Children's Home run by Crossway Services Limited in St Helens

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 come to live here in a planned way. Good pre-planning arrangements, fully involving the young person and other key people, leads to informed decisions about whether their needs can be safely met.  Although the young person has not been in placement long, he confidently stated he was safe and happy. He is making good progress across all aspects of his life. This is down to the support and care that he receives. For example, a teacher said, ‘It is obvious that he is well supported because his grades are improving.’  Safeguarding professionals report that this is a good home with the focus on the welfare of young people. They say that the communication is good and that the home is proactive in requesting and attending meetings if a concern is identified.  The home has a good record of accomplishment of being able to turn young people’s behaviour round. Therefore, placements have been of a significant

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

period with good outcomes for young people. They have also been proactive in identifying when a placement needs to end. After exhausting all avenues, the home clearly felt that they could not keep one young person safe. They worked with the placing authority to source another suitable setting. However, the manager did not notify Ofsted when the young person was missing overnight.  Young people have seen their contact with their family increase whilst being at this home. This means they are able to maintain and strengthen relationships with people who are important to them. But, the homes contact plans do not explicitly identify any restrictions or potential concerns around known unsuitable adults. This does not fully safeguard young people.  Good transition planning means young people are well supported to adapt to changes at an important time in their lives. For example, a young person has recently left this home to move into semi-independence. Staff continue

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

to support him and he visits the home. This offers reassurance and stability as they build their resilience and confidence.  Staff at this home are well supported through good supervision, training and development opportunities. An independent visitor assesses the quality of care that young people receive. However, the record lacks evaluation or reflection. This does not give the manager independent advice on how to improve the service.

p.3

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.

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI if there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4) (e)) 31/12/2015

p.4

Requirement Due date

12. In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure that staff:

p.4

Requirement Due date

(2) (a) (i) assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child's relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child.

p.4

Requirement Due date

This is specifically in relation to having a clear risk assessment in place that highlights any concerns, risks, and actions for staff to take in regards to any restrictions of contact with unsuitable adults. 31/12/2015

p.4

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of the information from independent monitoring to ensure continuous improvement. This is specifically in relation to the independent visitor providing a clear evaluation of the service, home, and records. (The Guide to the Quality Standards page 55, paragraph 10.24)

p.4

Information about this children's home

This privately run children’s home is registered for one young person with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

p.5

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

p.5

Recent inspection history

13/02/2015 CH - Interim sustained effectiveness

p.5

Recent inspection history

20/03/2014 CH - Interim Satisfactory Progress

p.5

good

Young people come to live at this home in a planned way. The manager carefully considers the information and takes good steps to engage previous carers, key professionals and importantly the young person. This is to ensure the home can make an informed choice about whether they can meet the young person’s needs. Information is shared with staff so they have a full knowledge of the young person and can devise strategies and plans to keep them safe. The newest young person said, ‘I came for a visit and staff visited me. This was good because I knew most of them and where I was going.’ As a result, he has settled well and is making progress.

p.6

good

Staff value the importance of education and strongly promote attendance, engagement and further education opportunities. They do this by having good routines in place and having excellent relationships with teachers and educational provisions. The young person has 100% attendance but struggles in completing homework. Staff have worked closely with teachers; have incentives in place and routines that support him to complete it. A teacher said, ‘It is obviously working. I have just marked his home technology homework. He got a B. His answers showed thought. This is a significant improvement.’ The young person said, ‘I know it’s important but sometimes I cannot be bothered but I got a game for my x-box for doing a week’s homework. This is great.’

p.6

good

The young person said that staff have fully explained how to raise a concern if he is not happy with anything. He said, ‘I don’t have any issues, it is great here. They have also got me an advocate and I have met him.’ This means that young people can access independent support or advice if they need to.

p.6

good

Young people are offered a range of activities. There are some restrictions as to places that the young person may go which are fully identified in their care plan, placement plan and risk assessments. The young person said, ‘I love fishing and we went to a camp site in the summer holidays that specialises in fishing. It was great.’ He also likes laser quest and going to the cinema. He said he meets up with friends sometimes after school but this is planned because of the distance away and for safety reasons.

p.6

good

The young person is in good health. He attends all routine health appointments and eats a balanced diet. Staff are fully trained in administering medication and they all have a first aid qualification. This ensures that young people receive support from qualified people. The staff pride themselves on maintaining or increasing contact for young people with people who are important to them. In the past, the have been instrumental in repairing and improving relationships. The young person said, ‘I get to see my mum and brothers more now and it is going ok.’ Good contact plans show the arrangements, dates and times of visits. Staff try to make these more fun by incorporating an activity into these times. Staff are aware that a potential unsuitable adult may contact the young person. They are awaiting a meeting with the young person’s social worker to discuss concerns and restrictions. However, they have not been proactive in putting into place a plan of action if this was to

p.6

good

happen. This does not give staff clear advice on what to do and does not safeguard the young person.

