Children's Home run by Castle Homes Care Limited in Birmingham

Outstanding

The children's home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the home contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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The children's home provision is outstanding because:

 Excellent relationships exist between young people and staff. Young people are extremely positive about the adults that look after them and can discuss ways in which they have improved because of being at the home.  Care planning is highly individualised. Staff are very knowledgeable about the young people and about how they are being supported at the home.  A young person has become involved with an excellent community resource, providing food for those experiencing problems. This has led to an increase in their confidence and awareness of the world around them.  New initiatives at the home include growing vegetables, decreasing jargon in parents’ newsletters, increasing staff awareness of research regarding parenting as well as children’s homes, and allowing a young person’s friend to stay for a short period over the summer holidays.  The home is a pleasant and comfortable environment that young people

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The children's home provision is outstanding because:

take pride in, and they are involved in developing its decor.  Young people become increasingly settled compared to the time of their admission. This has resulted in increased attendance in education, decreases in restraints and sanctions, decreases in going missing and improvements in relationships with their families.  Staff are consistently supported through effective and regular supervision. Appraisals allow for staff development and include planning for their future training and responsibilities.  Feedback from professionals linked to the young people is positive, and includes the home’s good communication, effective report writing and staff members’ strong ability to work with young people effectively.

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Information about this children's home

The home is part of a large private organisation. It offers care for up to three children primarily with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties within an age range from eight to 18.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

01/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

19/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Outstanding

Young people thoroughly enjoy being at the home. One stated, ‘The place isn’t just my home. It’s turned me around.’ Staff constantly encourage young people to enjoy positive experiences and thereby develop both their self-esteem and their confidence in different situations. At the time of the inspection, one young person was planning to have a friend to stay at the home for a number of days, and was investigating activities and costings. Another is involved in voluntary work at a local centre, supporting those with additional needs, including refugees. Planning for young people is detailed and gives staff a clear picture of the objectives of the placement and the ways in which these are to be achieved, based on the most recent review. A new system of presenting information brings summarised plans and assessments together and ensures that staff are able to quickly see where possible risks are, and how

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Outstanding

they are responded to. The manager states that this new system attempts to ‘move from an institutionalised system of having to wade through care documentation to get to what you need to know.’ Young people enjoy a range of activities and have been away on holidays with staff. For one, this has been a significant step forward. A new organic vegetable garden has introduced the young people to growing a variety of food, while increasing their knowledge of healthy foods. Staff consistently promote relationships between the young people and their families, through regular phone calls and visits. Thoughtful consideration is given to contact visits, ensuring that both the young people and their families look back on the visit as being positive. A young person was enthusiastic about having their nails done with a sibling, and a mother highlighted that they are kept up to date with ongoing issues in the home. A new

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Outstanding

monthly newsletter for families has been developed, with increased use of photos and decreased ‘social work jargon’. This further keeps families up to date with their child’s progress. Staff diligently support young people’s health and consistently promote healthy lifestyles. A range of health professionals are visited by all young people, supporting both their physical and mental health. Staff have supported them with complaining to the local doctor when the service provided has fallen short of expectations. This challenging of services, for the welfare of young people, highlights to them how seriously staff take their well-being. Young people are involved with first aid training alongside staff, ensuring that all are aware of how to respond in an emergency situation, and further developing relationships between the young people and the staff team. Young people attend education on a full-time basis. One has moved to mainstream school,

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Outstanding

a significant step forward, while another has completed GCSE exams, despite refusing a large amount of schooling prior to moving to the home. Communication between school and the staff is strong. One school headteacher stated, ‘We have been able to form a positive working relationship, which I believe has supported [the young person]’s transition from her previous school.’ Plans are in place for September, including increasing young people’s independence, as they travel by bus, and increasing their free time with friends. The home is a pleasant and comfortable environment, where the young people are encouraged to make suggestions about furnishings and decor, and these are then responded to. Bedrooms are personalised and photographs from activities and holidays create fun displays that give young people positive memories. Young people are listened to and views are responded to. Meetings include discussions

p.5

Outstanding

about the home, how the young people are achieving and how things could be improved further. The young people are aware of how to make complaints, although none has been made at the home since the last inspection, highlighting that staff respond to the needs of the young people well. The children’s guide is an accessible document that young people helped to write, incorporating the pertinent aspects of care that they felt are important. Young people are strongly supported in developing independence skills. They complete a self-assessment of their awareness of different aspects of living on their own, and then work through a variety of topics, with key workers, including equality and diversity, why they are in care and various support structures. Practical developmental issues, such as menus, budgeting and travel, are supported in tandem with emotional support. This ensures that young people are given a holistic support package for moving away from the

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Outstanding

home as skilled and confident individuals.

