Children's Home run by Acorn Homes (UK) Ltd in Kent

Good

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

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Good

 This is a good home because staff deliver an excellent standard of care that results in young people making excellent progress in their behaviours, education and emotional well-being. In addition they make very good progress in gaining independence life skills. Safeguarding practices are good and young people say

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Good

 The manager is making a positive impact at the home and has formed good working relationships with his staff team and a wide range of professionals. Young people like, and respond positively, to him. He has a calming influence in the home. All aspects of leadership and management are good.  A strength of the home is the staff's ability to engage young people in education, support them in their education and encourage them to aspire and achieve.  Young people are supported and guided to lead less risky life styles, with very good outcomes. The staff team have developed effective relationships with external agencies, particularly in relation to missing young people, specialist health professionals and support groups.  There is an emphasis on healthy activity in this home, young people and staff engage in many different sporting activities. As a result young people are fit and eat healthily; for some this has meant making significant life style changes that

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Good

they are very proud of.  Social workers are very complimentary about the service, the staff and the impact the quality of care has on young people and their families. The view of placing social workers is that staff provide a good standard of care. They say staff are especially good at getting to know the young people. A parent commented `I would not want my child to be anywhere else, the staff are there for him 100% and he has made very good progress’.  Managers and leaders are able to address weaknesses that arise. They respond well to independent visitor findings and reports. Internal auditing and monitoring systems are robust.  Meal times and food preparation facilities are hindered by the small size of the kitchen which does not best support a home for seven young people and staff.

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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

The design of the home should enable young people to develop independence skills; in particular provide suitable kitchen facilities to allow for independent preparation of meals, alongside staff preparing meals for those not on independence programmes. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 17, paragraph 3.25)

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Recommendations

Ensure meal times are better organised and that young people experience a homely and nurturing atmosphere when eating. In particular by staff and young people sitting together for meals. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Information about this children's home

This children’s home is privately run and part of a larger company with other similar homes. It is registered to accommodate and provide acre for up to seven young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD).

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

19/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

07/03/2014 Interim Satisfactory progress

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Good

Young people receive a high standard care in this home which adds considerably to their experience, progress and development. Young people said they enjoy the staff’s company and this is a very good home.

p.6

Good

Meticulous and creative planning allows young people to make excellent progress. For example, young people with a history of disruptive education re-engage in learning. They successfully gain a variety of qualifications, including on-line courses undertaken in the home. These are in addition to school courses and include first aid, health and safety and food hygiene. Young people are due to attend a workshop run by a local service around child sexual exploitation in the near future. All young people make good progress in raising school attendance. They develop a real understanding of the need to gain a good education and fully participate in the decisions about their future careers.

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Good

Challenging behaviour decreases as a result of consistent and sensitively applied firm boundaries and strategies. For example, the frequency of missing incidents and physical interventions decreases soon after young people arrive. This is due to the trusting relationships they form with staff and the strong focus on behaviour management at de-escalation stage.

p.6

Good

This is a nurturing and friendly home that supports young people to make quick progress. The staff are committed and passionate about supporting young people to make changes in their lives. Staff take great pride in all the young people’s achievements, no matter how small. Young people quickly learn that staff are dedicated and respond positively. Young people highly value the staff and the relationships they form.

p.6

Good

Staff demonstrate a good awareness of young people’s needs and opinions through continuous observation and dialogue. In addition young people participate in group and individual meetings, including key working sessions and de-briefs following incidents. Advocates are appointed where necessary. Young people are encouraged to make decisions and choices about food, furnishings and activities. There is a real focus on physical activity which results in young people having increased fitness levels and being generally healthier. A priority for staff is to support young people in making their own decisions about keeping safe when out in the community. Young people feel they are important and that staff really do care about them. The staff work collaboratively with a range of professionals to support young peoples’ progress. These include the local police, health specialists and child sexual exploitation team.

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Good

Young people’s health needs are addressed through access to appropriate health professionals. Trained staff administer medication and first aid. Training, monitoring and auditing of practice and records is robust. Medication errors are managed effectively. There has been one error since the last inspection, this was fully investigated and managed with a good outcome.

