Children's Home run by Island Choices Ltd in Isle of Wight

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 make good progress and form some very strong relationships with staff while living in the home. Observations showed staff are consistent with young people across shifts which ensures that young people have a good understanding of what is expected of them and helps them to grow and develop.  Staff are demonstrably interested in young people’s day-to-day experiences and also in their views on longer-term goals and ambitions. Young people are encouraged to see it as their home and the atmosphere suggests that they feel this way.  Most young people have completed their GCSE exams recently and all have places for college in the next academic year. Those young people with short-term placements are also making plans locally, in the event that they have not moved on by the next school year. Some young people are also applying for, and successfully getting, interviews for part-time work.  Young people who are approaching adulthood benefit from a comprehensive

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The children's home provision is good because:

package within the home to increase their life skills. Staff test out young people’s skills and support them to learn new skills such as identifying gas and electric suppliers, who to contact for legal advice and how to complete an effective CV.  Young people’s actions and demeanour suggest that they feel safe in the home. They approach staff with confidence and were heard to raise worries and concerns with them. Most young people who live in the home reduce behaviours that have placed them at risk of harm prior to their placement.  The management team is keen to continue improving the home and is working to raise standards, with great effect. It is monitoring the service regularly and increasing staff skills through training and role modelling. There remain some areas of improvement identified as a result of this inspection, which are: ensuring controlled medication is checked and recorded in line with national guidance, reviewing the child protection policy,

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The children's home provision is good because:

ensuring that all complaints are recorded and responded to and ensuring that applicants include the month and year of their previous employment when applying for positions in the home.

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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 may only employ an individual to work at the children's home if the individual satisfies that full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.This relates specifically to ensuring that the employment history includes months and years of employment. (Regulation 32 (3)(d)) 26/08/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep under review and, as necessary, revise the home's child protection policies. This is to ensure that the procedure on reporting and investigating concerns is in line with the local authority and that the policy includes the process should a child harm another child. (Regulation 34 (6)) 26/08/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that a record is made of any complaint, the action taken in response, and the outcome of any investigation. (Regulation 39 (3)) 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 recommendation:  Refer to the ‘managing medicines in care homes’ (March 2014) guideline that applies across both health and social care to determine procedures for recording and monitoring controlled medication (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.17).

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Information about this children's home

The home is owned and run by a private company. It provides care and accommodation for up to seven young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties, across two properties approximately one mile apart.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

18/12/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

14/01/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Good

Young people typically make good progress and form some very strong relationships with staff while living in the home. Observations showed staff being consistent with young people across shifts and not backing down to agreed rules, even when young people became verbally abusive. Discussion with staff identified that incidents of the young person being abusive had reduced since staff had agreed a strategy to managing his demands for money. The registered manager stated that she has taken a step back since the last inspection to evaluate what is happening in both of the homes. Her aim is to improve staff confidence and their consistency towards young people. As a result, young people are clear on what is expected of them and their behaviour is improving. The in-house reward system is currently an effective tool and young people are able to earn money daily. The registered manager recognises that there has been a high turnover of young

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Good

people in the home since the last inspection. She is seeking to rectify this with the local authority with which they have a contract. She is confident that they have placed young people for whom they felt that they could meet their needs and robust pre-placement risk assessments reflect this. Young people have the opportunity to visit the home prior to moving in. The home works with the placing authority to ensure that all relevant services are in place prior to placement. Staff within the home are undertaking life story work training in the coming months to provide this vital piece of work to those living in the home. Staff are demonstrably interested in young people’s day-to-day experiences and also in their views on longer-term goals and ambitions. Young people are encouraged to see it as their home, while respecting that it is also the home of others whom they share it with. A young person who has returned to the home

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Good

after a placement breakdown was confident with staff and despite only being in placement for a couple of weeks, seemed comfortable in his surroundings. Some young people’s placements have not been as effective due to the nature of the short-term placements that the placing authority had agreed with the home. It is felt that this may have led to a lack of investment by the young person in their placement. The registered manager is increasingly mindful of this and recognises that some short placements while a permanent home is sought for a young person can be disruptive to those where the home is their permanent placement. Young people have the opportunity to share their views regularly through house meetings and individual sessions. They are encouraged to share their views at statutory reviews of their placement and education. Staff advocate for young people, an example of which is when a school excluded a young person prior to

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Good

their GCSE exams and managers fought, unsuccessfully, for him to be able to sit his examinations. External advocates and independent visitors are also available should young people require impartial support to have their voices heard. The home’s managers and staff are currently close liaison with the education team and ensuring individuals views are heard on their post 16 options. All those young people over 16 years old are due to start vocational courses in September. A younger resident is waiting for a placement at a children’s home with education. In the meantime, activity plans are in place, which include going to the beach, the cinema and trips to theme parks on the mainland. One young person belongs to a circus skills group and has showed off her skills at local festivals. Young people, in line with their age, mostly want to spend time with their peers in the community. Young people are encouraged to remain in contact with appropriate friends in the

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Good

community and staff check the homes where young people may stay. In addition, they support family contact, including providing transport and supervision as agreed. Young people are encouraged to lead healthy lifestyles and understand what this means for them. Some young people are engaging well with substance misuse workers for information and advice and to reduce their drug and/or alcohol consumption. The staff in the home have close links with sexual health services and the looked after children’s nurse, allowing for prompt referral should there be any concerns. Young people have access to emotional well-being specialists and there are strong links with the children and adolescent mental health services in the local area. Procedures for storing and administering medication within the home are sound. However, controlled medicine stocks are not checked with sufficient frequency or their administration recorded in a bound log.

