Children's home run by Oxfordshire County Council

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:

 Young people have developed and maintained very strong relationships with staff whom they feel safe with and trust. Some young people who have moved on from the home keep in contact with the staff and occasionally visit the home.  Staff come to know young people and their needs exceptionally well, and this knowledge informs care planning for each young person.  The firm, consistently applied boundaries have led to young people learning how to manage their behaviour in a more socially acceptable way. They develop reasoning skills and begin to take the consequences for their actions in a more adult way. The frequency of risk-taking behaviour, such as being missing from care, decreases.  Working relationships with other professionals and agencies are especially strong, and this means that young people have the support that they need from a full range of disciplines.  Young asylum seekers settle and develop especially well at this home. Their

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The children’s home provision is good because:

needs are understood and catered for, and they integrate into the community.  Young people progress very well in their attendance and/or attainment in education or training. They have developed aspirations for their futures and understand the benefits that hard work can provide.  The home is managed very effectively, and improvements made over time are maintained. There is a strong culture of continual development.  The staffing situation in the home is stable and the staff are well trained, highly competent and passionate about their work.  The leadership, management and staff have high aspirations for the young people whom they care for.

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  Ensure that staff know how to use the system for notifying Ofsted if one of the situations specified in regulation 40(4)(a)–(d) occurs, or if there is an incident relating to the protection, safeguarding or welfare of a child living in the home which the registered person considers to be serious. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.10)

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Recommendations

 Seek advice from an expert, such as a general medical practitioner, community pharmacist or designated nurse for children looked after, about the use of non-prescribed medicines. This is with specific reference to the arrangements for liquid medicines such as cough syrups, once the bottle has been opened. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the environment remains supportive and nurturing, but that risks from equipment left on charge such as e-cigarette chargers and lap tops, and from young people’s use of lighters, are minimised. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.9)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that good staff recruitment practice is clearly evidenced in each case. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority children’s home is registered for up to six young people and it currently only admits boys. The home is registered to care for young people who may have emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 30/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 21/07/2015 Full Good 03/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness 23/10/2014 Full Adequate

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Good

Young people coming to live in the home do so following a careful assessment process, including both a consideration of compatibility issues and if staff have the necessary skills to meet their needs. Moves into the home are well planned and, where appropriate, family members are supported to prepare themselves and the young person for the move. Young people are welcomed sensitively and they settle very well.

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Good

Young people have developed trusting and secure relationships with the adults caring for them. The staff are interested in them, and understand their needs and wishes. Staff are totally committed to helping them to do well in their lives. Young people know this and develop a strong sense of belonging. A professional working with the home said, ‘The relationships observed in the home between staff and young people are very good.’ A social worker said how the staff take a professional and calm approach to his young person and that, ‘The fact that they follow through on things for him is restoring his (the young person’s) faith in professionals.’

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Good

All young people are in education or training, and the majority attend their provision in excess of 25 hours per week. There are strong links with education professionals. A young person who had been out of education for a long period of time before living at the home has made admirable progress in his attendance. He is showing a newfound interest in engaging in learning. Young asylum seekers are making excellent improvements in their learning and in mastering the English language. They are enjoying and making the best of the opportunities available to them. One was awarded ‘student of the year’ as a result of his hard work in his education. He achieved this despite his difficult and distressing history. There are firm plans to support young people in their learning within the home through the introduction of a homework club and the installation of Wi-Fi.

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Good

Young people are treated with dignity and respect. Their views are listened to, their achievements are praised and their differences are celebrated. They know that they are valued for who they are. Their self-esteem grows and this spurs them on to achieve further. For example, an education professional highlighted that staff have been inclusive of children from other faiths and ethnic groups through ensuring that signs in the home are in their own language. A volunteer from an advocacy service said, ‘I think the home has done a great job adjusting to children from different countries. Staff have really been accommodating with menus and language.’

