff support young people when moving on from the home. They also continue to provide support to carers once the young person has left. Staff also recognise the importance of good contact arrangements for young people and make great efforts to ensure they are positive and take place regularly.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people are well supported and staff actively advocate on their behalf. They ensure they have resources to support young people for their reviews. Social workers spoke highly of the good work that staff do with the young people they have placed there.

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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

10. In order to meet the health and well-being standard, with particular reference to ensuring that young people reduce their use of tobacco, alcohol and other substances, the provider must ensure that:

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Requirement Due date

(1)(a) the health and well-being needs of children are met; (b) children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and (c) children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles. 17/01/2016

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Requirement Due date

13. In order to meet the leadership and management standard, with particular reference to ensuring that all the documentation used to ensure the appropriate running of the home are up to date, and that documents that are kept on children‟s files or used for recording information about the home, including training, is accurate, the registered person must –

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Requirement Due date

(2)(h) use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of the care provided in the home. 17/01/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if –

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Requirement Due date

(e) there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

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 –

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Requirement Due date

(a) children are effectively safeguarded; and (b) the conduct of the home promotes children‟s well-being.

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the review of the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home includes identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home‟s location and the strategies for managing these. In particular, measure the level of risk before and after strategies are in place to determine the effectiveness of the strategy to reduce risk. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 64, paragraph 15.1)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of their children, they will in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. In particular, ensure that the home is repaired and decorated in a timely manner, removing any evidence of damage as quickly as possible. In addition, that consideration be given to the amount of documentation that young people are required to sign. This needs to take into account the purpose of the signature and whether young people prefer to sign certain records. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 15 paragraph 3.9)

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Information about this children's home

 This privately owned children's home provides care and accommodation for up to four young people with emotional or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

26/02/2015 Interim Improved Effectiveness

p.5

good

Young people have good levels of communication with staff at the home and are supported to build trusting and secure relationships. This enables young people to improve their social skills through meaningful daily contact with staff. In addition, it allows them to speak to staff about things that are of concern to them. This means key-working sessions are more effective as they can focus on specific topics that are individual to each young person. As a result, the young people know that staff are interested in the things they have done on a day to day basis and learn that staff at the home genuinely care about their welfare. One social worker provided feedback to staff that, „The care is excellent and has provided the young person with their most stable placement to date. The young person has a good relationship with staff and is responsive to the consistent care provided.‟

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good

Young people are able to contribute to how the home is run and, as a result, how it impacts on their day to day lives. They have regular meetings which allows them to discuss their preferred choice of food and what activities they would like to be involved in. They also know that on any particular day, if they do not want to eat what has been prepared then there are alternatives. Young people can and do sometimes cook their own food. This goes towards readying them for looking after themselves and preparing for independence.

p.6

good

The home has a guide for young people, which they can view to give them a good understanding about how the home operates before they arrive, and while they are there. They understand how they can make a complaint and who they can talk to if they feel something is not right.

p.6

good

Young people have been engaged in education to varying degrees. Staff at the home make good attempts at engaging young people in education and have had considerable success. At the time of the inspection there had been a dip in education attendance. Staff had been able to identify reasons for this and were working hard to reengage young people, which appeared to be successful. Attendance was excellent for one young person and staff were identifying a new placement for someone who had only been at the home for a short period of time. In addition, staff had worked very hard with a previous young person‟s education provision. There had been several attempts to exclude them from school. The manager of the home had numerous meetings with the school and actively sought for the decisions to be overturned. They were a strong advocate for the young person which resulted in them being able to continue attending the school and

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good

benefit from continuity of their education. The provider also operates an academy. Where appropriate, young people from this home are able to attend and are supported during the school day by staff from the home. Young people also attend mainstream school. Staff arrange appropriate transportation.

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good

Staff support young people with their school work. The home has a computer with internet access, though this is currently being updated. Until it is ready, young people have supervised access to the internet using the home‟s computer. This ensures they are not disadvantaged during the time their computer is not available. Staff understand the risks posed by the internet to some young people and only allow access once appropriate precautions have been taken to restrict their use.

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good

Young people are able to have free time in the community, when their plans allow this. This enables them to engage with their friends and spend time socialising. Young people are expected to behaviour responsibly and to make sure they make contact with the home at agreed times. This ensures they have a balance of free time while still making sure they are safe. Young people are able to take part in various activities and they achieve this by displaying responsibility and positive behaviour. They go to the cinema, ice-skating, bowling and more recently were due to go on a helicopter ride, although this has been postponed due to recent bad weather. Staff are currently making plans for bonfire weekend. Promoting positive behaviour through reward rather than consequence is used successfully within this home.

