Children's homes – interim inspection

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 improved effectiveness .

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home remains very settled. No children or young people have been admitted or discharged since the last inspection. There have been no staff changes since the last inspection.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home is warm and friendly and staff clearly have good relationships with all the children and young people. Children and young people are given clear boundaries and expectations, and conversations between staff and children and young people are open, honest and straightforward. This approach balances a great deal of nurture with a down-to-earth, practical and caring attitude. One young person said that the ‘staff are excellent’.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

All the children and young people continue to make good progress in their lives. They are all attending school or college well. Two of the children and young people continue to attend school with full attendance, and both are making clear progress. One young person who was not attending school very much has made significant improvements and is now attending an alternative education placement regularly and starting to catch up their lost education time. Another young person who was drifting a little after leaving school has engaged really well on a college and pre- employment package. This young person is now doing additional key skills training and has a work placement in a childcare nursery planned, which should lead to an apprenticeship offer.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff have worked hard to support these two young people, and when the young people were spoken to by the inspector they were clearly proud of their achievements.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Children and young people are supported to develop their relationships with their families, and one young person in particular has made significant progress in this area. There are opportunities for children and young people to engage with external support workers and a number of them do receive additional support to deal with their emotional difficulties. Children and young people take part in a wide range of leisure activities and lead full lives. This includes caring for the home’s chickens, which are kept in the back garden.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

As they move towards independence, children and young people are supported well to develop the necessary skills for adult life. One young person at the home, who is planning a move to supported lodgings, is on a programme of semi- independence and is doing well with this.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

On the day of the inspection the staff and children and young people were about to hold a party to celebrate an ex-resident joining the army. This young person had left the home at the end of last year and had been waiting for his starting date. He was due to start his army career in a couple of days. This is a significant achievement for this young man and represents a great deal of hard work by staff.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home is a safe place to live. Staff have used very few sanctions and prefer positive incentives. Two restraints have been carried out appropriately and were only short physical interventions. No bullying has been recorded and no complaints have been made. There has been one child protection incident reported. This was an alleged incident of inappropriate behaviour between two of the children and young people. This incident is still being investigated but staff have followed procedures and have handled this well, providing appropriate support and supervision at all times. One young person who had in the past been missing from home quite often has significantly reduced this risky behaviour, with only three incidents since the last inspection and none of these very recently. This is significant progress.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager continues to lead the team well and continues to develop the service. Staff are supported with good quality supervision and training and clearly appreciated the strong leadership. The manager and staff are able to work in partnership with other professionals and services.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There were no requirements or recommendations made at the previous inspection, and none are being made at this inspection.

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Information about this children's home

The home is run by a local authority and is registered for the care and accommodation of up to four children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties (EBD).

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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 Improved effectiveness

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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, 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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