Children's Home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited in Blackpool

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:

 A new manager leads this home, supported by a fully staffed team. All staff receive training to meet the needs of the young people in their care.  Managers and staff work in close partnership with multi-agency colleagues, particularly around strategies to reduce episodes of children missing from care.  Staff value young people and talk proudly of their achievements and progress. Young people develop trusting relationships with staff. They share their worries and concerns and receive the help that they need.  Young people make progress in the home. All young people are engaged in education and receive the health services that they require. They take part in leisure activities and community projects and build self-esteem. Young people are able to recognise and take pride in their achievements.  Staff have established strong and effective links with specialist services, including police, education, careers and health. These enable young people to

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The children’s home provision is good because:

receive support and staff to access specialist advice to meet young people’s needs.  Young people are equipped for their future independence. They undertake an independence training programme and contribute to their leaving care planning. Transition planning is one of the home’s strengths.

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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 children's homes regulations including quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to meet the needs of each child, with particular regard to the bathrooms and gardens (Regulation 6(2)(c)(i)) 31/10/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendation:

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Recommendations

  Ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. (‘The guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned and is registered to provide accommodation for six male young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

07/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Good

Young people develop secure relationships with staff and a sense of belonging. A social worker commented: ‘He has a good relationship with the team. It’s his home and family.’ Staff speak warmly of the young people, take pride in their achievements and reward their progress.

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Good

Staff place the well-being of young people at the centre of their practice and make decisions in their best interests. Young people are helped to find independent advocacy if they wish to challenge decisions about their care. They are clear about how to make a complaint and if they do complain they are satisfied with the outcome.

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Good

All young people engage in education. Schools report a good relationship with staff at the home. One member of school staff said, for example, ‘We have a good relationship with staff and work in partnership with the home.’ Effective links with the local youth careers centre helps young people to access college courses, work experience and employment.

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Good

Health services are available according to individual need. Staff can access specific health services, including dieticians, child and adolescent mental health (CAMHS) and sexual health services. They work in partnership with health services to improve young people’s health and well-being.

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Good

Young people access social and recreational opportunities inside and outside the home, according to their interests. They make decisions, including about their summer holiday destination of Yorkshire. One commented: ‘It’s really good. We go on holidays. We spend time with staff and go out.’ Young people report feeling safe and not wishing to change anything about their home.

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Good

Young people learn new skills at their own pace and undertake independence skills training. Staff challenge leaving care plans when they are not in the young person’s best interests or do not represent their views. Young people learn strategies to manage their emotions and to talk about their feelings. Staff help them with the emotional and practical aspects of leaving care.

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Good

Staff provide nurturing care and the consistent boundaries that young people need to feel secure and make progress. Young people talk with pride about their achievements. One said, ‘I’ve changed quite a lot. I go to college now. I go out more and meet friends and I would like to join the army.’ Young people make progress, and this equips them for both the present and their future independence. The home is large and requires some modifications, particularly to the bathrooms and gardens. It is furnished and decorated to a reasonable standard but it lacks a homely feel. For example, young people’s bedroom doors have plastic door numbers, there is a signing-in desk in the reception and young people use paper towels from dispensaries in the bathrooms. The newly appointed manager is keen to work towards making it feel more like a family home. Young people are encouraged to personalise their rooms with their choice of bed linen, lighting and

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Good

A full permanent staff team cares for the young people. Arrangements for recruiting staff are safe and effective. All staff receive up-to-date safeguarding training that includes child sexual exploitation and online safety. Staff are confident in their understanding of safeguarding and their knowledge of safeguarding procedures. Safeguarding issues receive a prompt response. Recording is clear, and shows actions taken and the outcome of safeguarding concerns.

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Good

Young people and staff have a good awareness of online safety and internet use is an ongoing discussion between them all. Internet use within the home has a safe- search facility and staff monitor young people’s computer use.

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Good

Staff link with specialist services to keep young people safe. A close relationship with the police enables staff and young people to gain information and advice. This results in the reduced criminalisation of young people. The manager consults with the local authority designated officer for advice and information in respect of safeguarding issues. Local sexual behaviour services provide staff with specialist advice and direct support to young people.

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Good

Young people talk about the positive relationships that they have with staff. Open communication between young people and staff takes place informally day to day and during the group meetings.

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Good

The home cares for young people with diverse and complex needs. A bullying policy is in place but this home does not have a culture of bullying. Young people learn to empathise and understand one another. In daily group meetings, they discuss and resolve day-to-day issues and foster a culture of acceptance.

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Good

Health and safety checks are up to date. Episodes of young people going missing from this home have increased considerably. As each young person arrives, staff devise action plans to manage their individual risks of going missing. The manager and staff then work collaboratively with the local police missing person’s department, with whom they have established a solid working relationship. This enables them to work together to reduce the likelihood of young people going missing and to offer a coordinated response if they do. The manager also sets up strategy meetings with other professionals to try and decide the best way forward. From time to time, this has led to young people’s placements being terminated because the home is unable to keep them safe.

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Good

Each young person in the home has a detailed risk assessment, drawn up with the help of an assessment tool that identifies their specific vulnerabilities. There should be a risk management plan, which staff regularly review and update, for each area of concern. In practice, this does not always happen, which means that staff do not have a written plan to follow. A recommendation to address this issue has been raised.

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Good

The home is currently without a registered manager. A new manager, who has been the deputy in the home for many years, has been appointed. He has the level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management and has submitted his application to be registered with Ofsted.

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Good

There is a full staff team and most staff have been in post for a long time. Most have their NVQ level 3 qualification, and three new staff are due to begin this training. All staff receive full induction training. Ongoing mandatory staff training is up to date.

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Good

Staff receive effective supervision every four weeks. The manager feels supported in his role and staff say that managers have an open door policy so that help and advice are always available. Staff enjoy their work and feel part of a strong team. One member of staff said: ‘I get a lot of support from other team members. It’s a very supportive and experienced team.’

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Good

The functioning of the home is regularly monitored. Action is taken to address any issues, and results in improvements to the service. Focused monitoring of young people’s development underpins targeted support to maximise their progress. When young people are not making progress, staff review their care plans and challenge decisions that are not in the young people’s best interests.

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Good

Staff listen to young people whose ideas and feedback influence the day-to-day decision making in the home. Young people attend reviews and contribute to the decision making about their lives. Up-to-date care plans guide the care of young people.

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Good

Staff support young people to understand their lives and backgrounds. Young people’s individual case files record their achievements, and there are rewards to recognise and celebrate young people’s success.

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Good

Young people develop trusting relationships with staff and staff speak warmly and positively about them. One said, ‘I think we do a lot to build relationships between staff and young people. We provide a lot of opportunities to spend time with young people and talk to them.’ Young people share their ideas and concerns with staff. In response, staff listen and take action.

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Good

Proactive work with specialist agencies enhances the support available to young people and enables staff to gain specialist advice to meet young people’s needs. Schools report good working relationships with staff, and staff support young people’s education effectively.

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Good

Staff work in partnership with parents whenever possible and provide weekly updates. They are proactive in supporting young people’s contact with their families and provide transport to facilitate this when required.

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Good

The statement of purpose sets out the approach to care that this home provides, accompanied by an up-to-date children’s guide. Transition planning is robust and meets individual need.

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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’. 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

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What the inspection judgements mean

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 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 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 children’s homes regulations including 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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