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good

Young people‟s health is generally good. They are all registered with general health practitioners. Some young people engage in activities that jeopardises their health, despite the best efforts of staff to help them stop. Young people are helped to seek advice from a service called, Addaction, and through key-work sessions to reduce their reliance on tobacco, alcohol or other substances. The home has been able to demonstrate some positive progress in this regard and although some young people go through phases of using substances there have been long periods of abstinence.

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good

Young people have their contact supported by staff in the home. As a result, contact, where appropriate, is maintained or improved. Young people have been able to increase the levels of contact they have and staff travel significant distances to ensure that they remain engaged with family or those that are important to them Because of this, young people have had some success in returning to live at home, or are planning to return home. Arrangements for contact are carefully considered by staff at the home who work with social workers to ensure that any contact is positive and does not place young people at risk of harm. Judgement grade

p.7

good

Young people live in a home that encourages them to become increasingly safe. Action is taken by staff to reduce risk to young people.

p.8

good

There have been instances when young people have not reported to the home at agreed times or they have gone from the home and failed to return. When this occurs staff actively search for the young person to return them safely home. They make regular attempts to contact the young person and agree times and places to collect them. This often involves travelling some distance and the managers ensure that the home is resourced so that staff can spend time looking for young people or going to bring them home.

p.8

good

Staff take time to speak to young people to understand why they went missing and look at opportunities to engage young people, using rewards and incentives to reduce the risk of them leaving in future. As a result, young people rarely go missing, though do sometimes return after their agreed times. At the time of the inspection, staff were making attempts to engage with a young person who had been missing for three nights. There was a clear trail of action taken and appropriate people, including the police, had been informed. Staff had driven to a different county in response to information received that the young person had been seen and made continuous attempts to contact by phone. Sometimes this was successful, sometimes it was not, however staff persevered until the young person was found and returned home. When young people return, staff ensure that they each have an opportunity to be spoken to by an independent person.

p.8

good

Some young people use tobacco, alcohol and other substances. Staff understand these concerns and take steps to break the cycle of young people being reliant upon them. This has had some success and they work with young people during their key-work sessions to explain to them the negative effects it has on their mood and on their health. There have been some improvements, though with some young people this has not always remained consistent. Staff are able to use the support from other agencies and also from the provider‟s clinical psychologist. In addition, they employ methods to monitor spending and also engage young people to distract them at the times they are most likely to be tempted. Staff have the expertise to recognise what young people want and identify something that is important to them and use this as an opportunity to work with them to promote better health. This ethos, coupled with the good relationships that staff build,

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good

deliver better outcomes for young people than sanctions or consequences.

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good

Since the last inspection there has been an incident at the home that the regulator considers to be serious. This required notification to Ofsted, which was not done. Appropriate notification and liaison with other agencies did take place and so any impact on young people involved was reduced. The manager acknowledged that notification should have been made and was able to explain in detail the steps taken to ensure risks to young people were assessed and what action was taken. As a result, staff continue to monitor through observations to ensure that children remain safe in the home.

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good

Staff at the home were able to demonstrate the planning involved when young people leave the home, this was good practice. One example showed the steps staff were prepared to go to so that young people felt comfortable about their move. One young person was anxious about moving into semi-independent living. Staff worked with the young person to improve their self-confidence and went with them on two visits to the new placement. This allowed the young person to overcome their anxiety by knowing that they had the support of staff to make a planned transition.

p.9

good

Young people that were spoken to during the inspection said they felt safe at the home and that they received help to stay safe. One young person was asked what the staff do really well. They responded, „Looking after us and making sure that we‟re safe.‟ Social workers also reported that they felt that young people were being helped to keep safe. One social worker said, „They have a good safety plan in place. They are vulnerable but staff work hard to safeguard them.‟ Another social worker said they, „had noticed huge progress‟ in respect of their young person and said, „On the whole they manage behaviour well and have done well at keeping them safe.‟

p.9

good

The manager of this home has been registered since December 2014 and worked at the home prior to this. He has the appropriate experience and qualifications to undertake the role.

p.9

good

The home is appropriately staffed by a strong and experienced team who work very well together. Most of the staff team have worked together for a long period of time which demonstrates the home is a good place to work. Through discussion with staff, it was clear they felt very well supported by the manager and deputy manager. Staff felt they could approach managers with any concerns and are confident they would be addressed. In addition, managers also felt very well supported by their senior managers. As a result, staff felt comfortable in their place of work and able to make decisions about care that would be supported. The manager has also given authority to staff to make decisions about rewards relating to positive consequence. This allows staff to instantly recognise and reward young people without the need to seek authority and miss the opportunity. This demonstrates the level of trust the managers have of the staff in the home.

