Children's home in Preston

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:

 Staff do not implement good routines, particularly at night, and this has led to periods of disruptive behaviour at bedtime and during the night. Consequently, young people do not benefit from consistently good sleep patterns which impacts on their health and well-being. A recent review by managers and staff has led to tighter boundaries being implemented but the impact of this is yet to be realised.

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The children’s home provision requires improvement because:

 Behaviour management is not always effective. Young people are not yet receiving good support to help them learn alternative ways of managing their frustrations and anger. As a result, some young people exhibit aggressive behaviours and cause damage to the home.

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The children’s home provision requires improvement because:

 De-escalation techniques employed by staff are not always effective. This has resulted in the police being called to the home on occasion and some young people being criminalised.

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The children’s home provision requires improvement because:

 Young people’s health is not consistently promoted. Delays in making appointments means that some young people have not had all their routine health checks within timescales.

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The children’s home provision requires improvement because:

 Although staff report feeling supported by the new manager in post, he does not provide them with regular supervision. Furthermore, staff are not always provided with the opportunity to reflect on significant events that happen in the home to help them learn from what has happened and develop their practice.

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The children’s home provision requires improvement because:

 Quality assurance monitoring is not sufficiently robust. This does not help to drive progress and limits the capacity of the home to improve its overall effectiveness.

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The children’s home provision requires improvement because:

 Shortfalls exist in recruitment practice because appropriate references are not sourced in all cases. This does not fully protect young people from unsuitable people having access to them.

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The children’s home strengths

 Young people can identify trusted adults they can talk to about their concerns. They know how to complain and exercise their right to do so. Staff take complaints and concerns seriously and act upon them promptly.

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The children’s home strengths

 Young people benefit from open and honest discussions with staff about important issues such as e-safety and drug use. As a result, young people know about associated risks and this helps them to make some changes to their behaviour.

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The children’s home strengths

 Young people develop some positive relationships with staff, and are beginning to invest in these. They recognise and appreciate when staff help them, particularly in respect of organising further education opportunities.

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The children’s home strengths

 Some young people make good progress from their starting points. For example, they grow in confidence and maturity. When young people do not make progress, managers advocate for assessments of need to be carried out, and take steps to review placement suitability.

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The children’s home strengths

 Staff work hard to ensure that young people new to the home are welcomed and helped to settle in. They get to know young people quickly and develop a good understanding of their needs.

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The children’s home strengths

 Staff fully support young people to maintain contact with their families. Consequently, young people enjoy improved relationships with people who are important to them. When young people do not wish to have contact, this is respected and demonstrates that they are listened to and treated as individuals.

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The children’s home strengths

 The recently appointed manager understands the needs of the service and that further improvement is required to be good. He is making efforts to bring the team together to provide greater consistency and improve outcomes for young people.

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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

10: The health and well-being standard In order to meet the health and well-being standard the registered person must ensure— (2)(a)(iii) that staff help each child to take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs. 19/08/2016

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Requirement Due date

11: The positive relationships standard In order to meet the positive relationships standard the registered person must ensure— (2)(a) that staff— (iii) encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding; (iv) help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone; (x) are provided with supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children to do the same; (xi) de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children. 19/08/2016

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Requirement Due date

12: The protection of children standard In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure— (2)(b) that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. In particular, staff must support young people effectively at night to minimise levels of disruptive behaviour. 19/08/2016

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard In order to meet the leadership and management standard the registered person must enable, inspire and lead a culture in relation to the children’s home that— 19/08/2016 (1)(a) helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— (a) lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose; (c) ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; (h) use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

44: Independent person: visits and reports Ensure the independent person who visits the home produces a report which sets out whether children are effectively safeguarded and the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being (Regulation 44(4)(a)(b)). 19/08/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  Ensure that the children’s guide contains sufficient information to help children to understand how to contact the Office of the Children’s Commissioner. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 24, paragraph 4.21)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that staff encourage the young person to continue their education or training and support them to develop the skills necessary to succeed in the option they choose. Specifically, ensure that young people are appropriately supported in their transition to college. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.16)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that when a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority provides an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the registered person maintains good employment practice, specifically in relation to references, and verifies, as far as practicable, the reasons for leaving relevant employment with young people and vulnerable adults. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the registered person notifies Ofsted and other relevant persons if one of the situations specified in regulation 40(a–e) occur. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.10)

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Information about this children’s home

This is a local authority run children’s home. It is registered to provide care for up to six young people aged between 11 and 17 years 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

11/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

25/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Requires improvement

Routines and boundaries, particularly at night, are not good and require improvement. Young people do not always come in on time from being out with their friends, and when they do come in they create disturbances. Staff recognise that they have not been consistent in their approach, which has added to the difficulties. Consequently, young people do not settle well and engage in disruptive behaviour at bedtime and during the night. This behaviour is sometimes very challenging and persistent. Because young people are not coming in on time and not settling, they are not developing good sleep patterns, which impacts on their safety well-being. Managers and staff have started to address this issue and are implementing different strategies and incentive schemes to bring about change. It is early days and the benefits of this are yet to be fully tested and realised. Young people’s health needs are not met consistently. Some receive good support.

