Children's home run by Lynstead Children’s Services Ltd in Cannock Chase

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:

 Through close, individualised support, young people develop trusting relationships with staff and develop a sense of stability and security. 

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 Young people who have complex emotional needs are responding to the nurturing care provided by the committed staff team. They are showing positive developments in many aspects of their lives. 

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 Young people enjoy living in the home. Staff actively engage with them in play and meaningful activities. They have positive childhood experiences and have fun. 

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 An experienced registered manager provides effective leadership to the staff, who are motivated to provide high quality care. The registered manager and the staff team have worked with dedication to ensure positive outcomes for young people living in the home. 

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 The registered manager has addressed the shortfalls evident at the previous inspection. There are plans in place to address the previous requirement to implement fully the therapeutic ethos as set out in the statement of purpose. However, it currently remains the case that staff have not undertaken suitable training and are not currently receiving the required levels of support and supervision to apply the therapeutic approach. 

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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

Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16 (5)). 30/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that staff have the appropriate experience, qualifications and skills for the work that the individual is to perform and has attained the appropriate qualification by the relevant date. (Regulation 32 (3)(b) and Regulation 32 (5)(a)(b)) 30/12/2016

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for three young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. It is operated by a private organisation.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

05/11/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

30/12/2014 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Good

Young people living at the home are settling and responding to the nurturing care provided by an experienced and committed staff team. A young person stated that, ‘It’s the best place.’ Individualised support, delivered sensitively with warmth and good humour, enables young people to build trusting relationships with the adults who care for them. From this foundation of trust, young people respond to the thoughtful guidance and support. They are showing positive developments in many aspects of their lives. Young people are engaged in education. Their attendance at school is excellent and they are making progress. For example, one young person is on target to achieve a good range of qualifications at the end of key stage 4. Young people participate in a range of activities appropriate to their age, within the home and the local community. A young person commented that, ‘Activities are great and I get to do something every day.’ The home is well resourced with age-

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Good

appropriate toys and games. A specific room is currently designated as an art and music room, providing a young person who has a special interest in these areas with space, equipment and materials to explore and further these interests. Community activities include boxing, cycling, snooker, trampolining, cinema and walks on the beach. Through participating in these activities, young people are developing self-confidence and self-identities, and enriching their social experiences. Staff monitor young people’s health needs closely. Detailed health plans with identified targets ensure that young people receive health services according to their specific needs. They access external health resources when necessary, including the child and adolescent mental health service (CAMHS). They also benefit from a psychology report and an emotional needs assessment from the organisation’s clinical psychologist. Staff promote a healthy lifestyle, including

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Good

nutritious meals and exercise. Staff value young people’s views and opinions. Weekly meetings with young people provide a forum for them to put forward their ideas and suggestions relating to day-to-day matters. Informal conversations and key work sessions provide opportunities to consult individually with young people. Young people have made known their views on menus, activities, holidays and decorating their rooms. Young people are learning that their opinions are important and that staff listen, which helps to develop their self-esteem and their understanding that staff appreciate them as unique individuals. Helping young people to acquire independence skills is part of their daily routine. Staff support young people to acquire the skills necessary for their future at a pace and level appropriate to their stages of development.

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Good

The home provides a safe and nurturing environment for young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties. Through close staff supervision, a consistent approach and strong boundaries, routines and structure, young people develop a sense of safety, protection and trust in the adults who care for them. Within a short period from their admission, young people show an improvement in their behaviour. Staff support them to manage their emotions. One young person with a history of violence and aggression has not displayed such behaviour at the home. As young people develop positive relationships with staff they feel contained, safe and more able to talk about their feelings and emotions. Current care plans and risk assessments demonstrate that staff understand young people’s individual needs and the risks associated with each young person. Requirements made at the previous inspection relating to care plans and risk