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Good

Young people take part in a range of social and recreational pastimes. Staff take great care to encourage with new opportunities those young people who are reluctant to take part in activities. They research things that are of interest to the young person and they persevere, unwaveringly, with their encouragement and support. Staff understand the value of young people being involved in club and team pastimes, and encourage this. One young person is a member of a local cricket team and another is a keen player of table tennis. He plays against staff and has been known to beat them more than once. The young people have been on an annual holiday and this provided them with new experiences and the chance to have fun with each other and staff. Young people have invested time in making the house and the grounds comfortable and welcoming. Of note is the hard work that some young people have undertaken in clearing a wooded area to make a pleasant

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Good

place to sit and enjoy each other’s company. Young people have also worked with staff to decorate the inside of the house to their own taste. Young people develop friendships in the local community. This promotes their sense of belonging and community spirit. Although these friendships are sometimes not appropriate, staff are alert to this and are effective in diverting young people towards more suitable people and activities.

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Good

Young people are in good health or their health is improving. One young person no longer needs to use his inhaler, as his asthma has improved. Young people live a far healthier lifestyle and, as a result, their fitness improves. A nurse for children looked after says that staff are able to provide detailed information about the young people before their health assessments, and went on to say that staff highlight any health concerns to her. Young people receive specialist help in a timely way in relation to their emotional and psychological needs. The staff and young people have access to a team of psychology and therapeutic professionals who work with staff and/or the young people. The professionals within this team have an input into care planning and behaviour management plans to ensure that these are meeting the young person’s individual emotional needs. The staff are extremely supportive of young people who have experienced significant and

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Good

sustained disturbances relating to past trauma. They work closely with the young person and the child and adolescent mental health services to support, encourage and keep young people safe from harm. Staff have ‘gone over and above’ in their roles on more than one occasion to support young people in extreme distress, and this work is commendable.

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Good

Arrangements for the storage and administration of prescribed medication are safe and secure. There is a range of non-prescribed medications, should a young person need a painkiller or cough medicine in an emergency. The two bottles of liquid cough medicine stored were unsealed and the dates of opening these bottles were not easily found. Additionally, there is a risk of cross-contamination, as the medicines are not stored to be used by only one young person.

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Good

Young people have appropriate, carefully assessed and, where necessary, supported contact with their family and friends, and other people who are important to them. Where young people have chosen not to keep in contact with family or other people significant to them, staff respect these wishes and revisit this very sensitively with them from time to time. A social worker said of contact arrangements, ‘Staff work with families and young people with bespoke packages (of contact) that all parties agree to.’

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Good

Young people develop skills to live independently more effectively through well- thought through independence plans. Their emotional readiness for this is variable. Staff work with the psychology team to help them to prepare a young person for moving on from the home. A social worker said, ‘Young people’s functioning age is considered as well as their chronological age when planning for independence.’ Young people each have a folder that depicts their achievements and things that they have done during their time at the home that they take with them when they move on. Some young people who have left still take the time to visit to see the staff, and this demonstrates they have a strong sense of belonging and happy memories of their time at the home.

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Good

Young people are far safer living in the home than they were prior to their admission. This is due to the effective and skilful risk management approach taken to supporting young people to act more responsibly. A social worker said, ‘Young people have experienced staff who support them in a very child-focused way to enable them to make informed choices to keep safe.’

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Good

Young people feel safe living in the home and have trusted adults whom they can, and do, approach for guidance and support. When young people are missing or absent from care, staff work in conjunction with other professionals to bring them home safely. Good intelligence about young people’s associates and the places where they like to go is used effectively to find them and bring them home. A social worker said, ‘Excellent logs are available which help to identify patterns and inform plans.’ Issues relating to the exploitation of young people are thoroughly risk assessed, and are known about and understood by staff. Staff work in conjunction with other professionals when there are concerns about risks to young people when they are missing, including those relating to sexual exploitation or radicalisation.

