Children's Home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited in Cheshire East

Outstanding

The children's home provides highly effective services that consistently exceeds the standards of good. The actions of the home contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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The children's home provision is outstanding because:

 Young people say staff support and guide them to make sense of their futures, and help them to achieve and exceed their goals.  Young people recognise that staff care about them, and do everything they can to help them to stay safe. As a result, they experience great improvement in their emotional wellbeing as well as their protection.  The home is making a significant difference to young people’s lives. In partnership with them, they deliver specific and measureable programmes that support young people to take positive and confident steps to live safer and happier lives.  A wide range of professionals say that staff have an in-depth understanding of the needs of young people. They promote, develop and sustain highly effective multi-professional planning and review to help their lives to improve.  Managers and staff demonstrate expertise and enthusiasm in every aspect of their care role. They confidently place young people front and centre of

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The children's home provision is outstanding because:

all development and review of the conduct of the home. As a result, young people identify well with the home and those who care for them.  The knowledgeable and capable Registered Manager ensures staff maintain an open culture that facilitates professional reflection and dialogue. This enables all staff to evaluate, challenge and remove any barriers to successful planning for young people. To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation:  The registered person should ensure that shortfalls identified as a result of the review of the premises are incorporated into a timely plan to remedy the fabric of the home. In particular, that the disused external fire escape is removed, or made fit for purpose. (The Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations page 64, paragraph 15.1)

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Information about this children's home

 The home provides accommodation for up to six young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties  The home is privately owned

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

13/01/2016 CH - Interim sustained effectiveness

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Outstanding

Young people live in a home where staff build positive and trusting relationships with them, and with the important adults in their lives. Staff work consistently and energetically to overcome barriers to trusted and secure relationships. They are highly skilled at providing genuine, interested and warm care. They demonstrate high levels of confidence and competence in their ability to remain positive and constructive when young people experience difficulties in responding to their efforts. This means that young people become attached to the staff and to the routines of the home. They identify the warmth and support provided by staff as key to their happiness and welfare. One young person said, ‘All the staff are here to help me. They tell me how well I am doing. I’ve never been told I’m good at things, but now I work hard to get better.’

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Outstanding

Staff are keenly aware of young people’s past experiences, and the continuing impact of their relationships, choices and progress upon their prospects. Through practical example and mentoring, young people learn about positive gender roles, and this helps them to challenge the stereotypes they have witnessed as victims of domestic violence, sexual abuse and neglect. Young people share their goals and aspirations with staff who sensitively create realistic and achievable programmes with them, and with all the professionals who support them.

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Outstanding

Young people proudly accept praise when staff recognise their efforts, and help them to identify blockers to progress. Due to high quality recording of their daily experiences, staff skilfully enable young people to use reflection, role play and constructive discussion to overcome setbacks. Key workers integrate into weekly summaries the impact and outcomes of all support services such as therapy, youth justice and education. The reports are child centred, progress oriented and clear about goals and challenges. They inform other professionals about their successes and challenges. The reports have a high content of emotional awareness, and understanding of the impact of young people’s past and daily experiences on their capacity for improvement. Information is appropriately shared with young people, and underpins future planning for positive change.

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Outstanding

Young people are valued for who they are and their potential. Most have never experienced this level of unconditional regard, and they thrive on the warmth and appropriate challenge they receive in the home. This motivates them to work hard to overcome previous negative patterns of behaviour, as they are encouraged to be self-aware. They thrive on positive messages. This gives them personal confidence, and with support from staff they engage meaningfully with the inspection. Each offered a unique contribution to helping the inspector to understand how they benefitted from living in their home. One young person enthusiastically provided a tour, another made cups of tea, another showed the inspector the minutes he had taken of the weekly young people’s gathering, and clearly explained how they were valuable in sharing opinions and resolving difficulties.

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Outstanding

All young people chatted about the range of activities they enjoyed, often drawing staff into their conversations, to talk about shared interests such as climbing, playing Pokémon cards, football matches and cooking. One young person proudly spoke of his membership of a local choir. He was delighted that his mum could see him taking part in successful public performances. Mum commented on the enthusiasm of staff, who sang with him, so that his and other’s safety was ensured without drawing attention to his needs. As this was half-term holiday, young people were enjoying a full programme of community and home-based activity. Staff clearly enjoyed devising and sharing playful activity that help young people to experience simple nurture and care. Treasure hunts, obstacle courses, making Christmas biscuits, cake decorating and simple art are examples of the positive way that staff fill in building blocks for essential emotional and developmental

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Outstanding

stages young people may have missed in their early lives. This provides a secure foundation from which young people make steady progress.

