Children's home run by Somerset Council in Somerset

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:

 Staff are properly trained, and have skills in communicating with children and young people with complex communication needs. This allows children and young people to express their needs and to make choices. It also allows them to request help when necessary.  Children and young people enjoy good and positive relationships with staff and they are assisted in engaging in stimulating and worthwhile activities. A range of facilities and resources, such as an arts and crafts room, sensory garden and snooze room also help to enable this.  Great attention is paid to the assessment of children’s and young people’s needs. Care planning is comprehensive and constructed in collaboration with children and young people, their parents and other professionals.  Good communication and partnership with schools is in place, and children’s and young people’s educational needs are well supported.  Children and young people are gradually and incrementally prepared for the

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

transition from home to residential living, and the home ensures that all necessary adaptations are in place.  The leadership and management of the home are good and the home continually monitors and makes improvements to the service.  The home must ensure that risk assessments continue to identify specific risks to particular children and young people.

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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

Ensure that staff assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. (Regulation 12 (2)(a)(i)) 28/10/2016

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered as a children’s home providing short breaks for children and young people with physical and learning difficulties. The home is owned and managed by a local authority and the majority of the children and young people accommodated are from the local area.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 03/03/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 23/06/2015 Full Good 28/01/2015 Interim Declined in effectiveness 09/09/2014 Full Adequate

p.5

Good

The overall experiences and progress of children and young people receiving short breaks in this children’s home are good. This is achieved by: the positive relationships that exist between the children and young people and staff; the careful and gradual introductions to the home and the comprehensive placement planning for children and young people; the planning and delivery of activities which are agreed in consultation with the children and young people and which enhance their day-to-day living experiences; the account the home takes of the particular needs of individual children and young people and the consultation that takes place between the home, parents, and fellow professionals in order to give children and young people the best possible care.

p.6

Good

Children and young people enjoy good relationships with staff, which are enabled in part by staff undertaking good quality training in communication skills with non- verbal children and young people, or children and young people with complex communication needs. Senior members of staff have developed particular skills in this area of work and they act as trainers for the larger staff group. This enables children and young people to have a way to express their preferences for such things as food and clothing and the activities they wish to take part in. This promotes the quality of children’s and young people’s experiences of day-to-day living. One parent told the inspector, ‘It’s really good quality care and she loves going there. They take the kids out to places where there are beaches and into garden centres.’ An independent reviewing officer commented, ‘She appears happy and content in the home and enjoys good relationships with staff, who engage her

p.6

Good

in stimulating activities.’ Effective communication exchange also enables children and young people to express any concerns they may have about their care. Staff show children and young people how to go through the appropriately formatted children’s guide and how they may access the complaints procedure if they wish to make a complaint.

p.6

Good

The children and young people are mainly cared for at home by their parents, and the home is mindful of the impact on them of the transition from home to residential living. Initial introductions to the home are gradual and incremental, with brief initial visits to become acquainted with the staff, the surroundings and the other children and young people. One aspect of short breaks is the fact that different children and young people may use the same bedroom on different nights of the week. The home has addressed this by carefully collecting personal belongings which are significant to the individual young person and these are positioned in their room before their stay. This helps children and young people to feel less concerned about being away from home and promotes a sense of belonging to the home. Although the home has an array of resources and facilities to support children and young people with physical disabilities and mobility needs,

p.6

Good

an occupational therapy assessment of the home is carried out before each child is placed and adaptations are made accordingly. This further enhances and supports children’s and young people’s living experiences.

p.7

Good

Placement plans are produced before placement begins, and these identify children’s and young people’s needs and how these are to be met, as well as containing risk assessments of areas where children and young people may be at risk of harm. Each young person has a key worker appointed who helps with the reviews of the placement plans and who coordinates the communication exchange between the home, the parents and the school. Communication books passed between the same people and organisations help to facilitate this exchange. Key workers spoken to demonstrate a good awareness of individual children’s and young people’s personal details, the assessment of needs and how the children and young people are progressing.

p.7

Good

Several of the children and young people have complex behavioural and personal care needs, and the home works well with other professionals, such as paediatricians, child and adolescent mental health services, educationalists and social workers, as well as parents, to formulate plans of action to support children and young people in these areas and with their overall development.

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Requires improvement

The way that children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement, because risk assessments are not always in place to identify areas of specific concern which relate to particular children and young people. However, there is good practice in the way that: general risk assessments have been developed; the way that the safety of the living environment is overseen; the way that children and young people are supported by staff in raising any concerns or complaints; good care planning which anticipates any safety issues that may arise; staff being trained in appropriate methods of restraint; clear recording of incidents; a clear policy on safeguarding children and young people, and staff training on the same; effective links with the Local Safeguarding Children Board and designated officer and the careful recruitment and vetting of staff.

