Children's Home run by Kedleston (Wood Grove Childcare) Limited in Essex

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 key areas of their lives. Staff ensure that they are safe while in their care.  Young people benefit from close but challenging relationships with staff who provide personalised care with sensitivity and humour.  Staff provide structure, routine and consistency. When young people lose confidence and motivation, staff are persistent and encouraging. As a result, young people commit to education and enjoy a range of activities in the home and the community.  Parents and external agencies are extremely positive about their partnership arrangements with staff and managers, which focus on collaboration and team work. Young people are aware that professionals are working together and benefit from this consistency of approach  A committed and enthusiastic manager is very child focused and has high aspirations for the young people. Staff are provided with good training and

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The children's home provision is good because:

specialist clinical supervision to give them the competencies to meet the changing needs of the young people.  This inspection identifies some shortfalls. These are in relation to supervision practice, recording in children’s files, a review of the statement of purpose and fire regulations. These matters are not currently having an impact on the safety and well-being of young people

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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

The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it. (Regulation 16 (3) (a)) 15/01/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the requirements of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25 (2) (b)) 15/01/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4) (b)) 15/01/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which include all information and documentation listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child, with particular reference to recording of key working sessions, monthly reports and independence planning. (Regulation 36 (1) (a)) 15/02/2016

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned children's home is registered to accommodate 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

24/03/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Good

Young people make progress because they benefit from close and secure relationships with staff who value their opinions and promote positive behaviour. One young person said: ‘Staff are alright. If I am worried about anything, I can talk to staff or the manager.’

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Good

Staff are empathetic and insightful and understand that a young person’s behaviour reflects their history and experiences. They encourage young people to attend a range of specialist therapies, which the home can arrange for them. This means that young people develop self-confidence and insight into their actions. One member of staff said: ‘It is incredibly important to me that it is real and they know how to behave. They are convinced that they are in care because it is their fault or the fault of their families. They need to know that no family is living in a fairy tale. Everyone has to work at it.’

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Good

Education is an immediate way of establishing a routine for young people and provides a good example of how young people make progress in this home. Staff work to develop bespoke packages that can include attendance at a local school or college, referrals to specialist units and extra tuition in core subjects. Some young people have recently joined the home and are expected to attend in-house tuition from the day they arrive, until a more permanent solution is agreed. Progress is not always straightforward and young people can lose confidence and motivation but staff are persistent. As a result, some young people who were school refusers are maintaining educational programmes.

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Good

Staff encourage young people to take a positive view of themselves and their future with sensitivity and humour. Young people have sessions with a personal trainer, are encouraged to make friends locally, use public transport and to explore the local area. Some young people have held down part-time jobs while others are learning to drive. Staff work with young people to prepare them for independence, helping them to look into accommodation and manage domestic and personal routines. However, the recording of this work is not up to date and it is difficult to track their progress.

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Good

Parents and extended families speak very highly of how staff and managers work with them to maintain relationships that are important for the young person. Families are invited to the home and staff support young people to visit their families. The parent of one young person said: ‘They are very good at keeping me informed and contact me regularly. This is the first really good place that he has been to.’

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Good

Managers and staff place the safety and wellbeing of young people at the centre of their practice. Young people attend a daily community meeting, where they raise any concerns and complaints. The discussion is lively and challenging but staff are robust and in control. Relationships between staff and young people are good humoured and tolerant and staff work to keep young people safe. For instance, one member of staff told a young person who was due to go to work: ‘I will come and pick you up as you haven’t been well today and it is getting late.’ As a result, young people know that staff take them seriously and that any issues will be dealt with in a timely fashion.

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Good

Young people make progress because they benefit from close relationships with staff who work with them purposefully and effectively. For instance, incidents of young people going missing has reduced dramatically from a volatile period during the summer. Staff achieved this by following their own procedures rigorously, working as a team with external professionals and following each incident up with the young person. In addition, they encourage young people to invest in the placement, finding positive reasons to stay. This means that young people’s safety is reinforced and their self-esteem is enhanced.

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Good

Staff are empathetic and insightful and aware that a young person’s challenging behaviour can reflect distress. Any instances of bullying are robustly and immediately challenged. Staff have proved stoical and patient but there are clear limits. For instance, if any young person is known to be leading others into risky situations, managers impose immediate and robust sanctions. This has been an important lesson for some young people, who now understand that there are consequences for their actions.

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Good

Staff encourage positive change through applying consistent boundaries, routines, rewards and positive role modelling. Young people value the relationships with staff and respond confidently to them and, as a result, their behaviour improves. One young person told staff that she could not believe that they all sat down for dinner together every day. The behaviour of young people at mealtimes is calm and polite. However, staff have not been recording this in a consistent manner and, consequently, managers have not been tracking young people’s progress adequately. Staff are subject to robust recruitment checking procedures. Any allegations concerning staff are dealt with speedily and comprehensively and brought to a swift conclusion following a formal process. Staff express confidence in management and feel that they are supported appropriately throughout any investigation. This means that young people are looked after by staff who are safe

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Good

The physical environment is generally well-maintained. However, records of regular fire drills involving the young people do not provide adequate detail. There is no record of whether new admissions have received fire training.

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Good

The registered manager has been in post for 18 months and is currently working to complete her Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare. Staff either hold the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare or are studying for it. Young people benefit from being looked after by staff who have received professional training, which has helped them reflect on and improve their practice.

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Good

Staff speak highly of management in the home, their professional skill and supportive manner. One member of staff said: ‘They’re naturals, the best I have ever worked with.’ Training is well organised and effective, particularly in regard to safeguarding matters, such as internet abuse and cyber bullying. As a result, young people are safeguarded in the home.

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Good

Staff and managers benefit from regular monthly meetings with a clinical psychologist. Staff find these sessions supportive, allowing them time to reflect on incidents and review strategies. Young people benefit from working with staff who feel valued and who are positive and purposeful in their work. However, professional supervision has not been robustly organised and records are not complete.

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Good

Staff and managers are committed to the relationships that they have developed with young people in the home. Consequently, the manager considers carefully how any new young person might impact on the current group. She acknowledges that young people may be unsettled by someone new and works to reassure them. As a result, new young people are able to settle into established routines and the established group feel that their opinions are valued and respected. Despite this, on occasion, staff and managers can face unexpected levels of challenging behaviour from new arrivals. Staff work as a team, proving patient and compassionate in the face of provocation and this has led to early results. The social worker for a young person said: ‘She was very physical at first and staff took a lot of punishment. She is still struggling but we are beginning to see signs that she is settling into routines.’

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Good

Staff and managers are persistent and skilled at developing partnerships with placing authorities so that risk assessments are constantly updated and information is shared in a timely fashion. The social worker for one young person said: ‘We are very, very pleased with the work they have done. We are learning so much about this young person that we didn’t know before.’

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Good

Managers monitor the quality of care in the home using external feedback from young people, their families and external professionals. They respond positively to issues raised in external monitoring and provide regular reports assessing the progress of the home. The manager has produced a development plan, which is thorough and detailed, identifying both strengths and weaknesses. For instance, while the management team celebrates the skills of staff, they also address robustly the fact that some members of staff do not pay adequate attention to recording. An urgent plan to bring all records up to date has been developed by the management team.

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Good

The statement of purpose does not describe accurately the service provided by the home.

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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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