Children's home run by Crossway Services Limited in Liverpool

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:

 Relationships between the young person and staff are very positive.  Staff have a very good understanding and knowledge of his needs.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The young person’s views are regularly sought on all aspects of his life. This ensures that he feels valued and respected.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Effective partnership working promotes the welfare and safety of the young person.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Staff respond to safe and acceptable behaviour with clear and consistent boundaries.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The young person receives continuity of care from a stable, qualified and experienced staff team.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Staff promote the educational attendance of the young person. However, his attendance tends to fluctuate.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The quality of care provided means that the young person’s health needs are being well met. However, he is using an e-cigarette and there is no consent from a social worker in place.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 All staff receive regular supervision. However, the records do not demonstrate that all staff have had their performance and fitness formally appraised.

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  Ensure that the registered person and staff work closely with the young person's placing authority so that the young person is supported and enabled to resume full-time education as soon as possible. In the interim, the young person should be supported to sustain or regain his confidence in education and be engaged in suitable structured activities (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 28, paragraph 5.15).

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Recommendations

 The specific responsibilities of the home towards supporting the health and well- being of each young person should be agreed with the placing authority and recorded in the young person's placement plan. This is specifically in relation to the use of e-cigarettes by young people (The Guide to the Quality Standards page 34, paragraph 7.7).

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Recommendations

 Ensure that all staff have their performance and fitness to carry out their roles formally appraised at least once annually (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 61, paragraph 13.5).

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Information about this children's home

This home is registered to provide care and accommodation for one young person with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is owned by a private company.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

05/11/2015 CH - Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

22/05/2014 CH - Interim Sustained effectiveness

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good

At the time of the last inspection, the young person had recently moved to the home. He has made some progress relative to his starting point, particularly in relation to his physical and emotional well-being. He enjoys positive relationships with the staff, who demonstrate a strong commitment to helping him overcome his difficulties. They work hard to improve his experiences and reduce previous risk taking and offending behaviour. As a result, he has engaged well with the youth offending service (YOS) to address these behaviours, which is pleasing progress. A professional said, ‘We had the best engagement from him during this time… his mannerisms and attitude to YOS changed and he attended all his appointments.’

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good

Staff support the young person to maintain a healthy lifestyle, which promotes his emotional and physical health. He is receiving excellent help, guidance and advice to manage a lifelong condition. From his starting point he has made good progress in this area. Staff monitor his physical health daily and he attends routine health checks as and when required. Staff perseverance has meant further health concerns have been diagnosed, and the young person is now receiving the right medication to manage this. That said, the young person does continue to smoke against the advice of staff and health professionals. More recently he has taken to using an e-cigarette, but there is no consent in place from the placing authority.

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good

Staff value the importance of education and make every effort to get the young person to attend. The manager is working with education providers to promote good attendance but this continues to prove challenging. A professional said, ‘They have stuck by him and are very proactive regarding his health and school. He is moving in the right direction.’ The manager said that recent health concerns and some assessments completed in school have had an impact on his confidence. In addition, the home has a copy of a personal education plan (PEP) from a meeting that none of the staff from the home, the young person or the school attended. The manager has challenged the placing authority about this.

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good

The young person is encouraged to talk about and share his views on all aspects of his life. He benefits from a staff team who listen to and invest time in him. One professional said, ‘They have a positive approach to him and this is the most stable he has been.’ Another commented on the positive impact that restorative practice was having on the young person. Consequently, he is learning to listen to and respect others’ opinions.

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good

Staff try to encourage the young person to engage in leisure activities in the local community. However he prefers to spend his time with friends or family. Staff understand the importance of these relationships to his well-being and these are nurtured and supported where appropriate. They work proactively with members of his family to promote meaningful and safe contact. This helps him to develop a positive self-view and a sense of his own identity.

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good

The young person is well presented and has good self-care skills. He is supported to develop basic skills, including keeping his bedroom tidy, planning and helping to prepare meals. This enables him to be more confident in his own abilities and to be prepared for more independent living.

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good

The young person confirmed that he feels safe and can talk to staff about any worries he may have. All staff are appropriately trained in safeguarding and are aware of the actions they should take if they are concerned about his welfare. Furthermore, they have a good understanding of all his needs and risks, and these are identified in his placement plan and risk assessments. This helps to promote the young person’s welfare and safety.

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good

Staff respond to the young person with clear and consistent boundaries. Records of formal and informal discussions between the young person and staff confirm that there are open and frank discussions about appropriate behaviour and keeping safe. One professional confirmed that the staff engaged in his sessions with the young person, and this helped to reinforce the importance of this work.

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good

Staff are trained in dealing with challenging behaviour, including de-escalation techniques. They use incentives and praise to reinforce positive behaviour. Staff do not use physical restraint. When sanctions are used, the young person is offered the opportunity to comment on whether he feels these are fair. The records now make it clear how long a sanction has been imposed for, which ensures closure for the young person.

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good

Since the last inspection there have been very few missing from home incidents. Staff follow agreed missing from care protocols and work in partnership with the police to ensure his safe return. On his return, the young person is given the opportunity to talk to someone privately from an independent agency. This helps to safeguard him as far as possible.

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good

The home is well maintained and any damage is repaired promptly. Staff carry out regular health and safety checks to ensure that the environment is physically safe and secure.

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good

The manager has been registered since April 2013 and she is undertaking training towards the Diploma level 5 in management. She seeks to build highly effective working relationships with families, social workers and other professionals to secure positive outcomes for young people. She can clearly demonstrate the positive impact that living at the home has had on the current young person’s overall progress.

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good

Care planning is of a good standard. The young person’s records clearly reflect the progress he has made since coming to live at the home. Staff regularly review and update these records to demonstrate how they are meeting his needs. The young person is encouraged to contribute to his plans and to think about his future plans.

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good

All staff are very experienced and some have worked for the organisation for a number of years. Most hold a relevant childcare qualification, and new staff confirm that they complete a comprehensive induction. Staff also access a range of mandatory and specialist training to ensure that they are equipped with the skills and knowledge to meet the needs of the young person. This includes training in managing diabetes. Staff spoken to said that they feel well supported and that they benefit from regular supervision. This ensures that they are motivated to delivering good quality care. That said, it is unclear from the records when staff last had their performance formally appraised.

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good

The home is achieving its aims and objectives as set out in the statement of purpose. Feedback from other professionals was extremely positive. They expressed their satisfaction with the quality of care and the commitment of the staff. One said, ‘They are having a stabilising effect on him… in other placements I have never got past the second review.′ Another commented, ‘All-in-all, my experience of them is a positive one.’

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good

The two requirements made at the last inspection have been addressed, which demonstrates the home’s capacity for continuous improvement. The manager recognises the value of internal and external monitoring processes in helping them to drive up standards for the young person. She has a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. A detailed development plan clearly identifies what the home does well and what they need to improve on. The home is appropriately staffed and resourced to meet the needs of the young person.

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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, work- based 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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