Children's Home run by Anderida Adolescent Care Ltd in East Sussex

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:

 There is a strong focus on the need to keep young people safe and protect them from harm. Action taken to prevent young people going missing and placing themselves at risk of sexual exploitation is a strength of the home.  The therapeutic model underpinning practice is understood by staff and implemented in practice. This ensures consistency of care for the young people.  A stable and committed staff team provides high standards of care. They are well supported by leaders and managers to undertake their role.  Care plans are detailed and effectively address the needs of young people. Over time, young people become more engaged in the care planning process.  Young people develop increased levels of emotional resilience and psychological well-being. They have access to a range of specialist support services to help them overcome past negative experiences.  Transition planning is effective, and some young people benefit from

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The children's home provision is good because:

receiving outreach support when they move on from the home.  Young people become motivated to do well in education, despite having had negative experiences in the past.  The registered manager drives forward continuous improvement and seeks creative ways to secure better outcomes for young people.  Strong efforts are made to avoid young people becoming criminalised, by working in partnership with other agencies to seek community resolution.  The quality of relationships between staff and young people are good, and young people develop the confidence to share their concerns.  One shortfall was identified in relation to staffing levels not being consistent with that described in the home’s statement of purpose.

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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

13: The leadership and management standard In order to meet the leadership and management standard, specifically in relation to having sufficient staff on duty to prevent young people from harming one another, the registered person should— (2)(d) ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child. 26/08/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  Ensure children are supported to develop understanding and empathy towards each other. Specifically, encourage young people to engage in restorative meetings and young people's meetings in order to build more positive relationships ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 39, paragraph 8.11).  Ensure the policy on protection of children from abuse and neglect includes arrangements in relation to dealing with allegations involving staff in the home. Specifically, ensure the procedures give clear guidance on when a member of staff would be suspended following an allegation being made ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 44, paragraph 9.19).  Ensure the registered person challenges any placing authority who asks them to

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Recommendations

accept a child in the absence of a complete and current relevant plan. Specifically, senior managers should challenge placing authorities who have not met a request to provide a current placement plan ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 56, paragraph 11.5).  Ensure recruitment minimises potential risks to children. Specifically, ensure accurate information is obtained in relation to the career history of potential employees ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.1).

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Information about this children's home

The setting is registered to accommodate two young people, irrespective of gender, with emotional or behavioural difficulties. It is owned by a private company.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

26/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Good

A skilled and dedicated staff team has a good understanding of the needs of the young people and builds positive relationships with them. They provide consistently high levels of care, despite some young people presenting very challenging behaviours, including aggression towards staff. One young person said ‘staff care for you, and I am happy here’. Staff take a keen interest in young people’s everyday experiences and praise them for their achievements, both in school and in their leisure activities. These positive relationships give young people the confidence to talk to staff about sensitive issues, such as past abusive experiences and sexual health. Staff respond sensitively and ensure that appropriate action is taken to address such matters. Regular key work sessions are focused on the young person’s needs and reflect what is written in the care plan and associated targets. ‘Chat’ meetings with young

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Good

people help them to reflect on where they are making good progress and areas where they could make improvements. This is an effective way of engaging young people in the care planning process. Over time, most young people develop greater emotional resilience and improved psychological well-being, as a result of the care and stability that they experience at the home. One young person, who left the home in recent months and is now receiving outreach support from the staff, said, ‘As I became comfortable with staff I began to understand myself more. They helped me understand my past, and I began to acknowledge what I had been through.’ A particular strength of the home is the commitment to support young people through transition and adjusting to independent living. Young people have places at the organisation’s school and maintain high levels of attendance. This is a significant achievement, as the young people have previously

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Good

had negative experiences of education and demonstrated a reluctance to engage. One young person spoke enthusiastically about the activities that she engages in during the school day, particularly in relation to working on the organisation’s animal farm. Young people also learn new skills at home, such as cooking and completing domestic chores. A range of stimulating activities helps young people to develop their interests, engage with the local community and take healthy exercise. One young person is making significant progress with horse riding lessons and is taking great pride in her achievements. Another young person spoke about the plans that she was making for the school summer holidays, including a trip abroad. Currently, the young people rarely engage in activities together, as peer relationships in the home are poor. Previously, this has resulted in aggression and antagonistic behaviours. Staff say that this aspect of their relationships has