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Requires improvement

For example, staff persist in helping young people with their phobia of the dentist. As a result they access a specialist scheme designed to assist people with a dental phobia. Progress is slow but steps are being taken to help young people overcome these difficulties. Staff are not always proactive in organising routine health checks and, as a result, young people experience delays in accessing services. Although this is now being addressed and appointments have been made, such delays do not fully promote young people’s health and well-being. Education outcomes are mixed. Some young people make good progress. For example, one young person is on track to achieve their predicted grades in his GCSE examinations. Other young people continue to struggle to engage consistently with education, despite alternative provision being put into place. This is impacting on levels of progress being made with their learning, and may affect

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Requires improvement

their future life chances. Efforts by staff to address this have led to some improvements. For example, one young person has engaged intermittently with his home tutor and has now sat some foundation level exams. Another young person has recently asked for help in gaining functional skills in English and mathematics after being persistently reluctant to do so. This demonstrates a potential shift in his motivation and attitude to learning.

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Requires improvement

All young people have now completed their secondary education and each has secured, with the help of staff, a place on a college or training course for September 2016. One young person said: ‘At first teachers said I could not go to the 6th form, but because of [X’s] intervention, they changed their decision’. This demonstrates that staff advocate for young people and champion their needs. Clear support plans, particularly for those young people who struggled with compulsory education, are not yet in place. This is identified as an area for improvement, to ensure that they are fully supported in what may be a difficult transition for them.

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Requires improvement

Young people new to the home are appropriately welcomed. Where possible, young people visit before moving in to enable them to look around and meet staff and other residents. This helps them to allay their fears and anxieties. One social worker commented: ‘Colleagues did everything possible to ensure [X] felt welcomed, he was anxious on arrival but did feel better afterwards’. Young people receive a welcome guide to the home. This does not include information about how to contact the office of the children’s commissioner, or accurate information about how to contact Ofsted. Consequently, this is identified as an area for improvement.

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Requires improvement

Staff quickly get to know young people and are able to demonstrate a good understanding of their needs. This is reflected in placement plans and risk assessments which are shared with young people and subject to regular review.

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Requires improvement

Young people told the inspector that they have their say both in the day-to-day running of the home, and in respect of their care plans. House meetings take place regularly, and young people either attend review meetings about their care or consult with their social worker or independent reviewing officer beforehand. As a result, young people make a positive contribution to decisions affecting them.

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Requires improvement

Young people develop some positive relationships with staff and make progress relative to their starting points in some aspects of their development. For example, one young person is developing better self-care skills, is more able to cope with disappointment, and is beginning to accept praise. Another young person is growing in confidence and maturity and his mum commented that her son ‘has really come into his own since living at [the home]’.

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Requires improvement

Staff fully support young people to maintain contact with their families and this area of practice is particularly strong. Consequently, young people enjoy improved relationships with people who are important to them. When young people do not wish to have contact, this is respected and demonstrates that they are listened to and treated as individuals.

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Requires improvement

Staff celebrate young people’s achievements and provide them with positive memories to cherish. For example, one young person was excited about his school prom, was appropriately ‘suited and booted’, and looked incredibly smart. He was particularly pleased that staff had organised for him to be taken to the event in a Mercedes car! Judgement grade

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Requires improvement

Some weaknesses are evident in staff recruitment processes. Managers complete a range of pre-employment checks prior to staff starting work in the home. However, they do not adhere to all the principles of safer recruitment. For example, references for one member of staff are insufficient and efforts are not consistently made to verify reasons for leaving relevant employment. This process does not fully protect young people from unsuitable people having access to them. Behaviour management practice is not consistently good. Consequences primarily focus on financial reparation and are not helping young people to recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves and others. Young people do not yet receive good support to help them learn alternative ways of managing their frustrations and anger and, as a result, some young people continue to exhibit aggressive behaviours and cause damage to the home.

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Requires improvement

Staff are trained to de-escalate volatile situations but they are not always successful in practice. As a result, some situations escalate to the point where the police are called to the home. Young people have been charged with criminal offences and this will potentially have an impact on their future life chances. Areas identified for improvement are to ensure that staff revisit de-escalation strategies, and managers consider other support mechanisms for staff to minimise the need for police involvement at times of crisis. Young people do not go missing from the home often but some do have incidents of being absent without permission. Some occurrences are for short periods of time, with young people arriving home later than expected. On other occasions, young people are away from the home without permission for a number of hours or leave the home at night. This places them at potential risk of harm. Staff do

