Children's home run by Reflexion Care Group Limited in Shropshire

Outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the home contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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The children’s home provision is outstanding because:

 Staff are passionate, committed and hardworking, and ensure that young people receive tailored support that helps them to thrive educationally, socially and emotionally.  Consulting young people, listening to them, discussing their care and talking about how the home is run are fully integrated into the care practices of staff.  Staff base their management of behaviour on active encouragement of acceptable behaviour.  Staff help young people to learn ways, which enable them to build and experience healthy relationships and to develop respect for others in a climate, which helps them to develop.  Staff have achieved high levels of participation by other agencies that have helped young people to overcome barriers to their education and good health.  Staff have a detailed insight into young people’s vulnerabilities and take effective and creative action to reduce risk and to provide young people with

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The children’s home provision is outstanding because:

the skills to make safe decisions.  Staff receive exceptional support from the registered manager. The forward- thinking registered manager promotes a culture, which supports originality and resourcefulness, and is underpinned by research.  The registered manager persistently advocates on behalf of young people, challenging partner agencies to provide a consistently high standard of care.  There is one minor shortfall. This relates to the reviews of risk management strategies.

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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

13: The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard, with specific reference to understanding the effectiveness of risk management strategies, the registered person must: (2)(f) understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. 23/12/2016

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is run by a private company and is registered to accommodate a maximum of three young people who may have emotional and behavioural difficulties and learning disabilities.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 30/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 09/12/2015 Full Outstanding 18/03/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness 18/07/2014 Full Good

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Outstanding

Determined and enthusiastic staff provide young people with highly tailored support that enables them to make impressive progress. An independent reviewing officer told the inspector: ‘I think that they have turned her life around. At the stage when she came to the house, she was running away, there were serious risks of exploitation and maybe even a risk of her losing her life: she was out of control. The staff engaged her and re-enthused her about education. They have given her a new start.’ Young people experience exceptional levels of emotional warmth from staff, who genuinely care. Staff view young people as an extension of their own families, showing them the affection and care that they would their own children. A social worker told the inspector. ‘Staff genuinely care about the young people. It is not just a job; you can feel the emotion from how they talk and write about the young people.’ Young people reciprocate this, insisting on hugs and cuddles from staff

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Outstanding

whenever they leave or enter the house. Consequently, young people have a strong sense of loyalty and respect for staff, and demonstrate their fondness of staff by making ‘thank you’ cards, preparing special meals and even baking staff ‘thank you’ cakes. Young people receive support from staff who understand their needs well and care about them. The registered manager and staff have gone to great lengths to ensure that young people have a beautiful, homely, pleasant and welcoming place to live. The attention to detail in the furnishing and decoration ensures that it feels very much like a well-loved family home. A young person told the inspector, ‘It’s like a homely home; you wouldn’t think that a residential placement would be like this. It is just like a home. I really like it. I think that I might just stay here.’ Staff have encouraged young people to take ownership of their bedrooms and, as a result,

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Outstanding

they are highly personalised. There appears to be an unspoken competition between the young people over who can have the most photos on their wall, with every inch of wall space covered with photos of loved ones and happy memories. Young people have formed strong, meaningful connections that allow them to develop a sense of belonging and identity. Staff are committed to consulting with young people and ensuring that their voices are heard. For example, young people take advantage of house meetings, consultation questionnaires and key-work sessions to share their views. Staff are diligent in responding to this feedback, answering queries swiftly and, when possible, adapting placement plans to fit in with the wishes of young people. A young person told the inspector: ‘Staff do listen to you. If there is anything that needs to be changed, they will try to sort that out for you.’ This means that young people feel that staff listen to them and that their opinions matter.

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Outstanding

Staff are very resourceful and insightful in their approach to ensure that young people make exceptional progress in respect of their emotional and physical health. They use stress balls, arts and crafts sessions and story writing, alongside reflective therapeutic interviews. This helps young people to develop strategies to manage their emotions more effectively. Staff work as one with the clinical therapy team to understand the impact of young people’s childhood journeys on their emotional development. Continuous dialogue with the therapy team ensures that staff are able to offer young people individualised care. A therapist told the inspector: ‘There has been significant progress made in respect of their emotional resilience. [The young person] has made great strides. She has the best possible opportunity to make great progress’. Staff have worked diligently to ensure that all young people access education

