Children's Home run by BREAK in Norfolk

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:

 Children make exceptional progress because of living in the home.  Children say that they feel safe and enjoy living at the home.  Professionals speak positively about the way in which the staff work in partnership with them.  Staff actively support children to develop the independence skills that they will require in adult life.  Staff manage challenging behaviour effectively, using reparation and relationship building.  The managers lead the team in an open, approachable manner that the staff find supportive.  The group dynamic risk assessments are thorough and give a clear indication of the impact that a new placement will have.  One staff member who has been employed at the home for a number of years has not completed a relevant level 3 qualification.  Staff report that they find supervision beneficial. However, the records demonstrate that supervision sessions are not occurring at the frequency

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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

The registered person must ensure that an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification, the level 3 diploma for residential childcare (England) (‘the level 3 diploma’); or a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the level 3 diploma, by the relevant date. (Regulation 32(4)(5)) 15/05/2017

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendation:  Ensure that staff receive supervision in line with the home’s supervision policy. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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Information about this children's home

This children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for four children who have learning disabilities, emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. It is owned by a registered charity.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

16/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

25/03/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Good

Since the last inspection, the home has undergone a change of service. The new service involves a 12-week assessment period working with children and their families, to enable clear, long-term planning for the children. This will include reunification with families where appropriate. The two children who lived at the home prior to the change of service on 1 October 2016 have now moved on. One child who lived at the home for seven years completed the preparations for independence and moved to a semi-independent setting. Staff supported her to gain additional financial support from her placing authority to assist with the associated costs of living independently and to travel to her work placement, which forms part of her apprenticeship programme. A professional described her as, ‘on the edge of delinquency and self-harm at the time she moved in’. They said that during the placement she built trust in others,

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Good

grew in self-confidence and had good support from and good relationships with key workers. They went on to say, ‘The team has seen her through some difficult times and stabilised her.’ The other child had lived at the home for a year. He moved to another home within the same group. He had been successfully engaged in an alternative education provision, maintained his placement and achieved increased levels of attendance. During his stay, he began exhibiting heightened behaviour in the community in the months before he moved, and this led to an increase in complaints from neighbours. The managers effectively managed the complaints and provided good levels of care to the child. Staff and professionals speak positively about the work that the team has undertaken to transition the children into their new settings. It is evident that both children made very good progress in the time that they were at the home and that

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Good

they maintain contact with the staff team members, who see themselves as part of the children’s support network. The maintenance team has redecorated several areas of the house in readiness for the new children. The house has a homely feel and offers a range of spaces for the children to play in. The two children living at the home are clearly enjoying having the space that the house offers to play and relax in. The children currently living at the home are much younger than the previous children and, therefore, staff are devising a list of activities that are suitable for them. Staff have enrolled one child in a local rugby team, enabling the child to build a peer network outside of the home and helping them to develop their social skills. One child is attending a school for children who have complex learning needs. The lead contact at the school said, ‘She is one of the brighter pupils. Staff from the

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Good

home contacted the school for information about how the child was progressing and behaving in school, to gain knowledge of her needs prior to her arrival at the home.’ This demonstrates that staff recognise the importance of education and the role that the school staff play in the child’s life. The other child is due to start receiving home tuition and e-learning via the virtual school. This will allow the child to undergo an assessment to establish the most suitable long-term education provision. Staff seek children’s views during key-work sessions and informally throughout their time together. The house meetings will be reintroduced now that there are two children living in the home, to give a formal time and space for staff to receive the children’s views and wishes. Children have placement plans that specify the aims of the placement and detail how the staff will work to achieve the aims during the assessment period. This

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Good

information includes medical conditions, health concerns and emotional support, and helps to identify any other support that the child may need. The plans detail the assessment process, including the pre-set timescales for reviews, progress and planning meetings. This is to keep the assessment on schedule and to ensure that the relevant professionals are meeting all aspects of the children’s needs. This also assists with identifying when referrals to specialists are required. Staff positively reward children for their achievements. This positive affirmation helps the children to develop a sense of pride in themselves. Staff praised a child for his thoughtfulness in suggesting and coordinating everyone to adhere to the two-minute silence for Armistice Day during this inspection, and his participation in the subsequent discussion about modern-day war and the people fleeing war zones to find places of safety. This acknowledgement of children helps them to

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Good

understand that staff value their views and helps them to feel a sense of pride in their achievements.