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Good

improved, although young people expressed negative attitudes towards one another during the inspection. Staff have attempted restorative work with the young people, but this has had limited success. The health needs of young people are well met. A healthy diet is provided, and young people take exercise. They attend all necessary medical appointments, and the recording and administration of medication is well managed. Young people have excellent access to specialist psychological support and engage positively with therapy. Staff receive advice and guidance from the therapy team and this informs the strategies that they adopt in meeting young people’s needs and responding to challenging behaviour. Over time, this results in young people making their own suggestions for how they may cope more effectively in stressful situations. Staff work effectively with parents, carers, professionals and young people to

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Good

agree contact arrangements with family members. Young people are supported to manage their anxieties about contact and to reflect on their positive and negative experiences. In some cases, this has led to young people making suggestions that will make contact a more positive experience for all concerned.

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Good

A high standard of practice ensures that young people reduce the number of incidents and severity of unsafe behaviours. A strength of the home is the coordinated response to young people who go missing and place themselves at risk of being sexually exploited. Observant staff take a proactive approach to disrupting behaviours that could put young people at risk. Staff follow young people if they leave the home without permission and follow this up with strenuous efforts to locate them if their whereabouts become unknown. This includes maintaining regular contact with the young person’s known associates and making enquiries in the local vicinity. Staff are vigilant to any signs that a young person is being sexually exploited and have responded immediately when concerns become apparent. This has included observation of the area during the early hours of the morning to establish how young people who have been missing are transported back to the home, recording

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Good

car registration numbers and getting permission to check young people’s phone records. Effective communication takes place with the local authority safeguarding team, ensuring that information is shared in a timely manner. A professional from the multi-agency safeguarding hub stated, ‘Strong practice ensured that one young person significantly reduced her risk level.’ This strong practice is partly attributable to the provision of good-quality training and regular team discussion, focused on the needs of young people and the risks that they present. Risk assessments are updated following any significant event and provide staff with clear guidance and strategies for keeping young people safe. The home has a detailed locality assessment and this is a useful tool for alerting staff to the dangers that young people may face in their local community. The relationships that staff build with young people are another significant factor

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Good

impacting on their increasing safety. Skilled staff enable young people to reflect on past behaviours and how these could have resulted in them coming to harm. For example, one young person has identified that contact arrangements with family members placed her at increased risk of going missing. The support that she received from staff gave her the confidence to request that alternative arrangements be made. Young people also receive a consistent message about the risks associated with accessing the internet and social media sites. One young person said that she knows the risks because she ‘hears it all the time’. Young people report that they feel safe living in the home, although they do make reference to regular conflict with their peers. Staff have a good understanding of the triggers for conflict among the young people and implement strategies which reflect the home’s therapeutic model to address these. These have not always

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Good

prevented young people physically harming each other or harming staff who intervene to protect them. The registered manager and staff report that some young people often refuse to engage in restorative meetings to address peer relationships and that young people’s house meetings are not viable with the current residents. Although work is undertaken on an individual basis to address the conflict between the young people, discussions involving all concerned are infrequent. A social worker said that this issue was ‘the only downside to an otherwise positive placement’. Staff receive training to manage young people’s behaviour, using methods to de- escalate challenging situations. Physical restraint is used as a last resort to prevent injury or significant damage to property. Young people are encouraged to discuss their feelings following an incident when they have been restrained and the registered manager consistently reviews all records pertaining to such incidents. A

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Good

young person who has often been restrained in recent months said that restraints only occur for a good reason and confirmed that she had never been harmed as a result of such action being taken. The registered manager has overseen the development of positive working relationships with the police and local youth offending team. This has resulted in good partnership working, particularly in relation to young people at risk of offending. This has largely avoided young people becoming criminalised, although there have been exceptions due to the seriousness of the young person’s behaviour or their refusal to cooperate with community based resolutions. All child protection concerns are reported in a timely manner to the relevant authorities. Allegations made against staff are dealt with promptly and action is taken in accordance with the organisation’s procedures for dealing with allegations. These procedures do not indicate when managers would suspend a member of

