Children's home run by Oracle Care Limited in Central Bedfordshire

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:

 Staff understand the individual needs of the young people and are committed to working with them.  The young people say that they feel safe in the home and that staff listen and help them.  The staff understand the importance of education, and actively encourage and support young people to attend.  The young people take a pride in their home. They are involved in choosing decor and complete chores around the house.  There is a wide variety of activities for young people, both in the home and in the community. Staff support young people in maintaining their hobbies and interests.  Staff understand the importance of regular contact for young people and their families, and support this.  The young people are supported and encouraged to learn independent living skills.  Staff challenge young people’s negative behaviours and discuss these in reflective conversations and key work sessions. However young people do

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The children’s home provision is good because:

not always have the opportunity to comment after being held.  The young people know how to complain, but they are not always informed of the outcome.  There are good placement plans in place, which support staff working with the young people. These are not signed by young people or social workers to say they have read or are in agreement with them.

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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

The registered person must ensure that a record is made of any complaint, the action taken in response, and the outcome of any investigation. This is with particular regard to fully following up any complaint made by a young person. (Regulation 39 (3)) 11/07/16

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that within five days of the use of the measure, 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)) 11/07/16

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only employ an individual to work at the children's home if the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification, and skills for the work that the individual is to perform. For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) ("the Level 3 Diploma") or a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma. The relevant date is, in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or, in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016. (Regulation 32 (2)(a)(3)(b)(4)(a)(b)(5)(a)(b)

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Recommendations

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

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Recommendations

 The young people should have the opportunity to comment and sign their placement plan. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 18, paragraph 3.31) .

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Information about this children’s home

This home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three young people who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. It is operated by a private provider. Young people may attend the linked school provision.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

22 March 2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

5 March 2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Good

The young people have built good relationships with a stable, dedicated staff team which supports them to progress. One young person commented, ‘Staff are good at their jobs. They do not see this as a job, they see it as everyday life. You can tell they really like it here.’

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Good

The young people have begun to make good progress since moving into the home. Staff understand the importance of education, and actively support and encourage young people. All young people are engaged in education. One young person attends full-time college independently. Another young people is on study leave and is in the process of sitting GCSEs. After an incident at school the third young person has been permanently excluded. Staff have good communication with the school who ensure that work is sent home to complete. He will be able to attend school to sit his GCSEs with the support from staff. Staff were observed helping them to revise for their exams. A social worker commented, ‘He is now going to school, which is something he always struggled with.’

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Good

The young people have regular key work sessions, which support young people with all aspects of their lives. A young person commented, ‘My key worker is like a mum to me.’

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Good

Staff have good knowledge of the young people, why they are in care and what their current needs and further plans are. The young people spoken to also said that they knew why they are living in the home. A social worker commented, ‘The staff know him well.’

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Good

The young people have individualised care plans in place, which support staff in working with them on all aspects of their lives. However, there is no evidence that young people have read or agree with these, or that social workers are in agreement with the home’s plans, which could lead to professionals not working consistently with young people.

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Good

The young people have weekly incentives, which are individualised, and they can earn extra activities, meals out or vouchers to spend. Staff use positive consequences to acknowledge when young people have tried or achieved something positive. A social worker commented, ‘Staff focus on the things he’s good at, which has raised his self-esteem.’ Sanctions are fair and proportionate and young people are encouraged to comment on any sanction or positive consequence given. One young person has worked towards getting his own hamster. He had to research how to look after it before he was able to purchase it. Staff commented that he is able to care for his hamster and it has helped him to take responsibility.

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Good

The young people’s health needs are promoted. They are registered with the local GP, dentist and opticians. The looked after nurse also completes a health assessment when young people move in. Staff are aware of health services in the local area that young people may wish to access, such as sexual health workers.

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Good

Staff understand the importance of the young people having a wide variety of activities, both in the home and in the community, to help them to develop their self-esteem and social skills. One young person attends cadets and plays in a local football team. Staff spoken to commented, ‘It’s good to give young people positive experiences and promote their interests.’

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Good

The young people are encouraged and supported in starting a scrapbook when they move in. This contains photos and memories of their time in the home and staff will also add comments and memories of activities or special occasions they have celebrated with them. This helps young people to take away positive memories of their time in the home when they leave.

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Good

There are regular young people’s meetings which they have renamed ‘chill and chats’. Due to young people’s various commitments, they are not always attended at the same time, but staff will get feedback from them to ascertain comments and views about the day-to-day running of the home, such as colours for the kitchen which is due to be repainted. They also complete surveys every quarter, which gives them the opportunity to give feedback to senior managers.

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Good

Staff understand the importance of contact for both young people and their families. They will transport young people and supervise contact if appropriate. This also gives them the opportunity to build positive relationships with families.

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Good

The young people are encouraged and supported in developing their independence skills in line with their care plan, age and understanding. One young person is able to budget for the week, cook his own meals, manage his own day-to-day needs and uses public transport independently.

