Children's Home run by Surrey County Council in Surrey

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 feel happy and enjoy the experience of either staying on a short break or living in the home.  Transition arrangements have been a real strength of the service. Professionals and parents describe the process as ‘exemplary’ and ‘brilliant’.  Young people thrive in an environment where they take part in a wide range of activities and events.  Young people have developed strong attachments to staff who are nurturing and caring in their approach.  Staff are consistent in their management of behaviours and positive behaviour is consistently promoted.  Young people’s self-esteem is developing well because of the child-focused care provided by a staff team that is skilled at understanding the individual ways that young people express their needs.  Staff fully support young people’s educational needs and the majority have good attendance at school. Staff work closely with teachers to ensure that

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The children's home provision is good because:

consistency is achieved.  Young people benefit from a service that is exceptionally well managed. The manager and her deputy have the necessary experience and a child-centred approach to provide strong and effective leadership.

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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

6: The quality and purpose of care standard In order to meet the quality and purpose of care standard, the registered person must ensure that staff: (2)(b)(iv) provide personalised care that meets each child's needs, as recorded in the child's relevant plans, taking account of the child's background. In particular, that care plans are detailed to enable staff to support children. 05/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

12: The protection of children standard In order to meet the protection of children standard, the registered person must ensure: (2)(a)(vii) that staff are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home's procedure under Regulation 36 (1) (policies for the protection of children). In particular, that staff undertake the training as specified. (d) the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child's health. In particular, that the safe transportation of hot food is considered. 05/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

14: The care planning standard In order to meet the care planning standard, the registered person is required to: (2)(a) ensure that children are admitted to each of the homes only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home's statement of purpose. This specifically relates to carrying out impact risk assessments to determine suitability. 05/12/2016

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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 individual appointed to carry out visits to the home as an independent person makes rigorous and impartial assessments of the home’s arrangements for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the children in the home's care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.5)  Ensure that the statement of purpose details how emergency admissions are managed. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.6)

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Information about this children's home

This service is owned and run by the local authority, providing care and accommodation for up to four young people and short breaks for up to 16 young people with learning disabilities.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 01/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 16/09/2015 Full Good 19/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness 16/07/2014 Full Good

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Good

‘This placement has far exceeded any expectations we had, he is incredibly happy’ and ‘they constantly go that extra mile to improve her condition’ are two of the many extremely positive comments from parents. One professional explained how the service is entirely focused on optimising the life opportunities of the highly vulnerable young people who use the service. Through observations and discussions it was evident that young people feel happy and enjoy the experience of either staying on a short break or living in the home. Young people show affection for the care staff and there is a caring and nurturing atmosphere in each flat within the home. Young people have fun and develop as a result of staying or living in the home. Progress for young people is good and they have made considerable improvement given their starting points upon arrival at the home. Staff are proud of the young people and are enthusiastic in reporting on achievements and how young people

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Good

continue to develop skills and grow in confidence. Some examples of progress include: the reduction in incidents of challenging behaviour; the development of independence skills such as cooking and shopping; and being relaxed and happy about staying away from their parents. Young people’s self-esteem is developing well because of the child-focused support provided by the encouraging staff team. The residential learning programme continues to give young people the confidence to try new things and as a result develop new skills and enhance their self-esteem. Transition arrangements are a real strength of the service. A professional stated, ‘The transition arrangement was supported in a caring, comprehensive and child- focused way. This was an exemplary piece of work and absolutely the very best that could be done for the child.’ The transitional work involved when young people move on promotes positive endings for young people who find it a challenge to

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Good

understand why change needs to happen. Careful consideration is given to planned placements into the service and the management team is aware that they cannot at times continue to meet some young people’s support needs and decisions have been made that some placements will no longer be suitable. This decision is not taken lightly and every effort is made to maintain placements. This demonstrates a realistic self-awareness of its capabilities by the staff team, which helps to keep everyone safe. When the home accepts emergency placements, the management team reports that they liaise with professionals to anticipate known vulnerabilities and to determine if a placement will be suitable. However, written impact risk assessments are not completed. This means that how it is determined if they are able to meet the young people’s needs and assess if they are able to keep all young people safe is unclear. Impact is not considered in any of the written

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Good

paperwork to enable effective review to continue to take place. Staff fully support young people’s educational arrangements and the majority have good attendance at school. Staff work closely with teachers to ensure that consistency is achieved. These relationships help young people to be supported in meeting their individual goals. When young people have been excluded from education placements or are not in full-time education, the management team challenges the local authority and advocates for appropriate education placements. It supports young people to attend college interviews and go through assessment processes and is able to successfully alleviate anxiety for the young people. The staff team and managers take appropriate action and are motivated in ensuring that young people are given the same educational opportunities as any other young person. Young people's views are gained on all areas of their care. Staff are able to

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Good

communicate extremely effectively with those young people with communication difficulties and actively seek the views of all young people as part of their everyday practice. Young people are consulted and able to choose such things as food and activities. Choosing the colour of the paint for bedroom decoration is an area where young people get involved, often including their family members. This level of engagement supports young people with their choice making and they create a personalised bedroom. There is a wide range of social opportunities. Young people are encouraged to participate in community-based activities, holidays, school trips and holiday schemes. Young people thrive in an environment where they take part in a wide range of activities and events. Activities are creative and are tailored to the needs of young people. Young people are encouraged to take up new challenges and activities such as swimming, music therapy, the cinema and meeting friends in the

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Good

local park. This involvement has enhanced and developed social interaction. A professional commented, ‘The scope of activities he can safely undertake has increased. His world has expanded.’