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Outstanding

Excellent systems that support the well-being of young people and the staff that work with them are in place. Young people’s concerning behaviours have decreased substantially while they have been at the home. Monthly anti-bullying meetings have developed into discussions and quiz nights relating to issues that affect those in the home, including female genital mutilation, family violence and rights at work. All of these factors have resulted in a settled home, where young people are increasingly aware of the risks in their lives and of how to respond to these in a more proactive way. No safeguarding concerns have been raised since the last inspection. Staff are fully aware of how to respond to child protection incidents and seek advice to support their decision- making processes. Staff are consistent in attempting to engage young people in thinking about previously concerning issues, such as sexual abuse. They involve different

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Outstanding

professionals, offering independent advice and support. Young people that previously ran away from their home no longer do so, and there have been no missing incidents for over a year. The local missing persons’ police officer, ensuring that all staff are aware of the expected responses to incidents, has provided training. Similarly, those previously displaying concerning self-harming behaviours have stopped and no incidents have been reported since before the last inspection. This highlights the increasingly settled nature of those in the home. No restraints have been used in the home since the last inspection and only one sanction has been recorded. Staff state, ‘We try really hard to make sure that we use loads of different ways [to] talk to young people before needing to put a measure of control in place.’ Young people’s behaviour management plans are clear and guide staff in the young people’s preferred way of working with them, including their views about how they do not

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Outstanding

want to be held. This ensures that staff work effectively when young people are in a heightened state of anxiety. Individualised and mutually agreeable targets regarding behaviours lead to rewards, including shopping trips and eating out. Praise is the primary reward tool and shows that young people are not overly dependent on material incentives. Detailed and robust recruitment systems ensure that staff are thoroughly checked prior to working at the home. Each care environment that staff have worked in previously is checked, through references, with telephone verification checking their reasons for leaving. This means that a strong awareness of the staff members’ skills and backgrounds is developed prior to their working.

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Outstanding

The registered manager leads a dedicated and experienced staff team exceptionally well. She has completed her level 5 diploma in management of residential childcare and has worked in residential care for over 10 years. In addition to working at the home, she is in the process of developing support for a number of local authority homes, examining staffing structures, training and practice issues. She is supported by a similarly experienced deputy, who is in the process of becoming joint manager. This secure management structure helps to give a consistency to both the staff team and the young people. The manager has an extremely high awareness of the strengths of the home through detailed analysis of young people’s care and staff’s performance. Staff are consistently involved in the development of the home. Questionnaires ask them, ‘How could the home improve?’ Staff give ideas that have subsequently been developed, including a chores rota,

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Outstanding

use of the computer for training, and improving semi-independence workshops. This highlights the importance of the views of staff and increases their involvement in the provision moving forwards. Monthly external monitoring is informative and includes discussions with social workers and parents, ensuring that they get a well-rounded assessment of the way in which young people are worked with. Relationships between the home’s staff and those outside the home are positive. Professionals highlighted strong communication, punctuality of review information and one commented, ‘Staff have a really good awareness of [young person]’s needs and the home responds well.’ A local police community support officer (PCSO) stated that the home is ‘pleasantly quiet, and staff obviously know how to deal with problems when they arise.’ The manager challenges those not offering an effective service and has raised issues with

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Outstanding

social work managers and brought concerns to reviews when needs are not being responded to by professionals. The home’s statement of purpose is kept up to date with staffing changes and clearly describes the ways in which it works with young people. Those placed at the home are in line with the statement, and staff are therefore confident in the way that they work. Careful consideration is given to those admitted, including risk assessments being carried out, and the skills of the staff team and the effect that new admissions would have on those already in residence being examined. One young person stated, ‘We are really different, but most of the time we seem to get on.’ Staff say that they are really well supported by managers. One stated, ‘You are always helped with working with the young people, but at the same time they ask you if staff could work better. It’s great to feel as though you are helping all the staff improve.’

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Outstanding

Supervisions are regular, linked to appraisals and include examinations of individualised development plans. This interlinked way of supporting staff allows them to continually evaluate their working practice, aiding individualised and team improvement. The home is well staffed and training is regularly updated. Staff complete a combination of online and face-to-face training, allowing them to question practice and to work on courses at different times. The majority of staff have completed a level 3 diploma in residential childcare. Those that have not are either soon to complete or are awaiting completion of their probationary period. The manager brings a wealth of resource material to the team, keeping up to date with current issues relating to children and young people. An outstanding feature of this research is that it relates to both parenting and children’s home and residential practice. This is in line with the manager’s emphasis on decreasing reliance on institutional practice,

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Outstanding

and promoting effective parenting. Staff also take responsibility of looking at research and bringing ideas to staff meetings. One staff member was able to discuss issues relating to autism that they had been looking at. This further increases the staff team’s knowledge. The manager is very aware of the need to inform a range of professionals should significant events occur. Information has been shared with Ofsted and professional bodies when the manager has concerns about situations. This has shown the staff team’s willingness to work with others.

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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 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

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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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