Children's Home run by Derbyshire County Council in Derbyshire

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:

 Good, supportive and nurturing relationships between staff and young people provide solid foundations from which young people make progress.  Young people make good progress with education, training and work opportunities, which sets them on the right track to achieve success.  The registered manager and staff advocate for young people and work hard to ensure that they have access to the services that they need.  Relationships between the young people and their families are well maintained through good regular contact arrangements, which help to sustain family ties.  Young people are safe living in the home, resulting from staff working effectively to reduce risk-taking behaviours, including going missing from care.  Mutually respectful relationships between staff and young people ensure that behaviour is managed through discussion and negotiation.  The registered manager values staff members. He ensures that regular

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The children’s home provision is good because:

supervision and oversight of staff take place. Regular training and development opportunities are available to staff to ensure continued development of their practice.  Shortfalls identified from this inspection include some ineffective management of relationships between young people, resulting in incidents of aggression and bullying.  New young people coming to live at the home do not receive a consistently robust assessment of their needs and potential risks. Matching assessments are not sufficiently rigorous and safe care plans do not evaluate risk thoroughly.  Sufficient information is not provided to support young people to stop smoking and to make healthier life choices.  The registered manager has not ensured that visitors to the home record when they leave, which can mean that staff do not always know who is in the building.

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Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person 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 must comply with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

11: The positive relationships standard In order to meet the positive relationships standard, the registered person must ensure that: (2)(a) each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with other children and adults. 27 May 2016

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Requirement Due date

12: The protection of children standard In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure that: (a) staff: (i) assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in his or her relevant plans (ii) make arrangements to reduce the risk of harm to each child, taking account of that information (iii) protect each child effectively from harm. 27 May 2016

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard In order to meet the leadership and management standard the registered person must: (2)(d) ensure that each child receives care from a stable and sufficient workforce that is well supported and provides a consistent approach to care. 27 May 2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain in the home the records in schedule 4. In particular holding and maintaining a register of visitors to the home (Regulation 37(1) Schedule 4(5)). 27 May 2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation:

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Recommendations

The registered person should ensure that children are offered advice, support and guidance on health and healthy lifestyles. Staff should have the relevant skills and knowledge to be able to help children understand, and where necessary work to change negative behaviours in key areas of health such as the use of tobacco (‘The guide to the quality standards’, page 35, para 7.18).

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Information about this children’s home

This registered children’s home is operated by a local authority to provide care and accommodation for up to five young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

26 January 2016 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

18 February 2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Good

There are good, supportive and nurturing relationships between young people and staff. The staff and managers demonstrate both perseverance and determination to work through challenging times with young people. They listen to young people and provide encouragement, positivity and guidance. Staff are optimistic and talk freely and passionately about the qualities and strengths of the young people they care for. A social worker stated, ‘He has good relationships with staff and he listens to them. I am very pleased with the progress he has made.’ This has led to young people making good and sustained progress from some difficult starting points.

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Good

Young people’s life chances improve due to the registered manager and staff prioritising education and training. All young people are either attending school, college or training. Fully supported by staff, young people achieve and maintain good school attendance and remain on the right track to achieve success. Some young people, who are unable to cope in a mainstream school environment, receive alternative provision. The registered manager and staff have advocated strongly and have secured good provision to meet their educational needs. Those young people who have now left school have made good progress. One young person has secured himself an apprenticeship with a local council. He is greatly enjoying this and taking pride in his work and achievement. The staff team provide him with the support and encouragement he needs to increase his confidence. He is learning a good trade that will provide secure employment opportunities.

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Good

Young people’s health needs are met. Staff arrange primary healthcare appointments, such as with dentists, opticians and GPs, to ensure that the young people remain in good health. Annual health reviews take place within agreed timescales and any actions identified are undertaken immediately. Some young people at the home continue to smoke. Staff have undertaken individual work with these young people to try to help them to reduce or stop smoking. However, success has been limited, with individual work not supplemented by any other initiatives to support young people to desist from smoking. For example, the registered manager has not sought additional support from the looked after children’s nurse or any other agency.