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Outstanding

Young people are making exceptional progress from their starting points. They are achieving in school, including a psychology GCSE which will help them to understand their behaviour and impulses. Young people adopt a responsible attitude to organising their homework and learning, through independent study and the occasional help from staff. Therapy is delivered by a specialist team, who have weekly sessions in the home. The therapist reported much improved collaborative work with key workers arising from training, and a new approach to staff participating in some therapy sessions with young people. Although early days, he said, ‘I have seen improvements in the way young people’s social skills have developed, as a result of staff engaging in role play that helps to reinforce the messages about positive relationships that we explore in therapy sessions.’ Young people say staff look after them when they are unwell. One young person

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Outstanding

was very proud of being trusted to take his own asthma medicine, to keep him well.

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Outstanding

Staff are highly skilled at engaging young people, and over time, helping them to develop confidence and trust that enables them to explore their past experiences. They reflect on how to modify their impulses and behaviour to keep themselves and others safe, and reduce harmful thoughts and feelings. Staff emphasise the importance of honest reflection and value every effort young people make to improve their outcomes across the whole of their lives. This means they are skilled at listening to young people, and assessing the impact of what young people say and do. Their positivity ensures that young people have excellent reinforcement for the small steps they take, to embed changes. Staff validate positive contributions from young people, from praising them for the shared meals they cook, noticing when young people are making effort to live cooperatively, and rewarding them when they share difficult insights and painful memories. This helps them to make

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Outstanding

progress to recover from traumatic past experiences, and learn new ways of expressing their fears and emotions. Young people say they really enjoy group meetings, and see them as a way of airing differences, finding solutions, and making suggestions for new activities and interests. This cooperative relationship is a signature of the home.

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Outstanding

Young people’s futures are very much at the forefront of all work undertaken. They have very complex needs, and are subject to judicial intervention and public protection agency oversight. Staff consistently strive to improve their potential and reputation, because young people are seen as individuals with potential. They are committed to secure the most supportive environment that reduces risk and enables them to live a life as much in the community as is safely appropriate. When appropriate, staff support young people with family contact. Parents said, ‘Sending my son there is the best thing ever. He has made more progress, and had more support this year, than in the last seven years.’

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Outstanding

Young people feel very safe and secure in the home. They rely on the guidance of staff to help them to sustain positive relationships with each other and with staff. Staff always help young people to reflect on why social exchanges go wrong, and sensitively encourage young people to examine their own behaviour as well as that of others. Because key workers achieve a safe environment for this difficult work to take place, young people respond positively to their efforts to make progress at a pace that suits them. A strength of the home is the consistent messages provided by staff. This is possible because staff have developed an open culture where all staff contribute their thoughts about each plan of care for young people, and agreement is reached by child-centred and reflective practice.

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Outstanding

Staff use praise liberally to motivate and value young people, but do not avoid the more difficult messages they share, to enhance self-awareness and improve young people’s behaviour and safety. This robust and realistic approach makes a marked difference to the way young people view the home. They know that they will be protected from bullying and inappropriate relationships, but equally they know they will be challenged fairly if they present unacceptable views and behaviours. One professional remarked on the effectiveness of this approach, and said, ‘The home has a necessarily strict approach, but it is not power-based. This suits young people, who feel nurtured and valued.’

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Outstanding

Due to highly effective and regularly reviewed comprehensive risk support strategies including high levels of staffing, young people do not go missing. The police liaison officer said that the home has high levels of communication and cooperation with them, and that high level action plans are in place including notification to the public protection agency should the need arise. This is an important measure to ensure the safety of young people and the local community, as directed by court orders arising from their past behaviour.

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Outstanding

All staff have a commitment to offering consistent care, and have effective strategies in place that help them review their own practice to regulate their approach. Because they value young people, they take great care to ensure challenge is about behaviour and not the individual. In this way, staff protect the fragile self-esteem that young people are developing, to protect the progress they are making.

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Outstanding

Vigilant and exceptionally well trained staff have a high degree of knowledge about the specific and other risks posed by and faced by young people. They have participated in high impact training on a research based approach to risk support, that has revolutionised the way staff consider safety. Managers are proactive in ensuring staff remain equipped to respond effectively to emerging needs. For example, when a concern was raised about the potential for a young person to be vulnerable to religious extremism, he organised attendance at training to fully understand the signs and symptoms of radicalisation. This ensures young people can follow their faith without being influenced by unsafe messages.

