Children's home SC037941

Good

The children's home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.2

The children's home provision is good because:

 Children and young people enjoy coming to stay at the home and have positive experiences during their time there.  Parents feel confident about their child accessing the short-break service due to the enjoyable experience that it provides for them. Good communication between the home and parents strengthens their confidence in the home.  The home uses a number of methods to gain children’s views on their time at the home, in order to ensure that they enjoy their stay and that their needs are met.  The staff team is stable with very good staff retention, which means that the children enjoy stability and continuity in their relationships with staff.  The process for matching children to each other and staff to children for short breaks is very well managed, enabling children to develop their peer relationships and to be cared for by staff who know them well.  Managers are committed to developing and improving the service.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 The home provides a safe environment for children and young people. It is well equipped with specialist equipment, which some children and young people need.  Children and young people are provided with opportunities to experience a range of leisure activities that are tailored to their preferences and are fully risk assessed.  Competent, experienced staff expertly manage complex health needs and medication regimes to good effect.

p.3

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that must be taken so that the registered persons meet 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 persons must comply within the given timescales.

p.4

Requirement Due date

16: Statement of purpose The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. 16(3)(a)(b) 31/08/2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

44: Independent person: visits and reports (1) The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children's home at least once each month. (7)(a) The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person's report to HMCI. 31/08/2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

36: Children's case records (1)(a) The registered person must maintain records for each child which include the information and documents listed in schedule 3 in relation to each child. Specifically, the most recent looked after child reviews or child in need review should be on file. 31/08/2016

p.4

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendation:  Records of restraint must be kept and should enable the registered person and staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint to identify effective practice and to enable them to respond promptly when any issues or trends of concern emerge. The review should provide the opportunity for amending practice to ensure that it meets the needs of each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulation including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59)

p.4

Information about this children's home

This is a short-break unit run by the local authority. It is registered to provide short- break services for families with children who have a physical and/or learning disability. The maximum number of children and young people who can stay at the home at any time is six.

p.5

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

p.5

Recent inspection history

03/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness

p.5

Recent inspection history

23/03/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

p.5

Good

Children and young people receiving short-break services at this home benefit from a highly experienced and well-qualified staff team that understands their needs and has the skills to ensure that those needs are met. Some young people have complex health needs, and staff are trained in specific areas in order to care for them well. Young people are carefully introduced to the home at their own pace, which helps them to feel settled and secure once they commence their overnight stays. A great deal of attention is paid to ensuring the right match of children in the home at any one time, which results in young people enjoying their stays and having opportunities to socialise and play with others whom they get along with. There is good communication between the home and parents, with a communication book used for most young people to share their experiences and any relevant information about their stays. Parents report high levels of satisfaction

p.6

Good

with the service and regularly compliment the staff team. They are encouraged to be involved with the home and can be invited to team meetings to share information about their child. The inclusive ethos contributes to parents feeling confident about sending their children for stays at the home. A wide range of leisure activities is on offer at the home with several big days out planned to take place over the summer to venues such as the Chill factor, Beamish open air museum and Blackpool. Young people also have a good selection of activities and toys in the home, including a sensory garden, adapted bikes and a sensory room, which ensures that there are suitable activities for all the young people accessing the service. The home has developed its involvement in transition planning for young people and now plays a greater role in this area and in preparing children to become increasingly independent and ready for the next stage in their lives. This work,

p.6

Good

alongside that of parents and school, allows the young people the best chance of acquiring skills and being prepared for adulthood. When young people have needed to reside at the home for longer periods, due to placement breakdown, the home has worked effectively with other agencies to ensure a timely and appropriate move to a permanent placement and has assisted greatly with transition arrangements. For children looked after, the home does not have a system in place for ensuring that all the necessary documentation is in place, for example the most recent child looked after review document. Therefore, a requirement is made in this area. Many of the young people have communication difficulties, and a strength of the home is the variety of ways they have developed for capturing children’s views and wishes about the home and their short stays. Many children benefit from pictures and signs to assist their understanding and communication in the home.