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Good

Behaviour management is very effective in this home. Behaviour support plans are informed by the psychology team and the focus is on using effective de-escalation techniques. Staff have an excellent understanding about how young people’s past experiences impact on their ability to regulate their emotions effectively. Boundaries are appropriate and consistently applied. Staff favour using restorative approaches, and sanctions are used only when absolutely necessary. A youth justice worker said that the home, ‘Is embedding a restorative approach, which really helps with behaviour and emotional literacy.’ Sanctions are aimed at challenging and changing unacceptable behaviour. Physical intervention is limited to situations when there is no other way to ensure the safety of all. Young people do make mistakes from time to time and there are still incidents, some of which have resulted in criminal charges being made. However, they are beginning to

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Good

understand how to deal with feelings that upset them in more constructive ways. A professional working with the home said that the staff, ‘Give the children another chance to achieve in life and make them know that there is always an opportunity to make things right, as long as they are willing to cooperate’.

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Good

Staff are trained, and are competent and confident in dealing with child protection and safeguarding issues. There are strong links to other professionals and agencies such as the designated officer for safeguarding, and the police and youth justice services. A professional working with the home said, ‘It’s a good team to work with.’

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Good

Bullying is not tolerated and staff are effective in identifying the potential for bullying and act to address the behaviours before they become beyond control. Staff challenge any discriminatory behaviour and work with the young people to help them to understand why this is unacceptable. A youth justice worker said, ‘The restorative approach that staff take to bullying helps to build respectful relationships, to make bullying less likely.’

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Good

Staff undergo a formal recruitment and appointment process before they work in the home to make sure that they are suitable to work with the young people. The records of the process are not well maintained, and this makes it difficult to monitor the effectiveness of staff recruitment practice.

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Good

The location of the home has been assessed as being a safe area for the young people to live in. There are all the usual amenities available to young people. The home’s environment is well maintained and, overall, is safe. It is recommended that the manager consider within the fire risk assessment the potential dangers from electrical equipment that young people may leave unattended while charging, and young people’s use of cigarette lighters.

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Good

The home is very well led and managed. The manager has been in post since December 2014 on an interim basis. He is registered with Ofsted and is suitably experienced and qualified. He has a strong and sustained approach to providing the best care possible for each young person, and has developed the home considerably during his time in post. The operation of the home is underpinned by a clear and comprehensive statement of purpose that sets out what the home aims to achieve for the young people. The manager and his staff meet the stated aims and objectives to a high standard.

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Good

The manager and staff work closely with the young people and professionals involved in their care planning. They challenge and advocate for young people when other professionals or agencies are not providing an adequate service to a young person. The manager and staff also work closely with young people’s family members, where appropriate.

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Good

There are effective arrangements for monitoring and developing practice at the home, and these support the efficient and effective way in which care is provided. The manager and his staff respond effectively to any shortfalls found, such as requirements and recommendations made during the inspection.

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Good

The staff team is sufficient in numbers and stable, with some members having worked in the home for years. The manager and staff are competent, highly motivated and ambitious to develop their practice and achieve the highest possible outcomes for the young people whom they work with. A professional working with the home said that the manager and staff are, ‘Open to change and new ideas’. An education professional said that, ‘Staff know the children and their needs well, and genuinely care for them. They have close relationships with their key children.’ A social worker said that the staff are, ‘Caring and friendly, and go above and beyond. Their ability to relate to the young people is really positive.’

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Good

All but the very latest members of staff are qualified to at least a level 3 standard, and have undertaken mandatory and additional training, such as in social learning theory. Staff use their training in practice to benefit the young people. Staff are well supported through supervision and team meetings, and they reflect on their practice and continually develop it. A staff member described a, ‘Very supportive management team that I can trust to take issues seriously’. For new staff, there is a clear induction process that supports their learning and development, and helps them to settle into the team and their role.

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Good

Young people are involved in developing their care plans, and the plans are of a high quality. The manager has just introduced ‘star charts’ that document young people’s progress, or lack, so that care planning can focus on the areas of most need. When services are needed but are not forthcoming, the manager and his team challenge and escalate any concerns effectively. Case records provide the young people with a good view about their time at the home and the progress that they have made, should they wish to read them now or in the future.

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Good

When significant incidents occur, the staff work with other professionals to ensure that the safety and well-being of young people are assured. On two recent occasions, notifications have not been successfully made to Ofsted about significant incidents, as staff did not understand how to use the system.

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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 looked after children 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 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 ‘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 0300 123 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 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

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

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