Children's home run by Educare Adolescent Services Limited in Cannock Chase

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:

 Young people are making significant and sustained progress in their emotional, behavioural and educational development.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The home is welcoming and comfortable. Young people have personalised their rooms and enjoy living here.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people engage in exceptionally warm and trusting relationships with the highly committed and child-focused staff.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The very experienced staff use humour to engage young people in having great fun, while managing their moods and behaviour.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The skilled and perceptive staff have in-depth understanding of the young people’s emotional needs, and consistently identify and meet those needs.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Highly trained and vigilant staff work with young people to understand how to keep themselves safe. Incidents of self-harm and of going missing have dropped significantly since the last inspection.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The registered manager knows each of the young person’s backgrounds and needs, and ensures that staff constantly and effectively reflect upon these.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The registered manager provides the staff with regular, supportive and challenging formal and informal supervision to develop their practice and skills.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Since the difficulties identified at the last inspection, the registered manager and team have worked hard to re-establish the stability and security of the home. This follows a period of inadequate staffing, poor matching of the young people and resulting low staff morale.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Some staff do not regularly attend team meetings. This reduces the ability of the registered manager and team to communicate effectively and is an area for improvement.

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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 ‘Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard:

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard, the registered person must— (2)(b) ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate 30 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

 The registered person should only accept placements for children where they are satisfied that the home can respond effectively to the child's assessed needs as recorded in the child's relevant plans and where they have fully considered the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children (‘Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4).

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned children’s home is registered to provide care for up to three children 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

24 February 2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

29 October 2015 Full Requires improvement

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Recent inspection history

10 February 2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Good

Young people enjoy a welcoming and comfortable home, which now has a sense of order and calm. Repairs and redecoration have redressed the damage caused to the home by young people between November and February. Young people’s rooms are personalised and cosy. These improvements have enabled them to relax, and to make significant and sustained progress in all areas of their development. This includes their emotional well-being, mental health, engagement in education, behaviour, self-esteem, self-confidence and ability to reflect. They benefit strongly from relationships with the exceptionally warm and nurturing staff team.

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Good

Young people have great fun with staff, who have an in-depth understanding of the reasons behind their complex difficulties and also of the value of laughter. Humour is a key element in personal interactions, enabling young people to test staff and situations without getting into conflicts from which they cannot back down.

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Good

Young people engage in a range of activities which support their physical and emotional well-being, including going fishing and to the skate park, trips to the seaside, going for walks with staff, swimming and the cinema. At home, they enjoy art, crafts, and playing card games with staff. One young person is a talented pool player and attends a weekly pool club. Another young person has asked to join a gym, and staff are looking into the local possibilities. Activities in the community have enabled one young person to make some local friends.

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Good

Young people respond positively to the consistently enforced boundaries and support from the child-focused staff. This enables them to manage their emotions and behaviour. One young person is delighted that the registered manager has fought for him to have a place at the school of his choice. He has a history of non- school attendance and is now due to commence a restricted timetable, in addition to the education that he currently receives at home with a tutor.

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Good

Recently, both young people requested to move to different bedrooms. Staff agreed to this and they have now settled into their new rooms. Each young person has a ‘memory book’ where they record in words and pictures their achievements and progress. These support their identity and also enable them to recognise and feel pride in their achievements. They attend regular young people meetings where they can openly express their views wishes and feelings, in the knowledge that staff listen and take them seriously. One young people recently interviewed a prospective staff member. Staff supported him to compose write and then put the questions to the interviewee himself.

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Good

One young person, who expressed very positive feelings about each staff member and the registered manager, said: 'Ivy is a very warm and welcoming home, filled with positive energy and smiles from the wonderful staff members, who are all willing to help and be supportive. They encourage each of us young people to be yourself and who we want to be!' Regarding one staff member in particular, she said, 'she is honestly amazing, she never fails to make me smile... Even in my darkest times. We've been through a lot of my problems together and she has never once let me down or left my side.'

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Good

The social worker for another young person says that, since February, she has seen ‘Massive and sustained change in him, regarding safety and presentation. He was focused in his looked after review, listening and contributing, in contrast to his previous review when he was speaking over people and swearing. He has now accepted the need to work with me regarding his contact. He is like a different lad.'