p.7

good

Staff fully support young people to be as independent as possible. They assess their skills and support them to learn things such as cooking for themselves. They start with basic things and build up to being able to cook full meals. They are supported to make things from fresh produce and how to make things cheaper than shop bought items. When they get to a specific age, they receive a similar budget to what they would receive independently as an adult. Therefore, they learn good budgeting skills. The home ensured that one young person received the appropriate support that he required when moving into semi-independence. They worked closely with adult services and the identified provision. Good transition plans show the steps of introduction and visits. Staff continue to support him when necessary and he visits the home from time to time.

p.7

good

The young person said that he was very safe at this home. He said staff are clear and fully discuss the concerns that they have for him. He has recently gone from being fully supervised to having unsupervised time in the community. There continues to be some restrictions on his movements and staff complete unannounced spot checks and telephone him to ensure he is safe. These restrictions have been agreed by and in consensus with a range of professionals. Risk assessments highlight the concerns that professionals have and they support staff to take the appropriate action if necessary.

p.7

good

A long-standing stable staff team cares for the young person. This means that the young person receives continuity of care from staff who know him well. Staff take pride in their strong relationships. One staff said, ‘Relationships are the building blocks that bring about significant improvements because without respect, trust, and honesty nothing can be done.’ Another said, ‘We focus and celebrate on positive behaviour and this in turn reduces negative behaviour.’ This means that the young person has not been restrained, has received minimal sanctions, but has benefitted from positive rewards. For example, he has received new rods, fishing equipment and games for his computer.

p.7

good

The young person said that relationships with staff are ‘really good.’ He said, ‘staff are fantastic, great, fun and have time for me.’ He said staff are clear, honest and listened to him well. He said, ‘I love fishing and staff take me all the time. They have bought their own rods and licenses, even the females. How good is that?’ As a result, he said the best thing about the home was the staff.

p.8

good

Risk assessments are regularly reviewed ’ and up dated when new information arises. They are shared with the appropriate safeguarding professionals. The manager attends all safeguarding meetings to ensure everyone is aware of the plan, changes to the plan and to seek additional advice when necessary. A safeguarding professional said, ‘This home is very good in supporting, sharing and discussing concerns with us.’ This means that safeguarding issues are prioritised and that the home has good working relationships with a range of professionals. This supports the young person to receive additional support when necessary.

p.8

good

The current young person has not been reported missing from this home. But, a previous young person was reported on a daily basis. Prior to being placed at this home, he was classed as a prolific absconder. Initially, the manager thought that they would be able to break this cycle as the home had a good record for doing this. They worked closely with the police and spent long periods of time searching for him. In addition to this, they implemented several strategies, incentives and rewards but were unsuccessful in reducing these episodes. The young person continued to go missing for long periods, which included two overnight periods. After much consideration, the staff team concluded that they could not keep him safe and notice was given to the local authority. But Ofsted was not informed when the young person was missing overnight or the concerns that the home had. This does not ensure that all parties are aware of significant incidents.

p.8

good

A safeguarding professional said that any allegation about staff conduct is robustly reported, fully investigated and concluded in a professional manner. She said, ‘I have no concerns about this home and the way they do things. They follow procedure and protocol fully.’ This ensures that all matters are dealt with appropriately.

p.8

good

The young person lives in a safe environment because staff ensure that all health and safety issues are addressed. Renewals of certificates for safety equipment and fire evacuations are completed regularly. Judgement grade

p.8

good

The manager was registered with Ofsted in 2009. He has a social work qualification supported by additional management training. He has experience of working within a mental health team, in youth justice and as a field social worker. He also managers two other single bed homes. He ensures that he spends equal periods within each home. Two deputy managers also support him across the three homes. The homes Statement of Purpose reflects the service offered at this home. Professionals say that the ethos of the home is evident in the good outcomes for the young people. The manager ensures that young people’s reviews, 72 hour placement meetings and strategy meetings are completed, on time. This means that plans are regularly up dated and that everyone is working towards the same plan. Young people are central to the care that they receive at this home. This is because they are encouraged to discuss and comment on every aspect of their

p.9

good

care. The young person said he fully understood his care plan and was confident that he could influence the plan. Most staff are qualified in caring for young people. One staff member is currently completing a recognised qualification. Staff say that the supervision, training and development opportunities that they receive support them to give good, consistent care to the young person. Staff say the manager is very approachable, and that they can discuss anything and he takes on board their views. Staff meetings are used to very good effect to improve the good quality of care at this home. Staff said that staff meetings are frequent and are an arena to be open, honest and to reflect on practice. For example, staff were fully aware of the recent changes within the Children’s Homes Regulations 2015 and the Quality Standards. Staff are currently looking at how this impacts on information recorded. This

p.9

good

ensures that staff are kept up to date with changes within legislation. An independent visitor monitors the home on a monthly basis. Ofsted receives these timely. But, these reports lack evaluation of the records sampled. For example, the missing from home section just gives the amount of missing rather than a narrative on the quality of the recordings of action taken. This does not assist the manager to make improvements within the home or to assess were development is needed. The manager also completes a similar report on a six monthly basis. He uses this document well to carry over any actions noted into his development plan for the ongoing improvement of the home. The development plan is discussed on a monthly basis within staff meetings. Good consultation with young people, parents, professionals and stakeholders also inform the development of the home.

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.11

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.11

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.11

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.12

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.12

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.13

Information about this inspection

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

p.13

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.13

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.13