Children's Home run by Keys Education Ltd in South Gloucestershire

Good

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

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The children’s home’s provision is good because:

 The registered manager has recently resigned from the position but continues in post to support the introduction and smooth transition of the new manager. Because of this, staff and young people are being provided with consistency and stability.  The registered manager works to shape and support a staff team that meets the needs of the young people. Members of a diverse, skilled and qualified team complement one another by drawing on their unique strengths and qualities.  Strong and trusting relationships have formed between staff and young people, ensuring that they feel safe. Some young people have lived in the home for more than three years. Those young people that have moved on from the home have, in the main, done so successfully.  Young people make good progress in all areas of their lives. They enjoy an extensive range of experiences and opportunities, including positive time with their family and friends.

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The children’s home’s provision is good because:

 The views and opinions of the young people, their families and professionals are captured and integrated into all plans, documents and records. The spirit of working together has resulted in young people’s outcomes improving significantly. An educational professional reports that the progress of one young person, from initially arriving there to now, has been ‘amazing’.  Staff report feeling supported in their role and have access to regular good quality supervision. All new staff are provided with a robust package of training that equips them to meet the differing needs of the young people. Regular refresher training ensures that all staff remain skilled in the management of young people’s behaviours. However, some staff say that they could benefit from more bespoke training to support young people with cultural and diverse needs.  The young people are living in a home that is of a very good standard.

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The children’s home’s provision is good because:

Rooms are furnished and decorated in styles that reflect the young people’s interests, hobbies and identities.

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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

27: The registered person must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if there is no registered manager in respect of the home. (Regulation 27 (1)(a)) 10/10/2016

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Recommendations

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

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the home’s statement of purpose is kept under review. In particular, ensure that staff names are accurately identified. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.5)  Ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs. In particular, ensure that staff have opportunities to further their knowledge and understanding in relation to diversity and identity. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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Information about this children’s home

The home is run by a private company that runs other children’s homes in the surrounding area. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 29/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 15/12/2015 Full Good 18/12/2014 Interim Improved effectiveness 09/07/2014 Full Adequate

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Good

All young people who live at the home benefit from highly individualised care. As a result they thrive during their stays because staff have an excellent understanding of their needs and meet these well. Outcomes and progress of young people is, in the main, good. For two young people who have lived at the home for more than three years, their progress is impressive.

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Good

The registered manager works in partnership with the young people, families, schools and local authorities. A coherent and collaborative approach has ensured that young people remain central to all decision-making and plans. For example, relationships between professionals are such that young people receive the appropriate level of support, which means that they make progress from not engaging with education to attending mainstream school.

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Good

The manager and staff recognise that not all young people are able to access mainstream formal education. Well-kept plans and records indicate young people being provided with plenty of alternative learning opportunities, such as home tutoring and online learning. This ensures that they continue to learn and reach their full potential.

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Good

A particular strength of the staff team is its skill in supporting young people moving on to independence. Most young people move on very well, with support and advice enabling them to live safely by themselves. For those young people whose moves are not planned, and endings to their placements are necessary, staff work sensitively and compassionately to lessen the stress that the young person may feel.

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Good

Staff provide a warm and nurturing environment, resulting in young people feeling valued and cared for. A young person said that they really like living in the home and like the staff, and professionals report: ‘always a warm welcome’ when they visit the home.

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Good

The manager and staff understand the importance of young people receiving a balanced and healthy diet, physical exercise and play opportunities. Going for walks, swimming and cycling are just a few of the outdoor experiences young people take part in. In addition, a strong emphasis is placed on young people’s health being monitored by professionals. This means that young people are taking responsibility for their diet, medication and smoking cessation plans. By doing so, young people are healthier than they were at their starting points. Individualised care enables young people to explore their own identities and to develop their interests. For example, young people join clubs and attend activities outside of school. This means that they have the opportunity to build links with the local community and socialise with young people of their own age and with similar interests. This is significant, given that young people living in the home are often

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Good

placed some distance away from their families. Staff report that they are provided with training to support young people accessing the community. However, some staff say that they would benefit from more training in relation to the diversity and cultural differences of some young people.

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Good

Young people are safe and protected because staff give the highest priority to their safety and well-being. All staff are trained in child protection and safeguarding. Clear robust procedures and protocols enable staff to know what to do should they have a concern about young people’s safety, if they were to make an allegation or if they were to go missing.

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Good

Since the previous inspection, there have been a number of reported incidents when young people have gone missing. However, scrutiny of these records illustrates how the manager and staff take prompt and effective action to secure the safe return of the young person.

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Good

The manager and staff support young people to take age- and ability-appropriate risks. They have a very good understanding of the individual risks relating to the young people living in the home. This means that the young people are able to experience new opportunities, which builds their confidence and broadens their life experiences. Young people spoken to during the course of the inspection say that they feel safe and ‘really like’ living in the home.

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Good

Young people benefit from a stable staff team which supports them with consistent boundaries, routines and expectations. This means that young people know and understand how staff manage their behaviours. A professional reports that a young person’s challenging behaviours have been stabilised, resulting in the young person forming positive relationships and making ‘impressive progress’.

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Good

The manager and staff team are skilled at recognising when young people’s outcomes are not improving by living in the home. They take proactive action to identify risks, and effectively plan support that either helps young people to remain in the home, or to move to a more suitable placement. One young person, previously placed at the home, moved to a more secure placement. While this was not part of their long-term plan and was not seen as a positive move, it did mean that the young person was safeguarded from the increased risks they placed themselves in when in the local community.

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Good

Records held within the home provide good analysis of how the home works effectively with local authorities and local police, and how decisions are reached when young people move in and out of the home. This means that challenging and vulnerable young people are appropriately placed in the home.

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Good

Young people are safe because there is a rigorous recruitment and vetting procedure for all new staff. Robust procedures are in place for visitors, which includes them being supervised, signing in and out of the home and their identities being verified.

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Good

The registered manager has recently resigned from the role. She is, however, continuing to manage the home until the newly appointed manager is available. The manager recognises how this change can have an impact on the management and leadership of the home, and can be a confusing time for the young people. To lessen the impact during the transition, the manager is supporting the newly appointment manager by providing mentoring, guidance and advice. A requirement is made to ensure that there is a registered manager in role within the statutory timescales.

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Good

Since the last inspection the home has been managed extremely well. The current registered manager has led with enthusiasm, commitment and skill. While staff report feeling ‘saddened’ by her impending departure, they say that they are a ‘tight team’ and will continue to support the young people with confidence through this transitional period.

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Good

The staff team comprises experienced, qualified and knowledgeable practitioners. A successful recruitment campaign has resulted in a number of new staff, who bring enthusiasm and skills. This means that young people are provided with a diverse and confident staff team.

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Good

Regular supervisions, detailed handovers, appraisals and team meetings ensure that staff have a good understanding of how to meet the needs of individual young people. While staff confirm that they benefit from a regular and varied training package, they would value specific training to support the diverse needs of the young people currently living in the home. A recommendation is therefore made to consider specific training for any emerging behaviours in relation to diversity and identity displayed by young people.

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Good

The manager makes good use of a range of monitoring and reviewing tools, action and development plans, and reports provided by the independent visitor. As a result, there is a robust development plan illustrating the manager’s strategic approach to improving the home and young people’s outcomes.

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Good

All policies and procedures are reviewed and kept up to date by the manager. However, the manager accepts that the home’s statement of purpose requires updating to reflect the recent change in management. A recommendation is made to ensure that a reviewed and updated version of the document is produced.

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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

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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