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Good

Young people requiring specialist help with emotional and mental health difficulties receive the help they need. The staff proactively seek appropriate services to meet the needs of these young people. Additionally, the registered manager and staff benefit from having access to a specialist psychological service that provides them with advice and guidance in how best to support young people. Staff members have become adept at understanding and recognising signs of distress and the underlying causes for some behaviours, such as self-harm and aggression. This has led to staff being able to take quick and effective action whenever they become concerned over a young person’s emotional and mental health. Additionally, the staff team demonstrates an in-depth knowledge of the young people. They understand their moods and behaviours, leading to an insightful and empathetic approach to care practice.

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Good

Young people’s views are important to staff and are therefore listened to. Young people know how to complain and to make their feelings known to the registered manager and staff. The young people’s guide is set out clearly and details the complaints procedure. Since the last inspection, three complaints have been made. Each has been responded to well by the manager. Young people meet weekly for residents’ meetings. They are encouraged by the staff to voice their opinions and views about the care they receive. Young people also have access to advocates, independent visitors and their social workers, which means that they have adults to turn to if they are worried or concerned.

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Good

Staff support and nurture young people’s relationships with their families, friends and others who are important to them. The young people have regular contact that is subject to careful assessment and monitoring, and deemed to be in their best interests. Staff members promote contact by providing the young people with both practical and emotional support. While young people are away from the home staying with family, the staff keep in regular contact with them and they are poised to provide immediate assistance and help if required. Consequently, young people enjoy good quality, safe contact with family and friends in the knowledge that staff are on hand to provide any assistance that may be required. For those young people who have no contact with family, the staff are sensitive to the emotional impact of this and provide understanding and compassionate care. Judgement grade

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Requires improvement

New young people coming to live at the home are not supported by consistently robust assessments being completed prior to them moving to the home. This puts them and other young people at an increased level of risk. The registered manager has failed to undertake a rigorous evaluation of information provided by placing social workers and partner agencies pertaining to young people. Due to the poor level of pre-admission assessment, specialist services that could be crucial for young people and could inform day-to-day care practice are lacking. This hinders the ability of staff to manage risk fully.

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Requires improvement

Plans developed to keep young people safe are not always effective because they lack a sufficient level of information and analysis. For example, a safe care plan did not set out clear risk factors relating to a young person, and it omitted crucial information from a partner agency. Given the lack of information, analysis and evaluation, effective planning could not take place. This shortfall prevents the staff being able to care for all the young people in a consistently safe manner.

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Requires improvement

Incidents of bullying and intimidation have taken place between young people. There are strained relationships between some of the young people at the home and, at times, these have developed into aggressive incidents. The registered manager has had to ensure that the staff monitor the young people closely and that incidents are dealt with quickly and effectively. A clear and focused plan to improve relationships between the young people is absent, and means that young people are likely to continue to have poor and intolerant relationships.

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Requires improvement

The record of visitors to the home is not maintained satisfactorily. Visitors are not being consistently asked to record, and neither are staff recording, when visitors are leaving the building. Therefore staff cannot be assured that the whereabouts of visitors is always known. Consequently, this presents a risk to the health and safety of visitors, staff and young people.

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Requires improvement

Careful recruitment of staff helps to safeguard young people. Effective procedures and clear lines of accountability are followed, ensuring that only suitable adults work in the home. Staff members are well informed about their role in relation to safeguarding young people at the commencement of their employment. The staff receive a comprehensive induction programme that includes training in child protection and all aspects of safeguarding. Staff understand the wider safeguarding context, including the local safeguarding children’s board, and they have well-established relationships with key partner agencies. This helps to keep young people safe.

