Children's home run by Total Care Matters Limited in Nottingham

Requires improvement

The children's home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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The children's home provision requires improvement because:

 Although children‟s and young people‟s school attendance is good, staff do not consistently support them to reach their full educational potential.  Some delays in children and young people receiving support in relation to their health have the potential to impact on their well-being.  Managers and staff need to challenge others more robustly when children‟s and young people‟s specific needs are not being fully met.  Internal and external quality assurance systems require improvements. They do not sufficiently evaluate the views of children and young people, family members and placing authorities in order to drive improvements.  The absence of a deputy manager leaves the current interim manager stretched and unable to delegate managerial tasks.

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The children's home strengths

 Despite the above shortfalls, children and young people are making progress in many aspects of their lives.  Children and young people are very happy and they feel safe as a result of the positive relationships that they have with a core group of staff.  In instances where children‟s and young people‟s behaviours make them vulnerable to harm, the implementation of detailed risk management plans provide them with a high level of safety.

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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

8: The education standard In order to meet the education standard the registered person must ensure— (2)(a)(i) that staff help each child to achieve the child's education and training targets, as recorded in the child's relevant plans. 14 June 2016

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Requirement Due date

10: The health and well-being standard In order to meet the health and well-being standard the registered person must ensure that— (1)(b) children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being. 14 June 2016

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Requirement Due date

If the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority's or a relevant person's performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child's needs are met in accordance with the child's relevant plans (Regulation 5 (c)). 14 June 2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children's safety and must ensure that full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2, with specific reference to checks on agency staff members (Regulation 32 (1) (3)(d)). 14 June 2016

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person‟s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person's opinion as to whether children are effectively safeguarded and the conduct of the home promotes children's well-being, with particular reference to the independent person spending time with children to enable them to form an 14 June 2016 accurate opinion about these matters (Regulation 44 (4)(a)(b)).

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating. The system must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff (Regulation 45 (2) (5)). 14 June 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

 As part of reviewing and revising where appropriate the statement of purpose (Regulation 16 (3)(a)), the registered person should review and update the children's guide as necessary ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 24, paragraph 4.23).

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Information about this children's home

This home is privately owned. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for three children and young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

30 December 2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

18 February 2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Requires improvement

Some children‟s and young people‟s identified health needs are not fully met. Staff have not robustly challenged health care providers following unnecessary delays in referral, assessment or treatment. For example, despite one child requesting direct therapeutic support some six months ago, and staff requesting this on their behalf, they are still waiting for this service to be provided. For another young person, the failure of the home to work proactively with health professionals has contributed to unnecessary delays in addressing a health condition. Although all children and young people have good attendance at school, and they are making progress, the level of support provided by staff to help them maintain this progress, or exceed their educational targets, is inconsistent. A social worker commented, „Although educationally the child is progressing at expected levels, her education could be affected due to a lack of support from staff.‟ This child is

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Requires improvement

sometimes late for school without good reason and their reading diary is not regularly completed. Poor communication between staff and the school, to address issues such as these, has the potential to hinder young people‟s educational progress and ultimately limit their future life chances. Recently, the home has experienced an unsettled period, with difficult relationships developing between peers. This placed a strain on all children and young people. Staff worked hard to support them during this difficult time. When it became apparent that the group dynamics were not sustainable, the interim manager took effective action to resolve this. One young person was supported to successfully move on to a more suitable placement. Their social worker said, „The staff made the end to her placement a positive one. She was able to move on in a planned and positive way.‟ All young people have been supported to have positive care

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Requires improvement

experiences because the interim manager acted assertively in this instance. Children and young people speak very fondly about staff and develop strong, enriching relationships with them. A child said, „The staff are my family and I know they think the world of me.‟ Another child commented, „Here feels like home. Staff are kind and spend lots of time with me. They make living here happy.‟ The positive relationships that children and young people have with staff provide them with the stability and security that they need and deserve. Good consultation with children and young people about all aspects of their care helps them to feel valued. On a day-to-day basis, children and young people are empowered to make choices. In respect of care planning, children and young people are fully involved in setting the aims and targets of the placement and how these are going to be achieved. As a result, children and young people develop a

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Requires improvement

sense of control. They are better motivated to work towards objectives that they have been involved in setting. Children and young people have access to appropriate leisure pursuits. Their individual interests are promoted and all regularly engage in activities that they enjoy in the local community. A child said, „We get to do lots of things like bowling, swimming, ice-skating, going to the park and roller skating. We also go on long walks and bike rides to keep fit.‟ Children and young people are about to commence training to take part in the „Race for Life‟. Participating in this charitable event enhances their health and well-being. It also helps to provide them with a sense of achievement and increases their awareness of social issues. The manager and staff understand how important it is for children and young people to maintain links with their family. Staff work closely with parents and relatives to promote and support these relationships, where appropriate. In

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Requires improvement

circumstances where family contact is not possible, staff help children and young people to understand their histories and the reasons why contact is not possible. They focus on children‟s and young people‟s strengths and help them to feel proud of who they are. As a result, their confidence, self-esteem and sense of identity improve.