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Outstanding

when, historically, attendance has been poor. Staff’s collaborative approach with schools, based on effective communication, has resulted in tailored reintegration plans for young people. Effective planning has enabled young people to re-engage swiftly and make significant progress, considering their starting points. As a result, young people experience a sense of achievement and develop realistic ambitions for the future. A headteacher told the inspector, ‘The home has supported her brilliantly; the team has been really hot on sorting out her plus-16 year options.’ Proactive and creative staff ensure that young people make incredible progress in their preparation for adulthood. This support has given one young person the confidence to apply for a part-time job successfully. The sense of pride displayed by staff is a reflection of how significant an achievement this is. Staff work flexibly to sustain meaningful relationships between young people and

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Outstanding

those who are important to them. When restrictions on contact have been necessary, staff have developed tailored plans to manage these restrictions to enable contact to be more natural and enjoyable. The value placed on contact by staff ensures that young people do not feel isolated and families continue to feel involved in their child’s life.

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Outstanding

Young people’s vulnerability has been significantly reduced because of the dedicated and resourceful approach by staff. For example, staff plan for key-work sessions effectively, using online resources and videos to address difficult topics such as exploitation and online safety. The success of these sessions is further strengthened by the quality of relationships between staff and young people. As a result, young people learn to develop a sense of self-worth, understand what abusive relationships look like and develop the skills to make safe decisions. Staff work with young people to develop imaginative ideas to reduce the risks of going missing. For example, one young person was supported to build and decorate her own, safe hut in the garden. This safe space allowed her to have somewhere to go when things were getting on top of her. This was incredibly successful and resulted in the young person no longer feeling the need to go

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Outstanding

missing. Staff are innovative in reducing the risks associated with young people who self- harm. For example, staff recognised that one young person used letters and stories as a way to explore and manage her feelings. Staff encouraged this, and responded by writing and posting letters back to the young person. This approach enabled the young person to seek reassurance safely, and to open up and explore her worries and anxieties. Additionally, staff work holistically with partner agencies including the school, the clinical therapy team and the child and adolescent mental health team to ensure that tailored strategies and support are sufficient to manage the evolving risk. Young people respect staff, strive to please them and value the positive praise received for good behaviour. Staff use tailored reward charts and positive activities to promote a culture in which positive behaviour is the most desirable option for

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Outstanding

young people. As a result, young people learn to self-regulate and, when they act inappropriately, they show genuine remorse and independently seek opportunities to make up for it. As a result, situations of conflict are low and young people’s behaviour is generally settled. The registered manager has gone to great lengths to ensure that there are risk assessments in place to cover every aspect of potential risk for young people. These assessments are frequently reviewed. However, the quality of these assessments varies and they do not always reflect the success that staff have had in reducing risk. While the impact for young people is minimal, the assessments do not enable the manager to review consistently the effectiveness and quality of care provided to keep young people safe.

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Outstanding

The experienced and highly motivated registered manager has completed the level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare. Of the 10 staff, the majority have completed the diploma level 3 for residential childcare or equivalent. Three members of staff are working towards this qualification and will have completed this by January 2017, which will be within two years of starting in the relevant post. Effective partnership working is a key strength of the team and promotes a collaborative approach to providing high-quality tailored care for young people. Professionals consistently highlight the excellent sharing of information among all of the staff team. A social worker informed the inspector, ‘They are outstanding, specifically in relation to the care that they give to young people and the paperwork that they provide, which is very detailed and analytical. The manager comments on incident reports, which is very helpful. The manager is always easy

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Outstanding

to get hold of. I get regular updates.’ Evidence of persistent challenge of placing authorities by the registered manager is abundant. A social worker told the inspector, ‘She really keeps me on my toes, but I respect that.’ The registered manager acts as a strong advocate for young people, ensuring that their voices are heard loudly and that their individual needs are met. The registered manager strives to provide exceptional care for young people. Staff value this and are enthusiastic about delivering consistently high standards of personalised care in line with the statement of purpose. The registered manager has created a supportive and inclusive culture in which staff feel valued and motivated to work as a single team to prioritise the needs of young people. Staff enthuse about the quality of training that leaders provide and recognise how this supports them to develop the skills to meet the individual needs of young

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Outstanding

people. An in-depth induction and mandatory training in child protection, therapeutic care and behaviour management are supplemented by the regular dialogue with and training from the clinical therapeutic team. Staff who are highly skilled, experienced and intuitive to their needs support young people to make sustained progress. The registered manager understands the strengths of the home well and continually strives to develop and improve. The registered manager is receptive to new ideas and promotes originality, while also using research to inform practice. The registered manager utilises a managers’ network to share new ideas, meaning that her influence extends beyond the threshold of this individual home.

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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 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, 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

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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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