Children's home run by Durham County Council in County Durham

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 leadership and management of the home are strong. The registered manager is highly experienced and is using this experience to make continued improvements to the home and to the care practices. The staff team are becoming stronger and more efficient as a result of this. Recording systems are being developed and this is having a positive impact on the standard of care offered.  There are excellent relationships between the young people and the staff. These young people say that they feel happy and safe and that they can talk to staff easily. These good relationships are the basis of the good work that staff do and of the good progress that the young people are making.  The young people are kept safe. Staff understand risks well and help the young people to minimise any risky behaviour. Levels of going missing from the home are very low and other incidents are few and far between. Any tensions or disagreements between the young people are dealt with

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The children's home provision is good because:

effectively by staff and the young people are supported well to resolve these issues in a restorative way.  Education is given a high priority and all of the young people currently living at the home are doing well at school with good attendance and good achievements. Most of these young people are taking significant exams this year and they are predicted to do well. Staff are helping these young people to make positive choices for future college and work experience.  The young people are supported well to maintain and improve contact with their families and friends. Staff ensure good arrangements are in place for family contact to be facilitated regularly. Staff also encourage the young people to join local clubs and activities in order to make friends and socialise.  The group of young people living at the home are settled and have all been there for some time. Progress is evident from their increased maturity. They

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The children's home provision is good because:

are able to practise and improve their independence skills with staff support and are preparing well for adult life.

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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 within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development (Regulation 33 (4)(a)).

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to; ensuring refresher training takes place and that all staff undertake training in relation to understanding child sexual exploitation; improving recording of staff meetings; and that supervisions include discussion about the needs of children and young people residing at the home. 2 August 2016

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Information about this children's home

The home is run by a local authority and is registered for the care and accommodation of up to five children 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

23 February 2016 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

27 March 2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Good

The home is a settled place to live and the young people living at this home are making good progress. The group has been together for a while and have made good relationships with each other so that they are able to do things together and are also able to resolve arguments or differences when they occur. Staff ensure that each of the young people are treated individually and care planning is good. The registered manager has introduced some new recording systems for planning key work and for assessing independence skills. These are both good systems and they are starting to be used well by staff. These new planning systems are improving the quality of individual work significantly. All the young people spend regular time with specialist external workers who support them to deal with specific difficulties and this supports the good work done by the staff team. One young person sees a worker about drugs and alcohol, other

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Good

young people see workers to discuss their emotional health and some young people have independent advocates who act as additional supports. The young people have good relationships with staff, and a number of the young people clearly had particularly good relationships with the staff who they felt most comfortable with. This ensures that they have someone particular that they can go to with any worries or concerns. One young person told the inspector that ‘staff are great’. The staff have done some good work with several of the young people around anger management and this has clearly contributed to their progress. During the inspection, the inspector observed one young person becoming angry when talking to staff. They were able to take themselves out of the situation and calm themselves down before returning and resuming their conversation. This was clearly a simple and effective technique that had been taught and that worked well

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Good

in practice. One young person has recently left to go and live with a close family member. This was a planned move and had been what this young person had wanted. All the other young people are working towards moving to independence from this home and were being supported to prepare for this. All the young people currently living at the home have excellent school attendance. They have all had difficulties at school in the past, but are all now making good progress again and most of them are now achieving above their predicted grades. A number of the young people are currently taking important exams and have been offered college places for the next academic year. This will ensure that they get off to the best possible start in preparing for employment. One young person who has to get specific grades has a contingency plan in place should they fall slightly below expectation. This would allow for them to receive extra tuition for a

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Good

very quick resit. This planning is particularly positive. One young person spoken to had achieved a ‘pupil of the year’ award and was proud of this. It is clear from speaking to staff that education is given a high priority and that young people are encouraged and supported to take part in extra tuition when needed. Health needs are well looked after and young people are supported to attend relevant health appointments as required. The young people are being well supported by staff to eat healthily and to exercise and several of the young people are making progress with their aims of losing a little weight and getting a bit fitter. One young person was preparing for a local five kilometre fun run for charity. All the young people have outside interests and attend clubs and activities locally during their leisure time. One young person was regularly going horse riding, another was attending cadets and others were taking part in other sports events

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Good

and clubs. This is not only good for health and socialising but also helps to build confidence and self-esteem. Most of the young people attend the local authority’s ‘Care in Durham’ group. This is a forum for ‘looked after’ children and young people. Several of them attend regularly and, at times, some take responsibility for chairing the group. This is positive and is another area where the young people can have their say and contribute towards developing the services. One young person continues to work as a volunteer with younger children in a local youth club and thoroughly enjoys this work. This not only helps others but also boosts this young person’s self-esteem and confidence and is a boost to their future job prospects. Overall, these young people are clearly making progress, they are maturing and dealing with past difficulties and preparing well for adult life. The group is settled and staff and young people have created a culture where they are taking more

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Good

responsibility and are more aware of each other’s needs and feelings. Because they are an older group, staff encourage them to take an active part in dealing with issues when they arise. The young people are able to sit and discuss issues as they arise and are able to have a say in the running of the home. They regularly have a choice of meals and activities and recently have been planning their preferred summer holidays.