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Requires improvement

make efforts to look for them and make contact with them, but when they are unsuccessful and cannot establish their whereabouts, they do notify the police in line with the home’s procedures and local protocols. On one occasion, staff did not follow due process. This is being taken seriously and is subject to an internal review. Because of efforts to locate young people, staff identified that they sometimes visit the home of an ex-resident who is now living independently in the local community. The manager has taken steps to address this and liaised with relevant people to minimise reoccurrence. Furthermore, the manager is taking action to engage social workers and the police to review the risks associated with recent absences from the home by young people, and ensure that coordinated plans are in place. Return interviews do not take place for periods of absence. Although the manager intends to address this at the scheduled risk management meeting, a

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Requires improvement

recommendation is raised from this inspection to ensure that return interviews are implemented where necessary to fully promote the welfare and safety of young people. Young people can identify a trusted adult who they can speak to if they have any concerns. They are clear about how to make a complaint and have exercised their right to do so. All complaints are taken seriously, thus demonstrating that staff listen to young people and act on their concerns. Overall, staff demonstrate a good understanding of e-safety. Regular discussions with young people about this relevant issue enable them to have a better understanding about the risks posed by social media if not used safely and sensibly. When related concerns arise, staff respond promptly and appropriately, ensuring that young people receive the right advice to safeguard them. Young people benefit from open and honest discussions with staff about other

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Requires improvement

important issues such as drug misuse. As a result, young people know about associated risks and this helps them to make some changes to their behaviour. Health and safety checks are carried out regularly and, consequently, the home provides a safe environment for young people to live in. Young people and staff are supported to understand what to do in the event of a fire, and know how to evacuate the building safely in such an emergency.

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Requires improvement

The home has been under different management since the departure of the previous registered manager in March 2016. The new manager who has been in post since this time has applied to register with Ofsted. He was the assistant manager, and therefore has relevant experience and knowledge of the home. This provides some continuity for staff and young people. He holds the registered manager’s award and so is suitably qualified. The manager understands that the home needs to improve to provide good standards of care to young people, and to fulfil the aims and objectives outlined in its statement of purpose. He identifies some of the main developmental priorities within the quality of care review report but this is not underpinned by a clear plan to support implementation. As a result, he is not making the most of internal monitoring systems and improvements are slow to materialise. External monitoring systems are not sufficiently robust. Reports contain

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Requires improvement

inaccuracies and lack evaluation about whether young people are effectively safeguarded and their welfare promoted. They do not always contain enough information about significant incidents that occur, and therefore do not accurately reflect events that take place in the home. A lack of effective oversight does not help to drive improvements forward. Not all significant incidents are reported to Ofsted in line with regulation. This undermines the ability of the regulator to carry out its monitoring function because it is not kept appropriately informed. Consequently, the welfare of young people is not fully promoted. Staff shortages due to sickness have not supported continuity and consistency for young people in recent months. Managers have taken steps to recruit a pool of casual staff, lessening the need for agency workers. Further efforts are being made to temporarily fill posts with individuals who can provide consistency, and therefore

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Requires improvement

greater continuity of care until full time staff are employed. The benefits of this for young people are yet to be fully realised. Staff demonstrate a resilience and commitment to work through some challenging times. They say that the new manager is working hard to bring the team together and that his enthusiasm and positivity is re-energising them to do so. Although staff reported to the inspector that they feel supported, gaps in supervision mean that they do not have the opportunity to regularly reflect on their own practice. Furthermore, when significant events occur, managers do not provide sufficient de- briefs so that staff learn from what has happened. As a result, staff are not provided with consistently good support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of young people. A plan is in place to address this but is yet to be fully implemented.

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Requires improvement

Staff access a range of training and development opportunities, and they have completed mandatory courses. All contracted staff have completed training up to level 3 within the relevant timescales as specified in regulation. This inspection identified that some specific training needs have not been met. For example, not all staff have received training in drug and alcohol misuse. This means that staff are not fully equipped with up-to-date knowledge to fully meet young people’s individual needs and promote their welfare.

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Requires improvement

The manager recognises the extent to which young people make progress from their starting points. When this is not sufficiently good, he has requested further needs assessments, which are currently being undertaken. In addition, he has called meetings to review placement suitability. This means that the manager is beginning to take action and involve other agencies where necessary to address young people’s support needs. Social workers speak positively about staff communication. One social worker commented: ‘They provide good records so I can see what has been happening in the home on a day-to-day basis’. Good communication helps to promote good working relationships with partner agencies.

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Requires improvement

The home is maintained to a reasonable standard and any damage to the home is repaired quickly. Improvements in standards of care mean that staff support young people to maintain their bedrooms. The home, overall, is tired and worn. A new home has been built next door, and the plan is for the young people to move into this once it has been registered with Ofsted. The young people and staff are excited about this and are looking forward to living in a home that is brighter, bigger, and much more modern than their current one.

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Requires improvement

Five requirements and five recommendations have been raised at this inspection to address shortfalls and secure the necessary improvements.

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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 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 that 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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