Children's home run by Howard House Care Limited in Northumberland

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 make good progress because of the close support and guidance provided by staff. The home is able to demonstrate its success in improving the educational and health outcomes of young people.  Relationships between staff and young people are excellent. Young people value the care and attention that they receive and speak warmly of the staff.  Staffs regard the views and wishes of young people as important, and incorporate them in individual care planning, as well as the daily routines within the home. Staff motivate young people to explore different leisure opportunities and try new experiences.  Staff are successful in safeguarding young people, some of whom are particularly vulnerable. As a result, young people have a strong sense that, while living here, they are protected from harm.  Staff work well with other professionals and families. They are effective in supporting safe family contact, sometimes in challenging circumstances. This

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The children’s home provision is good because:

is important in maintaining young people’s links with people who are important to them.  Leadership and management are good. The manager is in the process of registration, but oversight by experienced senior managers within the organisation has been consistent. This has ensured that the quality of the service has been maintained.

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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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that, within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure, and a description of the measure and its duration. (Regulation 35(3)(a)(ii)(iv)) 18/11/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  Records must be kept detailing all individual incidents when children go missing from the home (regulation 36 (schedule 3(14)). This information should be shared with the placing authority and, where appropriate, with the child’s parents. Evaluation of missing incidents should be undertaken to identify any gaps in training, skills or knowledge for staff or to record and retain evidence of what worked well. This evaluation should inform the review of the quality of care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 46 paragraph 9.31)

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Information about this children’s home

The home accommodates up to two children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. It is operated by a private company.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 22/12/2015 Interim Not judged 11/11/2015 Full Good 09/03/2015 Full Good 23/10/2014 Interim Not judged

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Good

The home’s location in a remote rural area is an important factor in its ability to provide protection to extremely vulnerable young people. It enables young people who are at risk in their local communities to grow and develop in a safe environment. A social worker said, ‘The home is perfect for the young person.’ Staff work well in ensuring that the home’s remoteness does not adversely impact on young people’s access to services and facilities. Staff provide transport to schools. The provider’s own educational establishment is less than an hour away, with large urban areas within the region also within reasonable reach. Staff are aware of the importance of enabling young people’s access to activities and recreational opportunities. Consequently, young people enjoy outings such as ice skating, going to the cinema and Sunday pub lunches. A young person said, ‘I like the staff here and the activities, like the horse riding.’ Arrangements have been

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Good

made for the only young person currently resident to attend the youth club in the nearest town. This will provide an opportunity for social contact with others of their own age.

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Good

Young people like the staff and appreciate their efforts in making their time here happy and productive. A young person completed a feedback form shortly after leaving, saying, ‘I felt safe all the time I was here. I really enjoyed it. I was always out doing activities, staff were always very kind and I got spoilt. It felt like a loving, caring home.’ Young people know that staff will listen to them and make every effort to act on their wishes. For example, one young person asked for a secure storage box to be provided in their bedroom, and this was done promptly. The same young person felt uncomfortable with their allocated key-worker because of their gender, and so it was agreed that another member of the staff group would be allocated. This demonstrates the home’s sensitivity to the feelings of young people, particularly in the light of their past experiences of abuse and trauma.

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Good

Care plans are detailed, yet in a form which enables young people to understand them. It is abundantly evident that staff involve young people closely in their plans and listen to their views. This ensures that young people are happy with every aspect of their plan. When they are not, staff spend individual time with them to explain their reasoning, for example why their access to social media may need to be restricted.

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Good

Young people make good progress as a result of their placement here. For example, the current resident has 100% attendance at school yet, prior to their admission, it was 49%. Staff support young people to achieve and maintain good health. They provide young people with help to address health risks, for example by arranging smoking cessation sessions with the local practice nurse. The level of support from staff means that young people are able to change their lifestyles for the better within a short time. For example, one young person said, ‘I am really proud to have come off all the drugs and alcohol. I think this is because I am away from bad influences.’

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Good

Staff liaise with other professionals to address young people’s emotional health needs. For example, young people who have experienced sexual exploitation are supported to engage with specialist counselling services. In addition, a psychologist visits the home on a regular basis. She provides support for staff through both training activities and specific consultation on young people’s needs and how to meet them. The home provides stability and consistency, which benefit young people. For example, a young person who struggled to get to sleep at a reasonable time has begun to settle into a more acceptable bedtime routine. This helps with their general well-being, as well as ensuring that they are better prepared for the school day.

