Children's home run by Worcestershire County Council in Worcester

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:

 Most young people have lived at the home for a significant period of time. This stability has resulted in them making good progress in all areas of their lives.  Two young people have recently turned 18 years old. They are being sensitively supported to prepare to move to their adult homes.  Staff set achievable goals, which ensure that young people experience regular, positive accomplishments.  There is effective leadership, which is enhanced by a consistent staff team that is experienced at meeting the needs of young people with learning disabilities and autistic spectrum disorder.  Staff have a good understanding of the risks that young people face and they manage those risks well.  Staff focus on young people’s unique qualities. They provide specific support which is informed by personalised strategies based on each young person’s strengths and needs.  Rigorous monthly monitoring is undertaken by the independent visitor. Her

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The children's home provision is good because:

insight into the service and young people enables her to produce detailed reports with valuable recommendations. The registered manager uses these to develop and progress the service.  There were some shortfalls identified: - The furnishing, decoration and maintenance of the home requirement improvement. - There are no risk assessments in place that identify concerns or actions that need to be taken as a result of adults living alongside children.

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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

12. The protection of children standard (1) The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. (2) It requires the registered person to ensure— (a) that staff— (i) 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. This specifically relates to risk assessing adults living alongside children. (d) that 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. This specifically relates to the timeliness of achieving the home’s maintenance, refurbishment and redecoration plan. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)(d)) 31/12/2016

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Information about this children's home

This home is run by a local authority. It is registered to provide care and accommodation to four young people with learning disabilities and emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 09/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 21/12/2015 Full Good 17/03/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness 18/12/2014 Full Good

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Good

Young people continue to make good progress because they are supported by a staff team that works closely with them and their families to achieve their personal goals. Staff ensure that young people are in good health and lead healthy lifestyles. Staff promote regular exercise and have recently run a young person’s meeting on this topic. They ensure that young people have a better understanding of, and take more responsibility for, their own health. For example, one young person is now storing and administering his own medication. Staff ensure outstanding school attendance and celebrate young people’s good educational outcomes. They work effectively in partnership with health and education professionals. Since the last inspection, one young person has successfully moved on to a new placement. Another young person has moved into the home and has settled well. Two young people have turned 18 years of age and enjoyed celebrating their

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Good

birthdays. They are now waiting to move into their adult placements. The registered manager is liaising with their social workers to ensure clear timescales for these moves. The registered manager is keeping Ofsted well informed. There are no risk assessments in place to highlight any concerns or actions that might need to be taken to ensure safe practice as a result of young people living alongside adults in the short term. Staff skilfully and sensitively support young people to move into, and on from, the home. A social worker stated, ‘The young person I am working with who recently moved into the home has settled in really well and this can only be down to the amount of love, care and attention he has received from staff at the home. Furthermore, the way they included the parents at the pre-placement meeting and then since the young person moved in has been commendable.’ The registered manager and staff team have excellent insight into the needs of

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Good

young people with autism and complex needs. Staff build warm, positive relationships with young people. They support young people to strive to achieve. They celebrate all successes and milestones. Recent events are evident in photos displayed around the home, in the home’s newsletter and in young people’s albums. They have been on holiday to the seaside. They have celebrated birthdays including the two 18th birthdays. Two young people have now left school and one has started a college placement. They have also been to their school prom. A young person talked about ‘the perfect prom dress’, ‘going in a stretch limo for the first time’ and ‘dancing all night’. Young people enjoy the company and support of the staff team. One young person stated, ‘They make a fuss of me. Sometimes they take me out. Sometimes they take me to festivals. They do music and art with me.’ Young people’s experiences and horizons increase because staff encourage and support them to experience

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Good

different activities and situations. Young people become more confident, their self- esteem increases and they develop as individuals. One young man has joined a rugby club, grown a beard, started college, is travelling on public transport and socialising in town with his new college friends. Young people and their families feel listened to. The registered manager and staff team proactively involve them in decisions. They also ensure visits, telephone and Skype calls to families take place and are successful. They also welcome families into the house for regular visits and for special events. For some young people, staff support and partnership work with families have resulted in more positive, increased or overnight contact. Young people successfully participate in daily practical tasks that support them to move on to adulthood. Staff target support, depending on the individual's age, needs and ability. Young people participate in cooking, shopping, laundry and other

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Good

skills that result in increasing independence. Staff also involve young people in money management. Those young people preparing to move on from the service are learning the life skills that they will require in their new adult homes. Staff are sensitive to their anxieties and provide positive reassurances to support smooth transitions in the future.