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Requires improvement

Careful attention is paid to the safety of the living environment, which includes routine fire safety and health and safety equipment checks. Staff receive training in the driving and safe maintenance of the home’s two minibuses, and driving licences are routinely checked. Additionally, the home has produced risk assessments for individual children and young people, and these are contained in their placement plans. There is also a general risk assessment of common areas of those features which require particular safety oversight, including a locality risk assessment that is reviewed annually. However, staff raised concerns that one young person did not have a risk assessment in place on the danger of ingesting foreign materials, such as necklace beads. This means that staff are unclear about the way that the young person must be supervised when playing with the beads, and this puts the young person’s safety at risk.

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Requires improvement

Incidents where children and young people have needed to be physically restrained are relatively low compared to other homes of this size and type, and all staff have been trained in an appropriate method of restraint which keeps children and young people safe. Such incidents have been properly recorded and have been subject to analytic review. The ethos of the home is that this is a client group that does not benefit from the use of sanctions, and therefore systems of positive reinforcement of good behaviour are in place and are effective.

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Requires improvement

There is a clear safeguarding policy in place on the safeguarding of children and young people. All staff receive training in this area, which is regularly updated. There are effective links with the Local Safeguarding Children Board and designated officer, who reports that there are no current or recent safeguarding concerns about this home. All staff are appropriately recruited and vetted, and staff personnel files indicate that personal identity and referee checks are carried out. These measures help to ensure that unsuitable people do not have the opportunity to harm children and young people or to place them at risk.

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Good

The impact and effectiveness of leaders and managers of this home are good. This has been achieved by: effective and efficient management by a person suitably experienced and qualified; sufficiency of staffing by well-trained and -qualified people who are well supervised; active and effective internal monitoring of the service, which takes account of the views of children and young people, parents and stakeholders; effective care planning, the recording of which is clear, up to date and regularly reviewed; proactive and positive working with other agencies, professionals, and parents; a clear statement of purpose and children’s guide; notification to the regulatory body of significant events and positively responding to the requirements and recommendations of both internal monitoring reports and inspection reports.

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Good

The registered manager is experienced in care work with this client group, and has the appropriate professional and management qualification. The registered manager is regularly supervised by the responsible individual. Since the requirement of the last inspection, the home has improved the standard and frequency of staff supervision by training team leaders to conduct supervision. Staff report that they undergo a comprehensive induction programme on appointment, which introduces them to the core areas of the work. Since the requirement of the previous inspection, they now have ongoing training in key areas, such as working with autism, communicating with children and young people with complex communication difficulties and the personal care of children and young people with disabilities. This helps to ensure that competent and skilled staff are caring for the vulnerable children and young people. Staff-to-child ratios are high and the home is

p.8

Good

currently engaged in a recruitment programme to reduce the number of agency staff used. Permanency in staffing gives children and young people greater consistency of care.

p.9

Good

An independent visitor conducts monthly visits to the home and writes a report that includes recommendations for service improvements. The registered manager writes a six-monthly review of the quality of care in consultation with children and young people, parents and other stakeholders. This also contains recommendations for service improvements, all of which have been implemented. Internal monitoring of service provision improves the quality of care for children and young people.

p.9

Good

Since the recommendation of the previous inspection, staff have been trained in clear record keeping, and a system is now in place for conducting the monitoring and audit of key documents, policies and children’s and young people’s care plans. These are now seen to be comprehensive, up to date and clearly written.

p.9

Good

The home works well with parents, social workers and other professionals in assessing children’s and young people’s needs, forming and reviewing placement plans and devising action plans to address individual children’s and young people’s ongoing and developing needs. Since the recommendation of the previous inspection report, the home now works more effectively with schools, staff attend children’s and young people’s educational review meetings and contribute to personal education planning and the spending of the pupil premium. There is also now a daily communication book which is shared between schools, parents and the home. These measures help to support children’s and young people’s educational development.

p.9

Good

A clear statement of purpose is in place, which accurately describes the aims and objectives of the home. The children’s guide is written in a user-friendly format and contains advice for children and young people and informs them of where they can go for help. Key workers go through the guide with children and young people to assist their understanding of it. Both of these documents are regularly reviewed.

p.9

Good

The home has notified the regulatory body of all matters required by regulation and monthly independent visitor reports are sent to the regulatory body, as is the six-monthly review of the quality of care. All of the requirements and recommendations of the previous inspection report have been actioned.

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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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