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Requires improvement

Generally effective behaviour management helps to keep the young people safe. Young people are encouraged to behave well. They receive positive and constructive praise for good behaviour while receiving fair and balanced restorative consequences for negative behaviour. Staff implement clear and unwavering boundaries consistently, and this helps young people to develop an understanding of what acceptable behaviour is. As a result, the staff group do not have to rely upon punitive methods of behaviour management. The young people listen to the staff. The use of negotiation, discussion and compromise have become the preferred methods of resolving difficulties.

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Requires improvement

A committed staff team proactively addresses risk-taking behaviours by young people. The whereabouts of young people are known at all times, resulting in young people not going missing from the home. Staff know young people’s friendship groups and the young people are able to speak openly to the staff about anything causing them concern or distress. This means that staff are able to advise, assist and try to help the young people to address any problems they may have. This has consequently led to genuinely nurturing relationships.

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Requires improvement

Improved decoration and upgrading of the building and fabric of the home have led to a homely environment. The young people have benefited from new bathrooms and a new kitchen being installed, together with an ongoing programme of redecoration, which have greatly improved the home. There are photos of the young people with staff members on display, and the young people have been instrumental in improving the condition of the home. This has led to a pleasant environment, which the young people can be proud of and enjoy.

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Requires improvement

The registered manager has ensured that health and safety polices are reviewed in a timely manner. An updated fire risk assessment has been completed and evacuation procedures are consistently implemented. The registered manager has also completed risk assessments covering all activities undertaken by young people. The registered manager has completed a very good location risk assessment. This assessment has taken into consideration the views of all partner agencies working with the home to keep young people safe.

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Good

The young people benefit from a suitably qualified registered manager who has held his position since 2008. He has considerable experience and holds a level 4 NVQ qualification in leadership and management. He responded quickly to the recommendation made at the last interim inspection, with the outside areas of the home being free from debris and litter.

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Good

An effective and committed staff team provides good, consistent and nurturing care. Staff support is a key priority. They receive regular professional supervision that is of high quality. They are accountable in their work with young people, and receive oversight and guidance from a registered manager whom they trust and who is always on hand to support them. Their care practice is regularly appraised and they receive a good level of training, which promotes their overall development. For example, all staff are now qualified to the required level. This results in young people receiving care from a well-trained and accountable staff team.

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Good

Young people benefit from a staff group that communicates effectively. Staff members have mutually respectful professional relationships. Team meetings take place regularly, supported by a clear agenda where the young people’s welfare and issues important to them are priorities. Staff members share experiences and reflect on effective strategies in caring for young people and on young people’s individual experiences. New staff members benefit from the support of experienced members of staff. This helps them to settle quickly in the staff group, resulting in a well-coordinated and efficient staff group that harnesses its collective strengths for the benefit of the young people.

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Good

The registered manager has a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the service. Quality assurance monitoring takes place through monthly visits undertaken by an experienced and challenging independent visitor. The visits are rigorous and include scrutiny of all areas of care practice in the home. This scrutiny ensures high standards, while areas of concern are quickly identified and changes are made. The registered manager uses testimony from young people, information from professionals working with the home and from complaints to learn lessons with a view to improvement. As a result, young people receive services that the registered manager is constantly seeking to improve through using quality assurance processes.

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Good

The appropriate authorities are immediately notified of all significant incidents. The registered manager understands the importance of making notifications regarding young people in a timely manner to agencies involved, and in taking appropriate action. The registered manager is diligent, ensuring that the correct level of detail is provided and all actions taken are in line with procedures. Young people are safeguarded through the registered manager and staff working closely to policies and procedures.

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Good

However, because staff members are often transferred to provide cover at other children’s homes for unspecified periods, young people do not benefit from stable and consistent staffing arrangements. Young people are unsure about how long key staff will be away from the home. For example, there is currently a plan for the deputy manager to transfer to another home in the organisation. It is unknown how long he will be away and what arrangements will be made to fill his position. A worker stated, ‘It is hard on the kids. It is not good having workers on shift they do not know, trying to keep consistency for them.’ As a result, young people’s attachments to staff members may be negatively affected.

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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

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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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