p.6

Good

Observations of young people and staff evidence that staff offer caring and nurturing support in a kind and gentle way, which promotes a calm atmosphere where young people feel comfortable with their carers.

p.7

Good

Young people live in a safe home environment where there is a high level of attention to ensuring that all areas are free of hazards to prevent them from harming themselves. There is specialist equipment, which is regularly serviced and inspected to ensure its continued safety. There is a soft-play space for young people whose behaviour or lack of mobility poses a risk to them, which allows them space to play while ensuring their safety. Staff receive training in the use of specialist equipment so that they do not cause harm to young people when caring for them. They also receive training in safeguarding, and there is a system in place to ensure that any changes to safeguarding policies and procedures are communicated to the staff team. Young people have specific fire risk assessments, in the event that there is a fire, to ensure that they are safeguarded. There has been a recent fire risk assessment,

p.7

Good

and there are plans to implement the recommendations from this to further develop the safety of the building for young people. Young people’s internet use is monitored at all times. The computers in the home that the young people have access to have parental controls, which prevent young people from accessing inappropriate websites. Each young person has an individual risk assessment, which clearly identifies their areas of risk. They also have, when appropriate, manual handling care plans to ensure that they are not harmed while being moved. Activities have risk assessments that are specific to the activity, which ensures that young people can safely take part in a wide range of activities. Medication is safely administered, and there are robust systems in place to ensure that each young person is medicated according to their care plan. Staff are vigilant about checking medication brought into the home with young people to ensure

p.7

Good

that it is the correctly prescribed medication and that it is in date. Young people’s behaviour is managed in a calm and consistent way. Great attention is paid to the young people’s communication needs, to ensure effective communication and thus reduce the likelihood of anger and frustration about communication issues. A wide range of strategies is employed to encourage positive behaviour from the young people, and there are good links with school and parents in respect of consistent behaviour management. Restrictive physical intervention is used only very rarely, as staff are skilled at de- escalating incidents of challenging behaviour. When physical intervention is used, it is accurately recorded. More detailed analysis of any points of learning from incidents would assist positive and consistent behaviour management plans; a recommendation is made to reflect this. Bullying is not an issue in this home. There are high staffing ratios, and children

p.8

Good

and young people are carefully matched to get along with each other and not to have competing needs, which results in peers generally getting along well.

p.8

Good

The home’s manager is well qualified and has a great deal of experience to provide robust management to the home. The support of two assistant managers ensures the smooth running of the home and a good level of management oversight. The home is adequately staffed and resourced to meet the needs of the young people whom it serves. The home offers care to young people in line with its statement of purpose, which clearly sets out the home’s aims and objectives. The statement of purpose requires updating to correctly identify key people, and a requirement is made to reflect this. Managers have a clear understanding of the progress that young people make through a system of target setting, and this allows them to ensure that progress is continuous. Young people’s needs are prioritised, and there is an embedded culture of improvement and development of the service. Training is a particular strength of the home, with training offered in a wide variety

p.8

Good

of areas specific to the needs of the children. Most staff are trained to national vocational qualification (NVQ) level 3, and all other staff are enrolled on the course and complete a large amount of additional training. Staff supervision is regularly provided with a focus on reflection. Staff report a supportive environment where supervision is valued. Managers have a good level of understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. When areas are identified for development, the staff are encouraged to put forward their views for improvement. Several members of staff have a champion role in a variety of areas, which ensures that each area is scrutinised and best practice identified and shared. External monitoring, while currently of a good standard, has previously been of a lower standard. During one month, no visit was undertaken by an independent visitor, and three independent visitor reports were not sent to the regulator, which

p.9

Good

prevented the regulator from having good oversight of the home. A requirement is made to ensure that this issue is addressed. The home has good quality professional relationships with external agencies and works closely with key agencies to ensure that a good all–round quality of care is delivered to young people.

p.9

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’.

p.10

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

p.10

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.

p.10

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 whom 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

p.11

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 .

p.11

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,

p.12

Information about this inspection

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.12

Information about this inspection

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.12

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

p.12