Children's Home run by Pilgrims Corner Limited in Kent

Good

The children's home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.2

The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people continue to make progress from their starting points with  individual achievements being made.  Positive relationships between staff and young people are evident with young people feeling safe and supported. Staff are interested in what is occurring in young people’s lives.  Staff are knowledgeable about the needs of the young people in their care and  how to meet those needs.   Young people are involved in making decisions about key aspects of the  home.   Regular key work sessions provide opportunity to develop and learn new skills  and knowledge. They impact positively on decision making and equip young  people for the future.  Young people are informed about their rights and are encouraged to challenge  others if they believe it is required.  All young people are in education with staff providing support to sustain this.  The network meetings being established are having a positive impact on care

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 plans.  Staff support young people with all aspects of their physical and emotional  health.  Robust relationships and communication with others ensures plans are holistic  and provide clarity.  The leadership and management of the home provide robust review and  evaluation of the quality of care provided.  There is regular and wide-ranging training for staff to ensure they are up to date with current research and practice.

p.3

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  A record of supervision should be kept for staff, including the manager. The record should provide evidence that supervision is being delivered in line with regulation. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 61 paragraph 13.3 )

p.4

Recommendations

 Children must be consulted regularly on their views about the homes care, to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided; specifically ensure young people’s views are sought within all aspects of review and planning. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 22 paragraph 4.11)

p.4

Recommendations

 The registered person should only accept placements for children where they are satisfied that the home can respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs as recorded in the child’s relevant plans and where they have fully considered the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 56 paragraph 11.4)     Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and  understanding the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. (The  Guide to the Quality Standards, page 62 paragraph 14.4).

p.4

Information about this children's home

 The home is registered for two for children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties (EBD).  The home is privately owned and is one of four within the organisation.  The home is located within a small town within easy access to all local services and facilities.  The organisation also own a school which some young people may access.

p.5

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

p.5

Recent inspection history

04/02/2015 CH - Interim sustained effectiveness

p.5

good

The home is small and has a homely feel to it. It is located within a community and has easy access to local facilities and resources.

p.6

good

Young people continue to make good progress from their individual starting points.

p.6

good

Each young person is in education, with staff supporting young people to explore opportunities for further academic development, promoting life opportunities.

p.6

good

Staff support young people through robust health plans; they attend medical appointments and maintain their basic physical health. Young people are also supported with their emotional well-being with specialist services being accessed when required.

p.6

good

Placement plans are clear, informative and provide clarity regarding risk, need and detailed plans to support young people. The review at regular network meetings is providing a regular robust opportunity for review of plans.

p.6

good

The young person’s voice is not so evident in plans, reviews and reports written about the young people and managers intend to develop this. The young person’s voice is present in some aspects but as yet this is not consistent throughout.

p.6

good

Regular key work sessions provide opportunity to develop relationships and learn new skills. Clear targets and goals set are reviewed regularly. Those approaching adulthood are developing knowledge and skills in many areas including financial management, personal care and self-management. The sessions are a strength of the home and clearly evidence progress made by young people.

p.6

good

Contact with family and friends is promoted and supported by staff, which facilitate contact within the constraints of plans with review requested when required.

p.6

good

Young people report feeling safe and secure in the home and able to address aspects they find challenging. Young people share their views about the home and have input in to the daily planning of food choices and activities.

p.6

good

Young people are encouraged to engage in social activities. Staff have struggled to motivate and engage young people but they have persisted in offering activities; dance, cinema and trips to museums have been offered to young people with some positive outcomes.

p.6

good

Robust pre-admission risk assessments have been implemented with consideration to compatibility, risk and need. One admission took place when the system first started and did not have this assessment in place. The process is now becoming embedded into systems.

p.7

good

When young people leave the home staff prepare life story books as a memento of their time at the home. Staff support young people through planned discharges when able.

p.7

good

Young people are supported with their identity and what is important to them as individuals. Young people’s choices and preferences are considered in planning developments within the home. Young people are treated with respect and dignity. Bedrooms are their personal space with staff always knocking on bedroom doors before entering.

p.7

good

The home environment is well maintained with weekly monitoring in place ensuring all aspects are compliant with fire and health and safety requirements.

p.7

good

Young people report that they feel safe and have a trusted adult they can confide in to gain support when needed. Young people are settled and are making progress developing skills to manage their behaviours and emotions in a safe and appropriate way. Risky behaviours are addressed with young people using an open approach to discussing risks identified. Risks are identified and risk management plans are present with regular review occurring

p.7

good

Behaviour management plans provide staff with clear interventions, strategies, expectations and boundaries being set for young people. Young people are encouraged and supported to resolve conflict with others, including engaging in meetings in which resolution to issues is being sought.

p.7

good

Physical intervention has been applied on two occasions with staff preferring to use de-escalation techniques to support young people. Physical intervention is applied as a last resort.

p.7

good

Sanctions are recorded but more clarity is needed to ensure the correct sanction and level are recorded. Staff seek to apply a restorative approach to sanctions and intend to apply this more consistently.

p.8

good

Episodes of missing are well managed with clear plans in place, and staff taking an active approach in locating young people and providing support when they return home. Staff from a sister home complete return to care interviews. Agencies have been involved in developing plans providing a robust multi-agency approach.

p.8

good

Staff have completed child sexual exploitation risk assessments which have identified that currently young people have a low level of risk.

p.8

good

Safeguarding concerns and allegations about staff have been appropriately explored and investigated with referral to others when needed. Policy and procedures are in place which staff follow.

p.8

good

Young people know how to make a complaint with the use of complaint forms and being able to vocalise issues and worries. These have been acted on and investigated with young people given feedback regarding outcomes.

p.8

good

E-safety policy is in place, the home has no Wi-Fi access for young people, with young people only being able to access the internet via their own private mobiles.

p.8

good

Safer recruitment processes are robust with a ‘safer recruitment toolkit’ providing staff with guidance to processes and procedures required. Therapists employed have been scrutinised in the same standard as their professional registration being evidenced.

p.8

good

The home has a new ‘Registered Manager’ who is awaiting the registration certificate at this time. This was a requirement set at the last inspection and so this has been addressed.

p.8

good

Managers and leaders have robust monitoring and evaluation processes in place, these occur weekly and monthly feeding into the manager’s review processes. Clear action plans are in place identifying areas to improve and address how this will be achieved.

p.8

good

The deputy manager is a key member of staff in the home as the registered manager also manages a sister home.

p.9

good

There are positive collaborative relationships between the home and statutory organisations and agencies. Regular network meetings promote these robust relationships.

p.9

good

Staff have developed and continue to develop relationships with those outside of the home with all local services being accessed to meet young people’s needs.

p.9

good

Effective supervision does occur but not as regularly as prescribed in the homes policy.

p.9

good

Staff maintain training and knowledge through regular training sessions with a good variety of training opportunities available. Managers ensure knowledge is current and up to date with the most recent research and practice guidelines. There are plans to provide radicalisation training to the whole staff team .

p.9

good

Staff in the main possess the required qualifications with action plans in place to address circumstances where this is not the case.

p.9

good

When it has been identified that the home can no longer meet a young person’s need this is highlighted and addressed with placing authorities with clear plans being implemented to address and review.

p.9

good

The Statement of Purpose is regularly reviewed; currently the young person’s guide is being updated to a more child friendly version.

p.9

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.

p.10

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

p.10

What the inspection judgements mean

harmed or at risk of harm or result in children looked after not having their welfare safeguarded and promoted.

p.10

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

p.11

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 .

p.11

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,

p.12

Information about this inspection

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.12

Information about this inspection

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.12

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

p.12