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Good

The young people at this home are kept safe. Staff understand the risks that affect these young people and take appropriate steps to minimise these. There have been some incidents at the home where young people have engaged in some risky behaviour, but these do not happen often and are dealt with well by staff when they do happen. One young person has been reported missing from home on two occasions, but these have only been very short episodes and the young person concerned returned quickly of their own volition. A couple of the young people have experimented a little with both alcohol and drugs, but these have mostly been less serious incidents and staff have had the opportunity to talk to them about the dangers and risks associated with this behaviour. There have been some incidents of young people arguing and falling out and at times this has escalated into more aggressive situations and low-level bullying, but

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Good

again staff have worked well to ensure that these issues are resolved quickly and that the young people concerned have been able to apologise appropriately. There is some challenging behaviour displayed by some of the young people on occasions, but staff are able to work with this appropriately. No physical interventions have been necessary and staff rarely use any sanctions. Staff prefer to use the excellent relationships that they have with the young people to resolve any difficult situations. Staff also provide clear, firm boundaries and a good level of consistency when working with any challenging behaviours. Some of the young people have self-harmed at times in the past, but this has greatly reduced now. This is undoubtedly due to the young people feeling better about themselves and their circumstances. One young person was recently involved in a violent incident away from the home. Staff have worked with this young person to address their behaviour and to try and

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Good

ensure that this is not repeated. The young person concerned is taking advice from a drugs and alcohol worker and is working with both staff and the youth offending services to address the issues around this incident. Staff have also worked with the other young people in the home to ensure that they are not worried by this incident and the young people spoken to confirm that they have been reassured. A number of social workers and independent reviewing officers spoken to confirm that they have no concerns about the home and that they agree that the young people they are responsible for are making good progress. The young people spoken to said that they felt safe at the home and in fact said that they feel much safer now that the group is more settled than it was previously.

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Good

The registered manager has a great deal of experience of this work and although he has only been at the home for less than two years, he has made a substantial contribution to improving practice and improving the quality of care of the young people. The registered manager is appropriately qualified. The statement of purpose has recently been reviewed and is appropriate. It is clear that the home is achieving the aims and objectives set out in this document. The home is well kept and maintained. It is appropriately furnished and the decor is suitable. Young people clearly have a say in how the home looks and, at times, are able to help out. One young person was being supported by the housekeeper to paint their bedroom during the inspection and made an excellent job of this. The home has good facilities and is cosy and homely. It is, however, large enough for young people to have their own space and one young person commented very

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Good

positively on this saying that they liked to be able to have time away from the other young people without having to go to their bedroom. During his short time as registered manager, it is clear that the registered manager has assessed the strengths and weaknesses of his staff team and the work that they were doing and has carefully planned what changes were needed. He is now implementing these changes in an organised and collaborative way. The registered manager has created a culture in the home where staff are able to take responsibility and make decisions. Staff are encouraged to try and work in new ways and responsibilities are regularly delegated. This empowers workers and allows them to be more active in caring for the young people. This culture is also reflected in the work with the young people. They are encouraged to express their ideas and their feelings and they are encouraged to take responsibility for their

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Good

actions and for dealing with and resolving any difficulties that arise. This is an appropriate way of working with an older group of young people and is preparing them for adult life in a comprehensive manner. Young people do make good progress and the registered manager and staff clearly give a high priority to the needs of the young people. All of the young people currently living in the home are approaching independence and staff were actively encouraging them to practise independence skills and household chores. The inspector observed this in practice. There is a fine balance between encouraging young people to do chores and getting results and becoming too overbearing and insistent and not getting results. Staff were achieving this balance well and young people were responding positively. Staff say that they are supported by the registered manager and it is also clear that the senior staff team are experienced and skilled. There are now opportunities

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Good

to improve staff development and a requirement has been made at this inspection to address these issues. The requirement is to ensure that staff have the opportunity for continual professional development.

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Good

There are three strands to this requirement. First, additional staff training is needed. Some staff have not had all their refresher training that is due and some staff have not had the opportunity to undertake training around child sexual exploitation. Second, although staff meetings happen regularly, they have not been recorded well enough, so that some staff are unable to catch up on these discussions if they have been unable to attend. Third, supervisions are regular but there are not sufficient records of staff being able to discuss the needs of children and young people in any depth.

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Good

All these issues could be improved and could provide staff with greater development opportunities for learning.

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Good

There were no requirements or recommendations made at the last inspection.

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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

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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