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Good

Young people who are approaching adulthood, benefit from pathway plans formulated with input from the young person and staff in the home. They have the opportunity to work through a comprehensive package to increase their life skills within the home, which most have started to undertake. Staff test out young people’s skills and support them to learn new skills such as identifying gas and electric suppliers, who to contact for legal advice and how to complete an effective curriculum vitae (CV). One young person is due to have an interview as a kitchen porter as a result of distributing their CV locally. In addition to practical skills, young people are encouraged to live their lives safely and form positive relationships. For one young person, this has allowed them to remove themselves from a harmful relationship, where they were at risk of exploitation and move on to form a safer relationship.

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Good

Young people’s actions and demeanour suggest that they feel safe in the home. They approach staff with confidence and were heard to raise worries and concerns with them. Most young people who live in the home reduce behaviours that have placed them at risk of harm prior to their placement. Examples include being missing less frequently and socialising with more appropriate people in the community. Staff are confident in processes to follow should they feel that a young person is at risk and closely monitor young people’s friendships and relationships. However, the child protection policy is not in line with national guidance and requires review of the manager’s role in safeguarding and to include how to respond should a young person harm another young person. This has limited impact on young people or their safety though. Should an instance arise where staff and managers do not feel that they can keep a young person safe, they liaise

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Good

closely with social workers and their team managers, an area for which the placing authority team manager was particularly complimentary. Staff engage in a wealth of training in relation to child protection and safeguarding, including around child sexual exploitation, radicalisation and self-injurious behaviour. Staff say that the training has helped them to improve practice and they are confident in signs and changes in young people’s behaviour. All young people have an exploitation assessment and staff are mindful of this when considering where young people are and the time that they spend away from the home. Young people do go missing from the home and benefit from a coordinated response when this happens. Staff search for young people in known locations and attempt to contact them by phone. Close working with the local police ensures that they are aware of each young person’s vulnerability and keeps them aware of who

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Good

is currently living in the home. Staff recognise the risks of radicalisation locally and again, monitor those young people who they feel are vulnerable to this risk. When appropriate, staff in the home ensure that young people attend youth offending appointments and engage in their programmes. Those young people involved have significantly reduced their offending behaviour while living in the home. Positive behaviour is promoted through a consistent approach from staff and rewards and incentives. Sanctions are rarely used and there is a focus on making the situation right through a restorative approach, with young people taking responsibility for their actions. Restraint is only used in extreme circumstances and only when all other options have been exhausted. There is a current focus on strengthening staff skills and increasing their de-escalation strategies. Incidents are reviewed for future learning for staff and to better understand how to support

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Good

young people. The police have been called to the home on several occasions since the last inspection. However, this was in line with court orders that the police were to be informed of any incident with a specific young person. Staff recruitment processes are sound. A range of checks are undertaken prior to appointment, including verifying the applicant’s right to work in the United Kingdom. Not all applicants’ employment histories give a month and year when they were employed, meaning that gaps cannot be thoroughly verified. Young people are protected from avoidable risks through regular checks of the home and environment. The location assessment is robust and identifies any areas of concern and how to mitigate the risk. Additionally, risk assessments for young people allow them to take age-appropriate risk in line with their ability and history, while recognising that they are preparing to live independently. This is with specific

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Good

regard to accessing social media and the internet and allowing independent time in the community.

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Requires improvement

The home is well run by the manager, who has been in post since 2010 and holds a qualification relevant to the role. Since the last full inspection, the registered manager has reviewed the service as a whole, to ensure that it has improved. Young people’s plans have improved significantly, reflecting individual needs and views and identifying clear targets. Plans are reviewed monthly to identify progress, ensure that they remain relevant and reflective of young people’s needs. The registered manager uses monitoring from the independent visitor in line with Regulation 44, inspection reports and in-house six-monthly evaluations to determine aspects of the development plan. The plan for the upcoming year is realistic and time monitored, focusing on continuing to upskill staff and improve the fabric of the building. An application has been sent to Ofsted to register the two houses as separate children’s homes, in order to further develop the service

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Requires improvement

provided. However, monitoring has failed to identify the areas noted as requiring further improvement during this inspection. Staff and managers within the home have strong relationships with local services and the placing authority. They feel comfortable in challenging partner agencies if they feel that the service is not working well for the young people in their care. They recognised that this was not the case at the last full inspection, but the registered manager is now confident in saying when they feel that they cannot meet the needs of a child referred to them and when they feel that the placing authority documents are not reflective of the young person. The home has mostly positive relationships with the local community. Neighbour complaints are managed effectively and are mostly resolved to the complainant’s satisfaction. There have been sporadic ongoing issues raised by a local resident and the manager and responsible individual work hard to resolve issues and when

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Requires improvement

necessary change practice in the home. Young people’s complaints are responded to in a robust manner. However, three complaints regarding another’s behaviour have not been logged or formally responded to. A deputy manager is aware of the complaints though and has spoken to the three complainants regarding the issue. The home has a stable staff team that is positive about its roles. The staff members say that they work well as a team and are learning new skills through role modelling of the management team and the extensive training that they receive. They feel well supported through regular supervision, which provides a sound level of challenge. Staff say that they can approach leaders and managers with any ideas that they have or concerns regarding young people or practice. The staff are extremely positive and feel that despite the high number of placement changes, the decisions to place young people or move them on have been in the

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Requires improvement

young person’s best interests. Staff also recognise that working as a team has meant that the current group of young people are making a small, but measurable, amount of progress. Staff make quality daily records on young people’s day, which provide a non-judgemental reflection of how the young person has presented during that shift.

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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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