Children's Home run by Quality Protects Children Ltd in Sheffield

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged Requires improvement at the full inspection. At this interim inspection Ofsted judge that it has sustained effectiveness .

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered provider has appointed a new manager since the last inspection. He has been in post just over two months. His application to register has not yet been received by Ofsted but only requires completion of his DBS check prior to submission.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Since taking up post he has started to make positive changes both to the way young people are cared for. There is better supervision and support of staff as well. This has started to have some impact with reinforcement of boundaries and expectations. Young people have started to show improvements in their behaviour, increased attendance at school, engaged with assessments for independent living and contact with relatives is better organised.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

One young person left the home before the new manager started. Her admission had been poorly managed and care planning with the placing authority was weak. Since then there have been some improvements to managing admissions but care planning for education still needs improve. The manager has ensured there is a better range of background information for two new young people. However in one case previous educational achievements, targets and needs was missing from this. Promoting education, particularly in conjunction with the placing authority was an issue at the last inspection. This has not improved and the registered provider has not taken sufficient action in this regard.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The manager and staff encourage in-house education, on-line learning and also provide some other learning activities such as visits to museums. Young people are enrolled at school but without full assessment information about educational needs it is difficult for the manager to plan appropriate provision.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people who previously engaged in risk taking behaviour such as self-harm, missing from home and being part of a gang are safer at this home. Staff make young people feel welcome and there is good support to help them settle in. The manager and staff invest time and energy in getting to know young people and build up relationships with them. They work hard to overcome young people’s previous lack of engagement, negative behaviour and poor attendance at school. This includes direct key work with each young person, reviews of risk assessments, care and behaviour management plans. Young people said they feel cared for and that this was a nice home, where staff are interested in them. They get to go out and enjoy the things they like such as Christmas markets, cadets and local youth clubs like ‘Fruitbowl’.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Since the last inspection recruitment processes and the management of allegations made by young people has improved. This contributes towards the effectiveness with which young people are kept safe. One of the five requirements and the recommendation made at the last inspection have not been met. In addition there are two further areas for improvement as a result of this inspection.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The independent visitor’s reports still do not provide a rigorous assessment although the manager reports finding the visits useful in considering improvement. Young people’s consent had not been obtained for the independent visitor to look at their records. The manager addressed this during the inspection. Additionally the manager’s own assessment of the home is largely descriptive. This does not help set targets for improvement and compromises how well continuous improvement is driven.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There are some changes to behaviour management in the home. This has led to a small number of incidents where staff have physically intervened to keep themselves and young people safe. While practice is reviewed and young people are encouraged to talk about their behaviour and actions, these reviews do not always meet the timescales required by regulations. When the manager has been involved in the incident, no one senior to him in the organisation checks that practice is appropriate and safe.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Overall, while the manager is starting to make improvements, these are recent and require time to demonstrate their sustainability. There are still areas that require improvement and the service is not yet any more effective than at the last inspection.

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Information about this children's home

This home is owned by a private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four young people of either gender with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

30/09/2014 Interim Declined in effectiveness

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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

5. Engaging with the wider system to ensure children’s needs are met.

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the engaging with the wider system standard, with particular reference to the arrangements for the provision of education, the registered person must ensure that staff-

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Requirement Due date

(a) seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans; (b) seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs; (c) if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. 31/01/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person must within 48 hours of the use of restraint-

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Requirement Due date

(b) (i) speak to the user about the measure; and (ii) has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and (c) within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3) (b) & (c)). In particular when the manager has been involved in the restraint, some one senior to him must be the authorised person. 31/01/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child- which

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Requirement Due date

(a) include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child; (b) are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a) & (b)). In particular 31/01/2016 this includes the relevant plans and assessments of a child’s education.

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  The review must enable the registered person to identify areas of strength and possible weaknesses in the home’s care, which will be captured in the written report. The report should clearly identify any actions required for the next 6 months of delivery within the home and how those actions will be addressed. The whole review process and the resulting report must be used as a tool for continuous improvement in the home. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 65, paragraph 15.4)  Any individual appointed to carry out visits to the home as an independent person must make a rigorous assessment of the home's arrangements for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the children in the home's care. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 65, paragraph 15.5)

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What the inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspection we make a judgement on whether the home has improved in effectiveness, sustained effectiveness, or declined in effectiveness since the previous full inspection. This is in line with the Inspection of children's homes: framework for inspection.

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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 focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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Information about this inspection

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 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

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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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