Children's home run by Cherry Trees Limited

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:

 The home provides good-quality care and young people make good progress.  Warm, caring relationships between staff and young people have created an environment which is child-focused.  Staff are experienced, knowledgeable and skilled in meeting the needs of those in their care.  Each young person has a key adult who they trust and can confide in.  Staff offer a wide variety of on-site and off-site activities to young people. Facilities available on-site are of a very good standard and provide opportunity for all.  Parents and professionals report having positive, supportive relationships with staff.  Staff support young people to learn key skills, developing and promoting young people’s independence.  Young people are helped to transition into and on from the home in a positive planned way.  Staff work collaboratively with all parties ensuring that plans are robust, effective and safe.  Managers have effective and robust systems to regularly monitor and

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  As set out in Regulations 31–33, the registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice. They must ensure that all recruitment, supervision and performance management of staff safeguards children and minimises potential risks to them. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.1)  Annex A – Qualifications for staff working in children's homes. Where a registered person identifies gaps in qualifications, they should act to ensure that relevant units or qualifications are completed in a timely manner at an appropriate level and specifically have plans that identify how this will be achieved. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 68, paragraph 1.4)

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Information about this children's home

The children's home is registered to offer short-break placements for children and young people with learning and/or physical disabilities. The home is owned and run by a charitable organisation.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 17/03/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 07/10/2015 Full Good 26/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness 28/08/2014 Full Good

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Good

Young people enjoy their short breaks at this home. Staff are skilled and knowledgeable and have good insight and understanding of each young person’s needs. Young people have positive relationships with staff who they trust. Young people seek out known staff for interaction and support. Staff consistently support young people to learn and develop new skills. Young people have made good progress from their initial starting points, although this is often in small steps. All young people now have targets to work towards to promote the development of their self-help, personal and social skills. Staff routinely review progress made and update targets as required. Managers complete a thorough pre-admission assessment process ensuring that all appropriate information is considered. They work closely with parents and carers to gather information pertinent to the care planning process. Detailed plans and assessments provide practical advice and support to staff enabling them to provide

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Good

individualised care to each young person. Regular review and update ensure that plans are current and identify needs. Young people’s individual health needs are met well. Health plans, regimes and protocols are followed to ensure that young people’s physical and emotional well-being is promoted. When young people have complex needs, plans are sufficiently clear to ensure that these needs are met. Mealtimes are a key social event. Young people eat together and with staff who act as positive role models. They have access to familiar favourite foods, menus are varied and young people are encouraged to try new foods and follow a healthy diet. Young people assist with basic household chores at mealtimes. This helps to develop their sense of belonging and independence. Young people are supported to attend school or their individual education setting during their short break at the home. Staff have good relationships with education

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Good

providers. The home offers a wide variety of on-site and off-site activities. The facilities available on-site are of a very good standard and provide opportunities for all young people. Young people are carefully supervised when accessing off-site activities, which provide new and exciting experiences for young people. Skilled, knowledgeable staff communicate with young people through observation, language and other communication systems such as Makaton. This helps young people to express their views and make choices. Young people have also been involved in making decisions about aspects of the home including decoration and themes of bedrooms. Staff share plans with young people, they intend to develop further, how they involve and gain young people’s views about the care that they receive. Careful planning and preparation helps young people to settle into the home. This includes visiting the home before their first stay. When young people move on,

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Good

staff support their transition to a new setting and mark and celebrate the occasion. Staff support young people to explore and identify with their culture, ethnicity and religion. Staff offer activities which promote young people’s opportunity to make choices and have their voice heard.

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Good

Staff have a good understanding of how to keep young people safe. Safeguarding policies and procedures are known and understood. Concerns are recorded well and referrals are made to the relevant agencies when needed. Personal care is provided in privacy and with dignity and respect. The environment is safe and well maintained. Keeping young people safe is high on the agenda within the home. The team recognises that it can be risk-averse at times but is regularly reviewing its practices. Staff support young people to manage and self-regulate their emotions and behaviours. Staff avoid physical intervention and use a variety of de-escalation methods and strategies. Physical intervention is only used to reduce or avoid harm to others. When it has been used, it has been in its lowest form for the shortest period possible. Staff have been engaged in development work to improve the quality of recording and this continues to embed.

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Good

When sanctions are used it is to provide opportunity for a young person to calm and to avoid physical intervention. Records are continually improving to ensure that they reflect if a young person has chosen to use a space to calm of if a member of staff has encouraged or applied this as a sanction. There are examples of some young people reflecting on their behaviours and the impact on others by apologising. Staff have developed and improved their systems for recording incidents and sanctions with more detail and description. All incidents, physical interventions and sanctions are recorded. Staff are trained in the home’s preferred method of behaviour management and have recently completed top-up training and refresher training. There have been no complaints made by young people or others since the last inspection of the home. Thorough risk assessments are in place for lifting and handling of young people.

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Good

Staff regularly review plans and assessments as required. Advice from other professionals is sought when needed for specific plans and risk management strategies for pieces of specialist equipment. Staff have appropriately responded to and recorded accidents. All staff are first-aid trained, with many having additional levels of skill to meet specific emergency needs. The home’s location risk assessment is detailed and explores all known risk factors within the local community. It also details positive risk factors and strengths in the local community that counteract the negative risk factors. Staff have improved the medication systems used in the home. This followed a review of systems due to medication errors. One person on shift takes responsibility for giving medication. The staff report a reduction in administration errors with staff all now trained and refreshed in medication systems and procedures. Staff use a robust system for managing and administrating medication.

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Good

Vetting and safer recruitment processes are insufficiently robust. The home’s policy and procedures to ensure that all pre-employment checks have been completed have not been consistently followed and there were inconsistencies in some records. Managers rectified the gaps prior to the completion of the inspection.

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Good

An appropriately qualified manager effectively manages the home with the support and assistance of other key senior staff. The manager has good understanding, knowledge and insight into the needs of those in their care. Regular, effective monitoring provides a clear overview of all areas. Leaders and managers have a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the provision and plans are in place to promote continual improvement. The independent visits to the home have provided an additional layer of scrutiny, with managers responding to the findings. Staffing levels meet the needs of the young people. Most staff are suitably qualified and new staff are enrolled and working towards the required qualification. Staff access a varied programme of training specific to their role. Managers have facilitated additional workshops in key areas identified through monitoring and evaluation of practice. Staff access regular, effective supervision and their

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Good

performance is appraised at least annually. Managers have implemented the requirements and recommendations previously set. They have devised new systems to ensure that each young person has clear, identified targets. Regular review and monitoring of achievements have promoted and supported and evidenced the progress made by young people. Leaders and managers have reviewed the use of restrictions in the home. Risk assessments identify and minimise risk and are regularly reviewed. Regular, robust review and monitoring of records have provided clarity about weaknesses and strengths of approaches used. Staff have reflected on their practice and on the impact that they have in situations. Their knowledge and practice has improved and developed through this robust scrutiny of records. The charity, which owns the home, has recruited an additional senior leader to assist with the strategic overview of the home. They have been supportive to the

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Good

manager in developing and implementing several new systems and procedures in the home. Managers have developed good, effective links with those outside of the home. The home is well known in the local community, with neighbours offering practical support and assistance. Good collaborative working between the home and professionals influences positively on plans and assessments. Parents report ‘good, regular, supportive and effective communication with the home’. The statement of purpose is up to date and reflects the ethos of the home. The aim to ensure that all young people relax and enjoy their time at the home through individualised care is apparent throughout and especially in the approach and practice demonstrated by staff.

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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

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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