Children's home run by Marlowe Child & Family Services Limited in Tewkesbury

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:

 The staff team build positive caring relationships with young people in a short period of time. They build on this to support young people to reach their potential.  Staff work with young people to enable them to develop self-management techniques regarding their behaviours.  Young people make good progress in their education. This includes engaging with education after a long period out of school. Some young people make excellent progress, achieving prefect and ambassador status at mainstream school.

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 The staff team is driven and demonstrates a commitment to improving the quality of care provided to young people.

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 Young people benefit from taking part in a wide range of fun activities.

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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

Ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 31 August

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Requirement Due date

34: Policies for the protection of children

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s home from abuse or neglect, and sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect. In particular, ensure that there is clear guidance to ensure that the home retains a complete record of any safeguarding incident which takes place on the organisation’s school property and involves care staff or vice versa. This needs to include feedback of the outcome of any related investigations or work. (Regulation 34 (1)(a)(b)) 31 August

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Requirement Due date

44: Independent person’s visits and reports

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month. When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person and if they consent, to interview in private such of the children. To ensure this, visits carried out by the independent person need to take place when children are not at school. (Regulation 44 (1)(2)(a)) 31 August

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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

 Children must be consulted regularly on their views about the home’s care, to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided. Due consideration should be given to the child’s cognitive ability in the development and implementation of any consultation processes. Children should be able to see their views being listened to and acted upon. In particular, minutes of house meetings should be more detailed to represent the discussions which take place and actions taken as a result of these discussions. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 22, paragraph 4.11)

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to five young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties. The home is run by a private organisation that also operates other children’s homes and a registered school in the locality. The home’s statement of purpose says that only boys will be accommodated. 

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

13 October 2015 Full Requires improvement

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Good

Young people benefit from being cared for by a familiar, dependable staff team. Staff build positive nurturing relationships with young people. Young people said ‘the staff take really good care of us’. One young person said that it’s the best place he’d lived in: ‘You can tell the staff really care about us.’ There is a very relaxed and happy family atmosphere at the home. Young people said that they could talk to staff about anything. Staff have provided young people with a very comfortable, well-furnished, home in which to live and thrive. Young people are supported in personalising their bedrooms. Staff encourage young people to be involved with choices of decor and furnishings throughout the home. Young people receive good support from the organisations therapy team. In addition, the therapy team supports care staff and helps them improve their approach and understanding to care giving for each young person.

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Good

Young people are involved in the development of their care plans. Staff recognise the benefits of including young people, they acknowledge that this gives them ownership of their futures. Care plans are detailed and are kept under review to ensure that they reflect young people’s emerging needs as well as those already identified. Young people are doing extremely well in their education. Some young people go to the organisation’s school, another goes to mainstream school. Staff celebrate young people’s educational achievements, which include becoming school prefects, school ambassadors, re-engaging with education after a long period of absence and making great strides in their reading skills. Care staff work closely with schools staff to support young people’s academic progress. Young people are encouraged to take part in a wide range of activities at the home and in the community. They are involved in developing activity plans which

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Good

incorporate their current interests, and have opportunities to try new activities. These are not only fun but help young people to develop their social skills, social networks and self-confidence. One young person said that they used to spend most of their time playing video games but now they ‘do loads of different things, including physical exercise, which means I’m a lot fitter now.’ Young people are now able to make phone calls without the permission of staff. They are provided with phone cards which contain their family contacts (where appropriate), social workers, helpline numbers (including Ofsted’s), and the number of the children’s home. Young people are able to use these phone cards out in the community as well. The home covers the cost of these cards.

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Good

The environment in which young people live is safe and nurturing. Young people’s safety is enhanced by the staff team who help them to understand their own vulnerabilities and develop their skills to keep themselves safe. Young people said that they feel safe at the home. Since the previous inspection, the number of physical restraints has reduced. Where it is used, staff record using the lowest level hold possible, records of these events are comprehensive. A culture of good reflective practice is beginning to embed. Each incident is examined with a view to preventing the use of restraint in the future. The registered manager’s monitoring of restraint records is evaluative and they look for any patterns or trends. There are no recorded incidents of young people going missing from home since the last inspection. Young people have a detailed and current individualised plan and risk assessment. For young people who have recently moved in, this is a work in progress as they

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Good

are undergoing a period of assessment. Plans detail young people’s known and emerging needs and reflect the progress that young people make. The homes safeguarding policy is linked to those of the local authority. Effective working relationships exist between the staff team and the local authority designated officer. These systems help to protect young people and ensure that safeguarding issues are addressed. Since the last inspection, a new human resources manager has been appointed. They are in the process of completing an audit of the organisation’s recruitment records. Some minor gaps have been identified and are being addressed. These do not have an impact on young people. Judgement grade

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Requires improvement

The home’s registered manager has been in post since 2009 and is suitably qualified. Since the last inspection, the home has gone through a time of change. This includes the admission of new young people and some staff changes. Despite this, the staff team has continued to make improvements. Managers have not ensured that all staff receive supervision at regular intervals, so their care practice is not fully supported. The quality of the supervision records has improved since the previous inspection. Staff reported that they feel well supported by the registered manager and by their colleagues. The independent visitor’s reports are now being received by Ofsted in a timely manner. There has been an improvement in the contact that the independent visitor has with parents and social workers to gather their feedback on the home. On three occasions the independent visitor has failed to consult with young people.

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Requires improvement

Where a complaint has been made by a young person about something that happened at school, the registered manager is not maintaining a full record. During the inspection, the registered manager did gather this information together from various sources to evidence that matter had been appropriately dealt with. This is particularly important where a complaint has the potential to become a safeguarding issue. A full audit trail was available for complaints made in the home. The staff team is a cohesive group. A number of its members have worked together at the home for several years. They provide a strong core team offering good support to new staff. New staff spoke very positively about their induction and the support that they received during their probationary period. They felt that this process prepared them well for their work.

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Requires improvement

Staff training is provided to meet the needs of the young people it cares for. Managers are reviewing the training programme to ensure that planned training reflects the needs of the current group of young people. Other professionals who work with the staff team praised the team for its commitment to the young people, and for the quality of the team members’ communication skills. The quality of the records maintained has improved since the previous inspection. These provide more evidence of the work that the staff undertake with the young people to enable them to reach their goals. The staff team has high expectations for the young people it cares for, but this is not always reflected in the homes recordings. The records of young people’s meetings do not provide clear evidence of discussions that take place and actions that are taken as a result of these. There are effective monitoring systems in place and the registered manager uses

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Requires improvement

this information to develop practice. The reports that the registered manager produces provide an accurate picture of the home’s work, including where further work is needed. At the previous inspection in October 2015, the home was judged to be requiring improvement. The report included four requirements and two recommendations. Of these, three of the requirements and both of the recommendations have been met. The requirement which remains at this inspection relates to staff supervision. The home’s current statement of purpose covers all of the required areas and is reflected in the practices of the home.

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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

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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