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Good

Young people are provided with routines and structure to support them in feeling safe and comfortable in their environment. There is good provision at the home for ensuring the safety of young people. Parents and placing social workers all report feeling that young people are safe at the home. One young person stated that they felt safe and at times ‘too safe’. Managers are currently working with young people on getting a balance between being independent and also safe. Each of the flats in the children’s home strives to match young people to appropriate peer groups, to promote friendships and participate in joint activities. This practice also enables any particular vulnerabilities to be taken into account. Some young people find socialisation a difficult task. Staff encourage interaction on an individual basis. Young people are encouraged to treat each other with respect through appropriate role modelling and re-enforcement of boundaries. Young

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Good

people’s behaviours indicate that they are now accepting these boundaries and beginning to explore friendships. Young people who live in the home are currently assessed as displaying risk in the areas of self-harm and child sexual exploitation. When young people are placed, consideration is given to them possibly being able to put themselves at risk by going off-site. The necessary protocols are put in place to enable staff to be aware of the risks in this area. There have not been any instances of young people going missing since the last inspection. Staff are aware of the policies and have received information to enable them to act on concerns. The manager has very recently undergone training about child sexual exploitation and going missing from care due to recent admissions and is in the process of cascading this to staff. Care plans detail all the areas of care and support that staff will provide and

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Good

contain an abundance of information which takes into account the complex needs of the young people including their medical, health and behavioural needs. These plans clearly identify what additional support may be required due to disability. They are used as working tools on each shift. However, in some cases for recent admissions, they do not detail information in relation to individual vulnerabilities as identified in local authority information. For example, information in relation to certain behaviours and child sexual exploitation is not incorporated into the home’s care plans and risk assessments. This means that staff may be unaware of what these risks are and how to minimise them. Care planning documentation therefore does not provide sufficient information to enable staff to care for the young people safely. However, on discussion, staff demonstrated very good awareness when young people may be struggling in certain areas and will promptly act on their

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Good

behalf to identify and resolve any issues. The policy in relation to safeguarding training states that staff are required to complete a certain level of training. However, it has not been easy for staff to access due to availability of courses. Staff have been undertaking some e-learning courses in safeguarding. However, it was not evident who has completed these. The organisation’s policy has not been followed. Staff have not been provided with all the necessary skills to identify and act upon concerns. On discussion with staff, they were clear of their responsibilities and the specific vulnerabilities of young people with disabilities. The manager is using team meetings to reflect on practice and to consider safeguarding scenarios. Staff are consistent in their management of behaviours and positive behaviour is consistently promoted. There has been very little use of restraint since the last inspection and incidents are recorded well. Staff have been using restorative ways

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Good

of working with young people to increase a sense of personal responsibility. Some sanctions have been used and these have been appropriate. This enables staff to set clear boundaries about what is safe and acceptable. The behaviour management policy has now been revised and is currently in draft. The managers in the home have had input into this policy to ensure that it is highly relevant to implement here. Young people and staff are generally protected by the home’s arrangement for health and safety. However, hot food is transported from an upstairs flat to a downstairs flat. During the inspection, food was uncovered and balanced on staff arms while walking through corridors and down the stairs. This could provide a risk to young people, staff and visitors.

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Good

Young people benefit from a service that is well managed. The registered manager has been in post in the children’s home since April 2013 and holds a level 5 management qualification. She has the necessary experience, a child-centred approach and provides strong and effective leadership. Staff report positively on the support that they receive from the manager and her deputy. Similarly, social workers and parents comment on the effectiveness of the manager. There have been minimal changes to the staff team. This ensures continuity of care for young people who know the staff well. Any shortfalls on the rota are covered by regular bank staff known to the young people. There has been some use of agency staff during the holiday periods. The manager keeps well informed of current issues in the field of social care and children with disabilities and autism in particular. This is cascaded to her staff team. The diversity of each young person's needs requires the staff to have a wide

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Good

scope of knowledge. The manager has recognised that the availability of training is a weakness and is currently carrying out staff skills audits to reflect and evidence the need to complete more in-house training. She has made contact with other professionals such as psychologists to also provide advice to the staff team in relevant areas including attachment disorders. The manager and staff team work with other agencies for the safety and welfare of the young people. The team is proactive in contacting professionals within health services, education and social care departments. This inter-agency working ensures that there is a team approach in meeting the specific needs of young people. The manager has sound systems in place to monitor the service. This includes file audits and six-monthly reports and the supervision and appraisal of staff. All contribute to an understanding of the strengths of the service and of which areas

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Good

require improvement. The service is monitored and subject to regular external scrutiny by other professionals. However, the external monitoring reports have limited evaluation on the quality of care provided or an opinion if young people are effectively safeguarded. This hinders the ability of the manager to identify patterns. A comprehensive statement of purpose is in place. This is informative and outlines the service’s aims and objectives. Staff and the management team are familiar with how the aims are implemented in practice and therefore have a strong understanding of the impact that the home has had on young people’s progress. The home has recently admitted some emergency placements and the statement of purpose would benefit from more details on the process and procedure to be followed in these circumstances. The manager and staff team work with other agencies to ensure the safety and welfare of the young people. The young people are clearly the priority in all

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Good

decisions made and staff and managers strongly advocate for the young people in all aspects of their care.

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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 looked after children 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 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, 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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