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Good

Transition arrangements are well planned, with work undertaken in line with the home’s stated procedures. Young people sustain long term placements here knowing staff maintain contact once they have moved into independence. Staff work closely with young people to support them and guide them in learning life skills. Meal times are not consistently family orientated and staff need to ensure the nurturing nature of the home is not missed in this important area. The kitchen is in need of upgrading. The current kitchen facilities do now allow for young people and staff to work in it at any one time. A change to kitchen facilities would help young people undertake independence training in addition to making meal times more inclusive, nurturing and homely. 

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Good

Safeguarding practice is professional; policies are clear, robust and research based. Staff understand safeguarding issues including current issues facing young people. This includes sexual exploitation and social media risks. The introduction of risk assessment toolkits for child sexual exploitation, gang participation, radicalisation and trafficking enable staff to regularly review individual risks and implement strategies to lessen them. Training on the Prevent Agenda is booked for the near future. This will add to the knowledge the manager and staff team already have. The staff apply the procedures necessary to ensure young people are well protected. In addition they understand the importance of working together with other professionals and agencies, such as the local authority designated officer (LADO) and missing person’s coordinator, to keep young people safe. This joint working approach ensures responses are consistent.

p.7

Good

The staff effectively identify, understand and manage risks to a high standard. Clear risk assessments and behaviour management plans include triggers and intervention strategies. As part of independence training young people are supported by staff to take appropriate risks. This could be independent travel, meeting friends socially without supervision and managing money. Risk assessments are reviewed to take account of any changes. Risk assessments show the excellent progress young people make.

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Good

Staff apply a calm and skilled approach to defuse developing incidents. Young people respond well to the clear boundaries, to the point of ensuring new young people adhere to the boundaries as well so the calm and nurturing environment is not disrupted.

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Good

The manager and the staff team are very well-informed of the need, should it arise, to ensure police responses to any serious incident involving young people are appropriate. Collaborative working results in restorative justice measures being implemented wherever possible, with very successful outcomes. There is a clear focus on ensuring young people are not criminalised where ever possible.

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Good

The manager leads on safeguarding and child protection and is supported by two experienced deputy managers. All have undertaken suitable training to ensure correct measures are followed. Young people say they feel safe as the staff really do care about them and support them to make safe decisions. They also say that the staff are always there to provide support if things go wrong.

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Good

Young people live in a safe environment where all health and safety checks are carried out. Young people know what to do in the event of a fire as they experience regular fire evacuation drills. Recruitment arrangements are robust and go beyond the required checks. Only those adults assessed as suitable to work with young people are appointed.

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Good

The manager in post transferred from another of the company’s homes two months ago. His application to register is currently being processed with Ofsted. He has held senior and deputy managers posts previously and has settled into this home extremely well. He is currently undertaking a Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management, due for completion March 2016. He has benefited from joining a very stable staff team, young people are settled and making good to outstanding progress. Staff, social workers, parents and young people all speak very positively about him.

p.8

Good

The manager is supported by two effective and passionate deputy managers who together form a strong management team. This ensures the home is effectively managed at all times. The staff team have respect for the manager and feel confident in his management of the home. There is a culture of positivity with high expectations of the young people and staff. The management team lead by example and know their strengths and are clear in the areas they wish to develop.

p.8

Good

Monitoring of the service is organised, robust and of a very good standard. The manager and his deputies regularly monitor the quality of care provided. As a result they have a thorough understanding of activities within the home, the young people and staff performance. Records are maintained to an extremely high standard and allow for analysis of information. An independent visitor provides an objective review of the home and its practices. Any recommendations are acted on.

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Good

The staff team receive regular training, supervision and appraisals that allow them to identify their development needs. A robust system, overseen by the company’s head office, ensures all staff are up to date with their mandatory training. Staff have the opportunity through de-briefs to reflect on practice issues. Staff members say they enjoy working at the home, with the vast majority having worked there for over three years. One staff member said `I love it here’.

p.9

Good

The statement of purpose meets the required standard. It contains clear information that enables professionals to have an overview of the service when making placement decisions.

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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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