Children's home run by Stoke-on-Trent City Council in Stoke-on-Trent

inspection

Two compliance notices were issued on 9 November 2015. A monitoring visit took place on 9 December 2015. All compliance notices had been complied with.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged Inadequate at the full inspection. At this interim inspection Ofsted judge that it has improved effectiveness .

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager has left the home since the last inspection. Senior managers within the organisation have taken swift action to address this and are in the process of recruiting a new manager. In the interim, the home’s assistant manager is ‘acting up’. This has helped to maintain continuity for staff and young people. The acting manager has started to make some improvements to the home’s monitoring systems. ‘Quality of care reviews’ are now undertaken alongside recently implemented monthly audits. These are starting to identify areas of improvement. Monitoring visits by the home’s independent person continue to improve and are now of a good quality. However, the acting manager does not always receive reports from these visits in a timely way. This prevents him making best use of the information and affects the speed the service can progress. The acting manager has met both previous requirements. This has ensured greater

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

supervision of visitors to the home and better liaison with the Designated Officer in the Local Authority. These improvements help to safeguard young people. In addition, he has significantly improved partnership working with other agencies. Professionals, including young people’s social workers, are now well informed and consulted in all key aspects of decision-making. This ensures better oversight of young people’s care and greater consideration of the risks they face. Since the last inspection, some young people have made steady progress in their life. Young people are positive about this and their confidence has increased. One young person is planning to leave the home in the next few months. They are excited about having greater autonomy. Their independence skills have improved in preparation for this, including their cooking – curry and spaghetti bolognaise are particular strengths! Effective support from staff underpins this progress and

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

ensures planning for the move is generally effective. Some young people continue to put themselves in hazardous situations. This includes times when they go missing. The response to these incidents is inconsistent. In some cases staff take robust action, in others they are not given effective direction. Specifically, guidance states that on some occasions, staff are not allowed to follow young people on foot – instructing them to follow in the home’s vehicle. This does not always allow them to stay in contact with young people who may take routes away from accessible roads. In addition, not all staff are able to drive. Furthermore, on one occasion, the acting manager failed to ensure that there were sufficient numbers of staff on duty. Relying on staff working at other homes to be ‘on-call'. These shortfalls prevent staff from taking effective action when there is a concern for young people’s welfare.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Challenging behaviour is generally well managed by staff, who understand young people’s backgrounds and the impact this may have on their behaviour. Overall, staff and young people have strong, supportive relationships. Young people talk positively in this regard and are happy with the support they receive. On rare occasions, staff do not effectively de-escalate potentially violent behaviour. Specifically, in two instances ‘threats’ of police involvement escalated young people’s behaviour and levels of distress. On another occasion, staff informed a young person that planned contact with their parents could change if their behaviour did not improve. This had the potential to cause significant upset to the young person. Other ‘sanctions’ used to address young people’s behaviour are not always restorative in nature. This does not help them to recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other young people, the staff caring for them or the

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

wider community. There has been one incident of physical restraint since the last inspection. Its use was proportionate but records of the incident are poor. They do not detail whether the young person was injured or whether medical treatment was administered. Secondly, it is not clear if an appropriate person spoke to the young person following the restraint. Finally, the acting manager has not signed the record to confirm it is accurate. These shortfalls reduce the safeguards available to young people, hinder effective management oversight, and do not allow young people to express their views effectively.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Since the last inspection, some young people have made several further allegations against members of staff. The acting manager now refers these incidents to the Designated Officer in the Local Authority in a timely way. This ensures better independent oversight. However, records kept by the acting manager are poor. They lack detail and do not describe the action taken in response. They also fail to outline the measures that may be necessary to protect young people following the allegation (including whether staff will continue working with them during any investigation). This has the potential to cause uncertainty for staff and young people, fails to explain how and why decisions are reached, and reduces the oversight available to senior managers.

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Information about this children's home

The home provides care for up to two children/young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is owned and operated by a Local Authority.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

25/03/2015 CH - Interim Sustained 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

In order to meet the positive relationships standard, with particular reference to behaviour management, the registered person must ensure that staff: -

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Requirement Due date

(2)(a)(xi) de-escalate potentially violent behaviour by children. 08/04/2016

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the protection of children standard, with particular reference to missing, the registered provider must ensure that staff: -

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Requirement Due date

(2)(a)(vi) take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child's welfare. 08/04/2016

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Requirement Due date

13. The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard with particular reference to staffing, the registered person must: -

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Requirement Due date

(2)(d) ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child. 08/04/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the following measure is not be used to discipline any child - any restriction, other than one imposed by a court on a child's contact with parents, relatives or friends. (Regulation 19(2)(c)(i)) 08/04/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that records are kept of any allegation of abuse or neglect, and the action taken in response. (Regulation 34(2)(d)) 08/04/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that records describe the measures which may be necessary to protect children following 08/04/2016 an allegation of abuse or neglect. (Regulation 34(2)(e))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure. (Regulation 35(3)(a)(viii)) 08/04/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that within 48 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person") has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35(3)(b)(ii)) 08/04/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that within 5 days of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35(3)(c)) 08/04/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  Ensure that any sanctions used to address poor behaviour are restorative in nature, to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them and the wider community. In some cases, it will be important for children to make reparation in some form to anyone hurt by their behaviour and the staff in the home should be skilled to support the child to understand this and carry it out. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 46 paragraph 9.38)  Ensure that the registered person actively seeks independent scrutiny of the home and makes best use of information from independent monitoring (including under regulation 44). (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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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

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Information about this inspection

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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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