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Good

staff following an allegation being made and an investigation being initiated. Appropriate consultation takes place with the designated person in the local authority when allegations are made against staff. The designated person confirmed that ‘managers are proactive and will phone me if they have queries or concerns’. She recently advised the organisation to review its policy on staffing levels when young people are taken on residential trips. This was completed promptly by the organisation and did not result in staffing levels being raised. However, as a result of the review, approval is now sought from senior managers in placing authorities before the residential trip takes place. Recruitment procedures are generally suitable and minimise the possibility of an unsafe adult being employed in the home. One minor shortfall was identified in relation to checking potential employees’ career history dates. This resulted from a

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Good

failure to notice that dates of employment provided by a referee did not tally with the information recorded on the application form. A strength of the recruitment process is that potential employees undertake a supervised trial shift and young people are asked to provide feedback on the applicants’ performance. This demonstrates how young people’s views are taken into account as part of the organisation’s commitment to keeping them safe.

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Good

The registered manager has significant experience of working with vulnerable children and young people and has been in post for three and a half years. She holds the level 5 diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare. The home is well managed and young people benefit from being cared for by a stable staff team, the majority of who hold relevant qualifications. Generally, there are sufficient staff on duty to meet the needs of young people. However, during April 2016 the volatile relationship between two young people culminated in two incidents of violence. On both occasions, two staff were on duty. The home’s statement of purpose at the time stated that ‘staff work at a 2:1 ratio with the young people’. Both staff were needed to physically restrain one of the young people after she had injured her peer. Following the second incident, a police officer expressed the view that the two young people were not safe living

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Good

together. The registered manager was able to reassure the officer that this was not the case. After the first incident, leaders and managers did not take action to increase staffing levels to that stated in the statement of purpose. One of the reasons given for this during the inspection was that these incidents ‘do not happen often’. However, managers had been informed by the therapist working with one of the young people that her behaviour was likely to become more challenging in the short term. This shortfall is not indicative of the overall good standard of leadership present in the home. Effective monitoring systems ensure that any deficits in the quality of care provided are quickly identified. Consultation takes place with the young people to establish their views on how they are being cared for and this helps to identify strengths and areas for improvement. The registered manager reviews the paperwork relating to

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Good

all serious incidents and this feeds into her assessment of whether practice is effectively meeting the needs of the young people. An independent visitor ensures that there is an appropriate level of scrutiny and challenge, if needed. The registered manager maintains oversight of young people’s care plans and ensures that they are reviewed and amended to reflect the changing circumstances of young people. She ensures that relevant goals are set and monitors that over time young people become more engaged in the care planning process. Young people are able to express their hopes and wishes for the future and become motivated to achieve these. Leaders and managers build productive working relationships with professionals from other agencies. Strong partnership working with the police and safeguarding professionals has resulted in effective work to disrupt young people becoming sexually exploited. The registered manager challenges placing authorities when

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Good

paperwork is not received on time. In one case, this did not have the desired outcome. At the time of this inspection, this had not been escalated by senior managers in the organisation to seek resolution. Care staff receive consistently high levels of support to undertake their role effectively. This includes regular supervision, which is focused on the needs of young people and keeping them safe, and their own professional development. Staff also attend a range of practice-based forums, which complement the therapeutic model underpinning practice in the home. Leaders and managers recognise the emotional impact that the work has on staff and provide counselling and time away to recuperate from particularly stressful situations. A comprehensive induction programme ensures that staff are well prepared for the role. This is followed by regular training, relevant to understanding and meeting the needs of the residents. This ensures that staff gain the knowledge and skills to

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Good

implement the therapeutic model, which is becoming embedded in practice. Staff were able to describe a number of interventions undertaken with young people and the rationale for applying these. Apart from the inaccuracy regarding staffing levels, previously referred to in this report and corrected during the inspection, the statement of purpose is a detailed representation of the services being provided. It is kept under review and updated to reflect changes in how the home operates. Overall, the home is well maintained and any damage caused by young people is repaired in a timely manner. Young people are encouraged to contribute towards making it a homely environment and have recently become involved in making the newly renovated garden area a pleasant environment in which to relax and learn new hobbies and skills. The registered manager is committed to ensuring continuous improvement in the service delivered by the home and the wider organisation. She is currently

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Good

engaged in the development of core standards of practice, regarding the prevention of young people becoming radicalised by extremist views. When fully developed, this will include a toolkit for identifying risks in the vicinity of each of the organisation’s homes. This demonstrates a creative approach to securing positive outcomes for young people.

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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

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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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