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Good

The home is bright, spacious and decorated to a good standard. The young people take a pride in their home and complete daily chores. They have the opportunity to personalise their rooms. One young person was proud to show his room, saying that it was a nice size and he had everything in it he wanted. He also stated that he could move things around if he wants to.

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Good

There is a good-sized garden, which is well maintained. A young person was recently involved in buying and planting flowers. This shows that young people take a pride and feel part of the home.

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Good

The young people know how to complain and they feel listened to. There are complaints forms and envelopes in the laundry area so that they don’t have to ask staff. Complaints are acknowledged, but there was no evidence to show that young people are informed of, or are happy with, the outcomes. This could leave young people feeling that complaints are not resolved. There are also contact numbers of organisations that young people can call if they wish to complain.

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Good

Staff challenge unwanted behaviours and reinforce boundaries. Staff were observed appropriately challenging a young person when he could not get his own way. A social worker commented, ‘Staff put boundaries and rules in place which are consistent, which means he knows where he is.’ Another commented that, ‘Staff manage his behaviours well, and he understands the boundaries.’

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Good

There has only been one physical intervention since the last inspection, which was appropriate and recorded. However, there is no record of the young person being spoken to, or of his views being recorded. Staff understand young people’s triggers and will use techniques to defuse the potential need for young people to be held.

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Good

Comprehensive risk assessments are in place for young people out in the community and in the home. These outline potential risks, along with strategies for staff to manage these safely. These are reviewed monthly and amended if needed. Staff understand the importance of young people managing certain risks, according to their age and understanding.

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Good

All health and safety checks are up to date. The area risk assessment is being developed further, the local authority is working with the home to provide information about local services in the area

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Good

Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding and have attended the relevant training, including ‘Prevent’ training. Staff also understand the safeguarding issues of young people using the internet. They have completed online training, and staff monitor the young people when using the internet. Young people hand their phones in to staff at night. This ensures that young people cannot use their phones unsupervised during the night. The local authority designated officer commented, ‘I have no concerns about the home. The manager will inform me of any concerns and will always follow any advice given.’ There has only been one incident of a young person going missing since the last report. A young person walked off site, and although he was not missing for long, because of the risks identified for him he was reported to the police as missing. An independent person undertook a return to home interview. Young people

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Good

spoken to understand that staff will follow them and contact their friends if they go missing.

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Good

All medication is stored and recorded appropriately. Consents for medical treatment are in place and are signed by parents and social workers. Staff cannot administer medication until they have completed appropriate training to ensure it is safely administered and recorded to protect the young people from medication errors.

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Good

The manager has been in post since June 2013 and has the relevant qualifications and experience to manage the home.

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Good

Managers have a clear vision for the home. They recognise the strengths of the home and areas that they would like to develop. The young people are central to the home and staff listen to and act on suggestions gained from a variety of ways from them. The staff have a good insight into the young people’s needs and behaviours and support them in all aspects of their lives.

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Good

Staff receive regular supervision. A member of staff commented, ‘Supervisions are supportive. I can say what I need to and can feel quiet refreshed after. The manager has always been good at supporting our development and helping us move forward.’ Appraisals are up to date and a staff development plan is in place and discussed every three months during supervision. This ensures that staff training is kept up to date and any specific training can be identified to support staff working with the young people. The majority of staff have completed their national vocational qualification level 3. However, there are two remaining staff who, although registered on the national vocational qualification level 3, have worked with young people for two years and therefore do not meet the requirement to have achieved the appropriate qualification within the required timescale. The manager has a good understanding of the young people’s needs. Social

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Good

workers spoken to comment that they found her supportive of young people’s needs and that there was good communication.

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Good

Weekly reports are sent to social workers who commented that these were informative, giving them a good insight of the young people.

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Good

Staff meetings are held fortnightly and give staff the opportunity to discuss the young people as well as care practice and other issues within the home. There are also fortnightly meetings with someone from the clinical team, which supports staff in working with and managing young people’s behaviours.

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Good

There are alarms on the front door and young people’s bedrooms, which bleep when doors are opened. Young people are aware of why these are in place and there are consent forms from parents and social workers.

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Good

Recruitment is robust and checks are completed and verified before staff can start working in the home. There is a new induction process in place, which supports staff through their probation periods with regular review meetings.

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Good

The home rarely use agency staff. Staff from the home will cover gaps on the rota or staff from the organisations other homes will cover. Staff understand the importance of young people having staff around them that they know and trust and the importance for them to have consistency to keep them safe.

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Good

Staff spoken to understood the strengths of the home and felt supported by the manager. They were also able to identify areas that the home could develop to be able to give young people experiences that are even more positive.

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Good

The manager monitors care practice and young people’s progression through a computer system used by the home to record all information regarding the young people. This is able to plot progression and outcomes by transferring information into monthly graphs. This supports the manager and staff to evaluate progression, patterns and trends.

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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 children looked after 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 children looked after 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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