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Good

Children and young people feel safe. One child said, „I am happy and safe here. No one hurts me. If I have a worry, staff listen and get rid of the worry.‟ Another child commented, „Staff are always here for me if I need someone to talk to and they are good listeners.‟ The trusting relationships that children and young people have with staff help to create an emotionally safe and secure environment for them. Staff know children and young people well and have a clear understanding of the risks that they face. All have undertaken safeguarding training and work in accordance with the home‟s safeguarding policies. Bullying is not tolerated. As a result of close supervision and successful mediation strategies, children and young people feel protected from the risk of bullying. A child said, „if there are any problems staff are quick to sort them out.‟ The implementation of comprehensive risk management plans help to keep

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Good

children and young people safe. For example, a young person who displayed self- injurious behaviours was very well supported: supervision levels were high, and her risk management plan ensured that staff responded consistently and appropriately to self-harm. As a consequence, this young person was protected and well supported to develop improved emotional resilience. Proactive behaviour management strategies and systems impact positively on children and young people. Positive relationships, high levels of praise, consistency, and effective restorative practices have led to a reduction in challenging behaviours. A parent said, „The staff understand my daughter so well and as a result her behaviours have really improved.‟ The restorative approach has helped children and young people to consider the consequences of their actions and develop empathy. As a consequence, their behaviour improves significantly.

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Good

Positive behaviour management strategies have also contributed to a reduction in the use of restraint. On every occasion when physical intervention has been necessary, debriefs have followed. This enables good management analysis, and ensures that staff have the opportunity to reflect positively on their practice. Despite some children and young people having a history of running away from home, incidents of this occurring are infrequent. A young person has not gone missing since before the last interim inspection. Staff knowledge and up-to-date, individualised, missing from care procedures ensure that staff understand what actions to take to safeguard vulnerable children and young people. The home has clear and robust recruitment procedures to ensure that all relevant checks are completed on new staff. This reduces the risk of unsuitable people being employed in the home. However, when agency staff are used, records held

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Good

in the home do not contain all information outlined in Schedule 2 of the Children‟s Homes Regulations 2015. Rather, there is a reliance on this information having been obtained, checked and verified by the agency. Leaders and managers verifying information about the suitability of agency staff would provide an additional layer of protection to vulnerable children and young people.

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Requires improvement

There has been some instability in the home‟s management structure. The registered manager and the deputy manager are on maternity leave. The operations manager has left and a new operations manager has only very recently commenced working for the service. The interim manager, who is currently in the process of registering with Ofsted, does not have a deputy manager to support him in his role. He is stretched and, despite his commendable efforts, his ability to manage the home to a high standard is limited. Quality assurance systems require improvement. The independent visitor, who is responsible for assessing the quality of the service on a monthly basis, has not seen any children or young people for four months. This hinders their ability to evaluate how children‟s and young people‟s needs are being met. Internal systems do not provide for ascertaining the views of children and young people, family

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Requires improvement

members and placing authorities. Therefore, a valuable opportunity to identify areas of potential improvement is missed. While, in some instances, there is evidence of good partnership working, this is not consistent. In one instance, the level of communication with a school was particularly poor. This meant that a young person was not well supported to reach their academic potential. In addition, a lack of challenge or escalation of concerns when young people do not receive the services they need, or when recommendations of review meetings are not actioned in a timely manner, has the potential to hinder children‟s and young people‟s progress. The home‟s statement of purpose is up to date. The document provides parents and placing authorities with clear information about how the service aims to help and support children and young people while living in the home. However, the children‟s guide has not been updated to reflect changes in the management

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Requires improvement

structure. As a result, children, young people, families, and other stakeholders are not provided with accurate information about who they can approach if they have any concerns or complaints. Despite the above shortfalls, a cohesive staff team continues to safeguard children and young people well and provide the nurturing and emotionally warm care that they require. Morale in the home is high. Staff, children and young people hold the interim manager in very high regard and all feel very well supported by him. Staff supervisions and team meetings take place regularly. They are used to reflect on each child‟s and young person‟s individual needs. All staff who are not in their probationary period are either suitably qualified or are working towards the required qualifications within agreed timescales. The training that staff have undertaken equips them to meet the needs of the children and young people currently living in the home. Because all staff have recently

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Requires improvement

undertaken training in relation to self-harm, their skills and knowledge have been enhanced in this area. A requirement set in respect of this at the last inspection has been met. The interim manager is enthusiastic and child focused. With the support of his new operations manager, he has taken immediate action to address some of the shortfalls identified during this inspection. Both have a clear vision for long-term improvements and are committed to ensuring that children and young people have the best opportunity to reach their full potential.

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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 that 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, 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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