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Good

assessments have been met. Appropriate measures are in place to protect them from harm with clear and detailed guidance for staff to implement effective interventions. Behaviour management plans provide staff with supportive strategies specific to each young person. Young people are benefiting from a focus on their emotional needs with recommendations from a clinical psychologist incorporated into their plans. A report from CAMHS concludes that a young person is responding well to living at the home and to staff support for their emotional needs. Young people listen to staff advice and guidance and apply this positively to their behaviour, which is improving. Physical intervention is used rarely and only when necessary to reduce the risk of harm to the young person and others or to prevent serious damage to property. Staff undertake appropriate training to manage such incidents safely with close monitoring by the registered manager. Staff know the young people very well and

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Good

are skilled in de-escalation techniques so that they manage potentially challenging behaviour effectively. Incidents involving physical intervention, and all other significant incidents, are followed up by the registered manager with a debrief with both the staff and the young person. This allows staff to reflect on the incident and consider whether alternative strategies would be more effective. Post-incident discussions with the young people help them to develop insight into the reasons for their behaviour and learn how they can express their emotions more appropriately. Incidents involving young people reported as missing from home are decreasing. Robust risk management plans are now in place that include guidance for staff to reduce such behaviour. Staff are taking a more proactive approach, identifying and addressing the reasons for such behaviour. Currently, the registered manager is challenging a local authority to arrange for a young person to have the opportunity

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Good

of an independent return home interview when they return after being reported missing. Staff have undertaken training in safeguarding young people, including online safety and protecting them from child sexual exploitation, radicalisation and self- harm. They are aware of the risks facing young people. Health and safety checks are up to date. Appropriate fire safety measures are routinely applied. A requirement made at the previous inspection, relating to ensuring that young people experience a fire drill following their arrival, has been met. Arrangements for recruiting staff are safe and effective.

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Good

An experienced and qualified manager has been in post since 2013. She is registered with Ofsted. She is providing strong and committed leadership and management to the staff team. She has implemented improvements at the home and nearly all the requirements and recommendations made at the previous inspection have been met. A requirement at the previous inspection to improve monitoring of the quality of care has been met. Monitoring is now more robust, with clear evidence that the registered manager has oversight of day-to-day recording, care plans and risk assessments. She is taking prompt action to remedy any shortfalls. Reports by the independent visitor are detailed and comprehensive and highlight any areas requiring the registered manager’s attention. Six-monthly internal reports contribute to a quality assurance system that focuses on the needs of young people, addresses any issues and results in improvements to the service.

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Good

Staff undertake a broad range of training relevant to their role in supporting and protecting young people. A requirement at the previous inspection was to ensure that staff implement the therapeutic ethos as outlined in the statement of purpose. This therapeutic ethos requires high quality training, support and supervision of the staff team in order to develop its skills to implement therapeutically informed parenting practices to meet the complex needs of young people. Staff have still not undertaken suitable training and are not receiving the required level of support and supervision to apply this therapeutic approach. Staff have received one consultation visit from a psychologist since the last inspection. The home will shortly benefit from the recruitment of a clinical psychologist who will provide consultation for staff, support staff development and undertake direct work with young people. This is not currently in place and consequently managers are not

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Good

delivering the ethos as set out in the statement of purpose. However, it is child- focused and effective in securing a good degree of improvement in their lives. Three of the six full-time staff are qualified to level 3. Two members of staff are currently working towards achieving this qualification but have not completed it within the required timescale. One new member of staff is currently undertaking an induction programme at the home. The quality of supervision has improved and now has a more reflective focus on the experience, progress and protection of young people and an emphasis on improving staff practice. The requirement made at the previous inspection in relation to supervision has been met. Staff work proactively with other professionals and agencies, such as CAMHS and school staff, enhancing the support that the home offers for young people with complex emotional needs. Constructive work with young people’s families helps to

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Good

maintain and improve the quality of young people’s relationships and promotes their development.

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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 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, work- based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for children looked after 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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