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Outstanding

By promoting positive change, young people sustain the progress they make in understanding and controlling their own impulses. The home takes a proactive stance, to educate them about risks faced by all teenagers, such as basic internet safety, the basis of good inter-personal relationships, resolving arguments, and being truthful and honest. This ensures young people have opportunity to develop a more rounded understanding of the impact of their behaviour and choices, on their and others wellbeing.

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Outstanding

Unobtrusive management of young people ensures the home is a safe and happy place for everyone. Restraint is rarely used, and only to ensure the safety and welfare of all. Young people see the contribution of staff as constructive and improving to their lives, supportive of them as individuals, and non- judgmental. This makes them proud of their achievements, and motivates them to work hard to improve. Judgement grade

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Outstanding

The leadership team offers strong, decisive and inspirational direction and example. This enables staff to grow and develop, and offer exceptionally high quality care to complex and vulnerable young people. Young people are front and centre of the service. The team balances the needs and risks of young people with their potential, and their right to experience pleasure and positive regard from others. Managers ensure staff have appropriate training and reflective supervision opportunities that stretch and challenge their care practice. New initiatives such as improved risk management, and inclusive therapeutic approaches mean that young people receive care from highly knowledgeable staff who are skilled in helping young people to reflect on their impulses and choices. This enhances the safety and welfare of all. Senior staff have highly developed skills in providing opportunities for staff to participate in reflective appraisal of the impact of their work with young people on

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Outstanding

their emotions and resilience. Staff all say that because of the supportive, and often healthy professional challenge that being part of this service affords, they grow and develop continually in providing better and more effective care to the young people who live there. They appreciate the opportunities for individual and group training and evaluation, because this helps them to feel confident they can offer the best possible care to young people. All staff are aware of the detailed and realistic mission plan that arises from the context of the specialist needs of young people placed. Managers ensure they regularly review the plan, and take action to address shortfalls. An outstanding matter related to a disused external fire escape is yet to be resolved, to ensure the exterior of the home is maintained to a high standard. The Registered Manager confidently asserted that he is an equal partner in working with all remits that support young people, and believes the residential

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Outstanding

provision to be highly valued. This view is borne out by the comments of other professionals such as: ‘The structured programme (ICOPE) young people are on really works for them, they can see the progress they make.’ ‘They’re on the ball with what they are doing.’ ‘There is a necessary balance between managing risk, and moving it on safely.’ ‘I am really impressed with them.’ Parents appreciate the way that staff value their child, see their potential, and have plans to help them to make progress. Through sophisticated care planning and professional reflection young people are supported to grow and develop across all aspects of their lives. They work hard in partnership, to develop increased social understanding, healthy routines, value for education, and improved family links when it is safe to do so. Managers have introduced a new recording system, to ensure key workers further improve the way they report and record the progress made, and share this information across

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Outstanding

all professional partnerships. Staff are enthusiastic about new initiatives that provide added value to the lives of young people. They are proud to share young people’s achievements with others. Managers have reviewed and introduced new monitoring formats to ensure the requirement made at the last inspection has been met. In consultation with the independent visitors (NYAS), they ensure young people’s safety and welfare is assessed. The manager evaluates the views of young people as they are expressed in one to one meetings with key workers. Where possible, young people are included in reviewing their daily living arrangements, and get feedback to ensure they feel they can have an impact on the conduct of the home. They contribute ideas for rules and boundaries that ensure their home affirms their individuality and grows as a healthy community. Staff discuss the ideas generated in the weekly group meetings in staff meetings, and there is good feedback to young people

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Outstanding

from the same. Young people recognise they have a voice both about their individual lives, and in the group that is so important to their general wellbeing. Managers are confident in their approach to meet the needs of young people. They have strong views about how young people are best integrated into society while remaining aware for the risks to them, and to the community. They challenge other professionals to plan effectively for young people’s futures, to ensure the best possible outcomes for them. They adopt a collaborative approach, but will engage in thoughtful challenge if they believe young people’s liberty is being unnecessarily restricted. This includes ensuring they have appropriate advocacy and representation in all planning meetings, and use the clear data and information they gather about what works well in the daily operation of the home, to underpin the efficacy of their approach.

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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

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Information about this inspection

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Information about this inspection

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