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good

A strength in this home is that the manager is allowed some autonomy in relation to placement decisions. It was clear that when placements were not considered to be appropriate to complement the current group of residents, or that the care needs of that young person could not be met, the manager was able to reject that placement. This demonstrates that decisions are made based on the care that is being provided rather than any financial commitment to fill places.

p.10

good

All staff felt they had meaningful supervision and that they were regular. In addition, each person spoken to felt they could raise any concern at any point, and did not have to wait for a formal supervision.

p.10

good

Staff understand the care plans for young people and are made aware quickly when any plans change as a result of young people‟s reviews or as a result of changes to risks. They have mechanisms in place that allow for exchanges of information on a daily basis and that staff are kept up to date with any incidents during that day or night. The team has regular meetings which discuss each young person in detail. This also allows for some reflection on what is working well or what can be changed if it isn‟t working. For example, it was recognised that for one young person using reparation as a method of improving behaviour was ineffective. As a result, changes were made so that incentives were promoted. This has a positive influence on their behaviour. Plans are individualised to ensure that each young person receives the appropriate level of support tailored to their needs.

p.10

good

Staff work hard to engage with other people who are involved with the young people. They forge positive relationships with education providers and have good relationships with the police. This has not always been easy as young people have been placed from outside the local authority area and so they have to liaise with police forces in different parts of the country. They have maintained good links with the local police community support officers who regularly attend the home. This engages young people with the police in a positive way and reduces feelings of negativity as a result of previous experiences. Staff also communicate with parents and carers, when it is appropriate to do so.

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good

Social workers also reported that they have good levels of communication with staff at the home. They receive regular updates on general care and are involved quickly when there have been incidents or when staff feel there should be changes to care plans, for example, if their levels of risk has changed or if there are escalations in their contact that supports their well-being.

p.10

good

The manager also requests feedback from those that use the service and this ensure that he can take steps to improve the service provided based on their responses. For example, one young person in their feedback said that they felt, „very well supported to enjoy and achieve‟ and that they felt, „able to make views known and able to say what happens‟. Another young person said that staff, „give you loads of support and advice to lead you and point you in the right direction of life‟. Another said that, „they listen to us and respect you, treats us like adults‟. One carer said that the care was, „very good, always attentive to children‟s needs‟.

p.10

good

The home has appropriate policies in place that reflect the current regulations. These help to keep young people safe and make it clear to staff what action they have to take in the event of any instances of bullying or child protection. When questioned, staff were clear that they knew of the policy and would follow it if they were confronted with an incident of abuse by staff. They were also clear that they would escalate any concerns to senior managers for support and direction.

p.11

good

The home ensures that when recruiting new members of staff that the appropriate checks have been carried out. Staff are not allowed to work in the home until they have received the appropriate clearances. This ensures that young people are looked after by people that appropriate to do so.

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good

Training in the home is up to date, however, the records maintained in the home were not. Although managers were aware that training had taken place this was not reflected in the information in the training matrix. All staff felt that they received training that gave them the skills to deal with behaviours of the young people in the home. Additionally, staff felt that training had recently improved and was now more proactive. This is as a result of the addition of new trainer to the company who is actively looking at training that will equip staff with the knowledge they need. He is also identifying training that deals with emerging concerns and staff are undertaking training in relation to staff retention, sexual exploitation and radicalisation, in addition to providing staff with refresher training for mandatory subjects.

p.11

good

The home has a visitor that attends the home regularly. They provide an independent report which supports the manager in ensuring that the standards of care within the home remain high. Previous reports have not contained the independent person‟s opinion on two matters required by regulation. I have previously had the opportunity to discuss this with the independent person and anticipate this will be included in future reports.

p.11

good

The manager has carried out a review of the quality of care and provided a report to Ofsted. In addition to the report, the manager must ensure that documentation within the home that affects the care being provided remains up to date. For example, medication in one young person‟s records was no longer prescribed and should be removed. Also, information contained within the Statement of Purpose and the Children‟s Guide was not up to date. The manager took immediate action and these two documents were quickly revised during the inspection. The quality of recording in staff‟s supervisions should also be considered. This can be used to capture progress made by young people and also reflect on incidents within the home that can improve practice. The review of the premises which considers the appropriateness of the location of the home is also ready for review. This should consider the risks posed in the community to those children and young people who

p.11

good

are residing in the home. This will ensure they are effectively safeguarded based on their individual risks. The manager has also introduced a key-worker tool. This has potential to be effective at ensuring that key-work sessions target the particular concerns posed by young people. At the time of inspection, the document is not effective as it is not clear it is understood by those using it. Also, there was no indication that it had been reviewed by managers, as was its intention. These are matters that have low impact on the care being provided and can be quickly rectified and kept under review by managers.

p.12

good

The physical appearance of the home is in need of attention. This is due to recent damage to some of the walls and doors. The manager has plans for redecoration of the home to take place, including one of the bedrooms. This will ensure the home continues to remain a homely and pleasant environment.

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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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