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Good

Staff are proactive in enabling young people to keep in touch with their families. They provide support for young people to meet up with their brothers and sisters, often as part of enjoyable activities at leisure venues such as funfairs. For some young people, contact with parents may be risky, and in these cases staff will supervise meetings. They make detailed records of their observations of the contact and feed this back to the social worker. This is excellent work. It results in improvement in the frequency and quality of contact, and ensures that family relationships can be maintained and developed. A social worker said of staff, ‘They have managed contact with family brilliantly.’

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Good

One young person said, ‘I feel very safe here.’ This confirms the close support provided by staff to keep young people protected from harm. Comprehensive risk assessments are regularly updated in response to any incidents or concerns, and are communicated to staff. This enables them to put in place agreed safeguarding strategies which are consistent and effective. Some particularly innovative practice has been developed. For example, young people agree a ‘safe phrase’ with staff which is written into their plan. They know to use this if they ever need to phone staff to indicate that something is wrong and they cannot talk openly.

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Good

Staff involve young people closely in the plans and strategies to keep them safe. For example, the management of e-safety is robust. A member of staff said, ‘The young person is more than happy for me to sit with them when they use social media. They chat about their friends with me, and are open about talking about their past and what has happened to them. This is good, it builds up trust.’ This kind of work is particularly effective in eliminating the risk of sexual exploitation.

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Good

The home’s location, with the staffing ratio of two to one, means that it is difficult for young people to leave without the staff’s knowledge. This protects young people with a history of going missing and subsequently placing themselves in danger. The frequency of such incidents is therefore low. They have usually occurred when young people have gone missing from school or failed to return from a visit. Records of these incidents are only adequate. They are handwritten and therefore not always easy to read. Also, they need more detail, particularly in respect of the timings of any contact with the young person while they are absent. This is important information which could be of use in any subsequent child protection investigations.

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Good

The management of young people’s behaviour relies on the use of positive incentives rather than sanctions. Staff agree with the young person the areas of their behaviour that they need to improve, for example settling at night or their personal hygiene. Rewards for achieving progress in these areas are then agreed. For example, one young person is on course to achieve their reward of going to a concert. More informal incentives are also used to recognise when a young person has done well at something or shown particular consideration to others. This emphasis on the positive means that, although the use of sanctions is available to staff, they are rarely used. Since the last inspection over nine months ago, there have been none recorded.

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Good

Staff are trained in behaviour management. Particular attention is paid to recognising and de-escalating situations when young people are agitated or distressed. Detailed plans set out what might trigger these feelings in each young person. For example, one young person becomes tense around the time of their sibling’s birthday. Knowing this enables staff to take action in giving extra support to the young person before a crisis develops.

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Good

Very rarely, staff need to use physical restraint to keep young people and others safe. They do this with regard for the young person’s welfare and in accordance with their training. However, the records of restraint need to be clearer. They do not provide a detailed description of what led up to the incident, or an account of the actual method of restraint in plain language. This reduces the accountability of the record in keeping young people, and staff, safe.

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Good

The home has been without a registered manager for a number of months. For much of that time, there have been no children accommodated. The home’s current manager has been appointed recently. He is suitably experienced and qualified, and is in the process of applying for registration with Ofsted. During this period of transition, support to the designate manager and staff has been provided by experienced senior managers within the organisation. This has provided continuity of oversight and stability for young people. The recruitment of staff to fill vacancies has also taken place and is about to be completed. Laudably, the young person currently resident has been involved in the recruitment process.

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Good

Staff receive a thorough induction prior to starting employment. The induction programme has recently been reviewed to ensure that new starters are fully prepared for the task. A programme of training keeps the skills and knowledge of staff refreshed. All current staff except one are qualified to the appropriate level. Further training takes place as necessary to meet specific needs. For example, the psychologist is booked to deliver a session on childhood attachment. This will give the staff useful insight into how they can better support the young person whom they are currently looking after.

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Good

Staff receive regular, professional supervision. This is of high quality, focusing on the young person’s needs and enabling the staff member to reflect on how best to meet them. Staff meetings help to ensure that the young person’s programme of care is delivered consistently, no matter which staff are on duty.

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Good

The manager completes six-monthly monitoring, as required by regulation. This provides a good evaluation of the progress that young people make and includes plans to improve the service over the following period. The monthly reports of the independent person are objective and accurate. They include a clear opinion of the effectiveness of the home’s safeguarding arrangements and how well they promote the welfare of young people. Relationships between staff and other agencies are good. A social worker said, ‘Staff are great at keeping in touch. I get daily correspondence and any updates as required, and staff are very accommodating with other professionals.’

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Good

The premises are comfortable, well furnished, and maintained to a high standard. This conveys to young people that they are important, and contributes to their feeling of self-worth.

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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 children looked after 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 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 whom 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 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, 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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