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Good

Since the interim inspection, there has been an improvement in the matching of young people placed at the home, which has led to a significant reduction in challenging behaviour. Staff’s ability to enforce boundaries has contributed to a safer environment. Despite these behaviour management issues, the highly trained and committed staff have kept young people safe and there have been no serious safeguarding incidents. There is now no bullying.

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Good

The young people have become progressively safer and there is a significant reduction in self-harm and missing behaviours. Staff praised and rewarded one young person, who has self-harmed, for handing in anything that could be used to self-harm. These items go into a sharps box, ensuring safe disposal. When young people have gone missing, the staff follow clear guidelines and procedures to find them, to inform the local authority and family members, and to give young people the opportunity to discuss their behaviour once they are returned and safe.

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Good

Staff regularly review thorough risk assessments and behaviour management plans, involving the young people in addressing how they can reduce dangerous behaviours and risks. Staff use the locality risk assessment. They also have very positive and regular communication with local community police support officers, who call in for informal chats with staff and young people. Working together in this way provides the young people with a safeguarding network that extends into the community. Staff demonstrate the high degree of sensitivity and resilience that they need to support young people with highly complex emotional issues. They undertake work with young people to help them to recognise dangers and understand how to keep themselves safe. Key work addresses a range of issues including bullying, safety during free time, self-harm and relationships. Staff go out for an evening walk with one young person who has been at risk of going missing, to provide both

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Good

The staff response to a recent situation, when a young person threatened serious self-harm, was excellent. In addition to following procedures, they fully supported the emotional needs of all young people in the home. The registered manager proactively sought an early meeting with CAMHS and childcare professionals in order to amalgamate their plans, review of risk assessments, external support networks and training for staff.

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Good

Trained staff have assessed one young person as being vulnerable to child sexual exploitation and are vigilant for any signs of grooming. They have ensured that this young person has been kept safe.

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Good

The parent for one young people said, ‘I’ve left from there knowing he is well looked after.’

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Good

The registered manager has a level 5 qualification in management. She has over 25 years’ experience of working with children and young people in residential care. All the permanent staff hold level 3 qualifications. All staff are qualified in first aid.

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Good

Following a period of instability which negatively affected the quality of work that staff could undertake with young people, the registered manager has prioritised the needs of the young people in placement and has not admitted any further young people. She has demonstrated full awareness of both the importance of effective impact assessment and the negative effects on the care of young people from a poor match.

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Good

The registered manager and staff have worked hard since the last inspection to improve the experience and progress of young people in the home, despite continued staff shortages. While staffing levels remain an issue, the registered manager has now appointed two new staff to start shortly, completing a full staff team. She has ensured consistency of staffing for young people by using the same agency or bank staff to cover shifts when possible. Staff handovers are thorough and child focused, ensuring effective communication with regard to the day-to-day needs of the young people.

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Good

The registered manager is very child focused and really enjoys the young people, expressing great warmth towards them and about them. She has ensured that her staff are confident to challenge each other and other agencies if they are failing to meet the needs of young people. Staff benefit from both support and challenge in supervision. The registered manager ensures that staff have the training necessary to meet the needs of the young people and has recently provided staff with attachment training.

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Good

Staff’s recording has improved. Records are accessible and valuable working documents. The regularity of key work, team meetings and young people’s meetings has increased. The registered manager constantly monitors staff practice and, for example, has reviewed their use of sanctions. She has stopped staff from using ineffective sanctions and put alternatives in place, which she is also reviewing.

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Good

The registered manager incorporates feedback from staff, young people, professionals and family members in her review of service in order to drive up standards. She has recently identified a need to adjust the property in order to support visits by a family member who has mobility issues.

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Good

The registered manager responded positively to the requirements from the last inspection, resulting in improved personalised care and safeguarding for young people, better care planning and taking young people’s views, wishes and feelings into account.

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Good

While staff meetings now occur regularly, not all of the staff attend, which is an area for improvement in order to ensure effective communication.

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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.

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What the inspection judgements mean

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.

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What the inspection judgements mean

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.

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What the inspection judgements mean

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 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.

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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 ‘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 0300 123 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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