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

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged Good 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 two requirements have been appropriately addressed. Safe and appropriate recruitment practice ensures that only those who are deemed safe and suitable to work with vulnerable young people do so. Furthermore, all staff including the clinical psychologist are now receiving good quality practice related supervision, as appropriate supervision arrangements have been established. The two good practice recommendations have also been suitably addressed. The manager is now escalating any shortfalls from placing authorities effectively and ensures that independent return home interviews are now carried out following any reported missing from home incident. A number of young people have moved into and out of the home since the last inspection. Adequate admission processes and transition planning ensures young people are supported and prepared suitably for their transitions. Staff support young people well during their transition into the home or onto further identified

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

placements. They do this by facilitating visits to the identified home and, providing ongoing care and support to young people during their transition. When young people join the home as an emergency admission social workers report that they are made to feel welcome and safe on their arrival. One social worker said: ‘the staff were very welcoming towards (name) and she reports that she feels safe and settled. Since (name’s) admission she has done very well and the placement has exceeded our expectations.’ Good links with specialist health services such as children and adolescent mental health services ensure that all young people’s known and emerging emotional health needs are met promptly. Staff support young people to maintain good physical health as they are assisted to attend their routine health and dental appointments. However, while systems for the management and administration of medication are generally good, the administration records for one young person’s

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

controlled medication were found to be incomplete. Education progress for young people is mixed. Some young people engage well with their individual education programmes and make good progress from their starting points. However, other young people do not take advantage of the opportunities offered to them nor engage in the experiences available. As a consequence young people’s later life opportunities are compromised, as they do not have experiences and qualifications they need to move on successfully into adulthood. Young people are encouraged to engage in positive activities within the local community and some have been supported to raise monies for charities of their choice. Furthermore staff encourage young people to develop their skills and experiences by trying new and exciting recreational activities, such as go-karting and boxing, which one young person reported that they really enjoyed. Staff

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

identify that young people need to develop their independent living skills in line with their age, ability and level of understanding, for their successful transition into adulthood. They support young people in developing skills such as planning and preparing meals; budgeting; cleaning and using household appliances so that they are well prepared with the basic life skills that they will need for positive moves into semi-independent living. Professionals and young people confirm that the staff maintain positive relationships with young people and themselves, and a young person spoken too confirmed that they feel safe and well cared for by the staff. Staff speak fondly of all the young people and say that they want young people to do well and achieve their goals that they have set out themselves. Despite this, and the positive relationships that most young people experience with the staff, some young people

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

are unable to manage their emotional responses. In these circumstances, appropriately trained staff intervene appropriately, as a last resort. While there are adequate management arrangements in place to review the physical interventions, one young person’s record has not been evaluated by the manager to ensure that this was safe and suitable practice, or evaluated with regard to its effectiveness. Effective and positive working relationships with a range of partner agencies, such as services designed to support young people who may be at risk of child sexual exploitation, ensure all young people receive prompt care and support specific to their individual needs. Staff understand their safeguarding roles and responsibilities and respond to any such events appropriately. When young people do go missing from home, staff are acutely aware of their roles and responsibilities; they undertake local searches and pass on the necessary

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

information that they have obtained to the police. The direct work that the staff undertake within the home and school, together with other specialised services, increases young people’s knowledge of the potential dangers and risks associated with this behaviour. Despite these effective partnerships with other agencies, and the work undertaken with young people, some young people continue to engage in these risk taking behaviours. A new manager and three new staff have been appointed. The new staff are committed to completing their planned and formal induction pathways to enable them to deliver a good standard of care and support. They bring new skills and experiences with them, which supplements the skills of the committed staff team. Staff speak positively about working at the home and say that they feel well supported by the management team to deliver a good standard of care to all young people. The manager was appointed in January 2016 following a successful handover and

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

induction period. She is suitably experienced and is in the process of applying to become the Registered Manager. Prior to her appointment, an audit and review of care practice had been undertaken by the senior management team. The manager has used the findings from the audit and the recommendations from the internal and external monitoring systems effectively. She has identified and drafted a suitable action plan to continue to improve the experiences and progress of young people. While adequate quality assurance processes are in place to identify good practice, and identify those areas which require further work, the internal six monthly quality of care review, monthly external independent monitoring review reports and the home’s updated Statement of Purpose are not systematically sent into Ofsted within the prescribed time frames. Furthermore the independent monitoring visits do not clearly evaluate how the home promotes young people’s

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

well-being and safeguards them effectively.

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Information about this children's home

 This service provides residential accommodation for up to five young people with emotional and, or behavioural difficulties. The home is owned by a private company who offer an on-site education provision, and enlist support from a clinical psychologist to support them with their care practice.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

20/03/2015 CH - 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

The registered person must compile in relations to the children's home a statement ("the statement of purpose") and notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (1)(3)(b)) 25/03/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the independent person's report sets out in particular, the independent person's opinion as to whether children are effectively safeguarded and how the conduct of the home promotes children's well-being. (Regulation 44 (4)(a)(b)) 25/03/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the independent person provides a copy of the independent person's report to HMCI. (Regulation 44 (7)(a)) 25/03/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children ("a quality care review") at least once every six months and supply HMCI a copy of the care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed. (Regulation 45 (1)(4)(a)) 25/03/2016

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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 registered person shall ensure that all staff are familiar with the home's policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. This specifically relates to ensuring the controlled medication log is fully complete. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 62, paragraph 14.3)  The registered person should ensure that all incidents of control, discipline and restraint are subject to systems of regular scrutiny to ensure that their use is fair and the principles in 9.35 are respected. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 46, paragraph 9.36)

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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

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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