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Good

Staff effectively promote young people’s welfare and ensure that their safety is paramount. All young people have risk assessments that link to their placement plans and include feedback from other professionals. This ensures that staff have a good understanding of the risks that young people face and enables them to respond effectively to address those risks. The staff team’s clear understanding of risk means that safeguarding incidents are significantly low. Young people do not go missing from care. Staff know what to do if these circumstances occur, but their main focus is on working with young people to prevent these events from happening in the first place. Staff successfully and consistently provide a home environment where young people do not feel the need to run away. Staff are skilled at managing young people’s emotions, the environment and activities in ways that safeguard themselves, young people and others. Staff have a

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Good

clear understanding of how to manage any safeguarding allegations. They receive regular safeguarding training, which includes a range of topics, including children missing from home and awareness raising in relation to child sexual exploitation. This ensures that their knowledge continues to be up to date, that they are able to meet the changing needs of young people and can work effectively in partnership with other agencies. Young people learn to manage their behaviours and increase their communication skills. Levels of physical interventions, use of consequences and number of incidents are low, overall. However, staff are still skilfully managing very challenging behaviour, damage to property and aggression. The registered manager takes prompt action when he identifies increased risk from regularly monitoring incidents. Staff have in-depth knowledge of each young person. They are well informed of behaviour management strategies and aware of warning signs

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Good

that might indicate that a young person is unsettled. Staff have recently attended additional training on the autistic spectrum. They discussed what behaviours are indicative of being on the autistic spectrum and what behaviours are about an individual’s personality. These ongoing discussions, as well as regularly reviewed behavioural management strategies, help young people continue to develop their coping strategies and understanding of how to successfully participate in social situations. One young person stated, ‘‘Staff try and talk me through the anger and what is bothering me. They teach me the difference between right and wrong.’ Young people know how to raise issues and how to complain. They say that they feel safe and well supported. They have access to a range of staff and individuals that they can go to if they have any worries. The home’s environment requires improvement. Completion of work identified in

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Good

the home’s refurbishment and redecoration plan is slow. Some areas of the bungalow have been painted and there is a plan in place for a new kitchen to be fitted. However, the environment is not yet up to a high standard.

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Good

The home is effectively managed by a registered manager who has substantial residential experience. He holds the registered manager award and has been the registered manager of this service since May 2004. He is supported by an experienced and stable staff team that knows the young people and their families well. A partnership professional stated, ‘The registered manager liaises closely with us when we are working with the team and we feel we have a positive relationship with [the] team and are able to challenge them where appropriate, which is healthy. We feel very welcome at the home and the team are good at organising multi-agency meetings where necessary to get everyone’s views. We have been impressed by the amount of thought and insight that individual workers have shown at these meetings and their openness to other ways of thinking about the young people.’ The registered manager demonstrates rigour when working with other

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Good

professionals if they do not act in the best interest of the young people or the service. Local authority delays in finding an alternative placement resulted in a young person wanting to make a formal complaint. He was supported by the registered manager and staff team to access an advocate and pursue his complaint. When a delay in resolving the complaint resulted in a deterioration in his well-being the registered manager was proactive in accessing support for him. He also accessed training and support for the staff team. Staff continue to develop their practice. Staff who are not appropriately qualified are in the process of undertaking their award. Staff attend structured team meetings which enable them to reflect on their practice, discuss how well the young people are progressing and provide challenge. Staff update their core skills at regular intervals and complete more specific training that relates to individual’s

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Good

needs and the specialist nature of the service. For example, all staff have recently completed modular specialist training in autism. This has further developed their understanding in relation to young people with complex needs by considering the implications of relevant research and psychological theories. The staff team is also continuing to access the nurturing attachments programme, five members of the team have already completed the 18-session programme, and a further two members of staff are currently engaged in this. An independent visitor monitors the home monthly. Her insight into the service and young people enables her to produce detailed reports which identify valuable recommendations. The registered manager uses these to maintain, develop and progress the service. The previous requirement made by Ofsted has been met. The registered manager and staff have established networks and relationships with

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Good

a range of agencies and professionals that are involved in meeting the needs of young people. All are positive about the quality of communication and commitment of the staff team. They also have excellent relationships with families. A social worker stated, ‘I have found that there is always someone there to talk to with any concerns and they are very welcoming when I go and visit. They invest care and attention to the young people at the home and it is always clear that they work within their best interests from the manner in which they present themselves.’

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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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