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Good

Both children said that they feel safe at the home and would speak to their link workers if they had any worries or concerns. One child gave an example of having made a complaint in a previous setting and said that he would do ‘exactly the same here’. This demonstrates that the children feel confident to approach the staff with concerns. Staff are equally confident in the way that they would use the whistle-blowing process to raise any safeguarding concerns. The staffing ratios provide a level of supervision that results in missing from home being rare. There has been one missing-from-home episode. This related to the period when a child was exhibiting heightened behaviour prior to his move. The staff followed all processes appropriately and chased the placing authority for a return home interview. Staff understand the action to take when a child goes missing and on their return. Team meetings include full discussions about the children and household issues.

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Good

Child sexual exploitation and safeguarding are set items that are discussed at every meeting. Discussion about any changes in the children’s behaviour and strategies to keep the children safe take place in these meetings, with a focus on putting safety at the core of staff practice. There have not been any reported episodes of bullying. Staff follow the home’s anti-bullying policy. This helps the children to recognise and feel able to report bullying behaviour. The staff receive training in physical intervention. However, their successful use of de-escalation techniques based on humour and their relationship with the children ensure that the need to use physical intervention is avoided. There have been no restraints recorded in the past two years. This approach helps children to find more positive ways to manage their behaviour and to take responsibility for their own actions. There has been a recent incident of an 11-year-old child being given a cold remedy

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Good

that is only suitable for children aged 12 and above. The team has reviewed its home medication processes to ensure that only age-appropriate medication and dosages are given to the children. The need for room searches has been rare. Staff have conducted and recorded any searches in line with the home’s policy, to ensure that there is transparency in the process and that children’s dignity is promoted. Children have supervised access to the internet, which has the appropriate filters applied to keep the children safe. Staff record any incidents in the home and complete a written review, reflecting on the incident. The reviews detail the lessons learnt and identify any potential triggers for negative responses that the initial action may have provoked. Reviewing incidents at a later time allows staff to reflect effectively and, in turn, enables them to identify alternative strategies that they can utilise in their work

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Good

with the children. Staff have access to information about how to make referrals to the local authority designated officer. However, no referrals have been required. The manager completes a group dynamic risk assessment on receipt of a referral to the home. The assessments are thorough and allow the managers to make a clear decision about whether the admission of a new child will have a negative impact on the child or any of the children in placement. This also enables the identification of any additional safeguards that may be required. The home’s location risk assessment is reviewed annually and appropriately considers the additional risks posed by the setting of the home and its proximity to the sea. This provides staff with the guidance that they need to keep children physically safe.

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Good

The registered manager has been in post since 2011. He holds a level 5 qualification and has several years of experience in residential childcare. Staff report that both he and his deputy manager are supportive and have an open-door policy that makes them feel that their managers are approachable. This has been vital in managing the anxieties that arose because of discussions about the change of service over recent months. The manager used team meetings to have open and honest discussions about the pending changes. Staff report that the manager’s openness and sharing of information quickly minimised their worries and that they felt included in making decisions about the home and changes to the service. The staff each hold a relevant level 3 qualification, with one exception. The latter is currently undertaking the course. This means that a suitably qualified staff team cares for the children. Staff say that they benefit from their supervision sessions and value the

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Good

opportunity for reflection that supervision offers. However, the records viewed during the inspection do not reflect that supervision is occurring in line with the organisational policy. This does not ensure that the staff receive the level of supervision that they should be able to expect. Staff receive annual appraisals and they say that the process is helpful in identifying areas that they have developed and other areas that require additional training. This encourages staff to review their learning needs and to continue to develop in their roles. Staff receive a good level of mandatory training as defined by the organisation and refreshers at the appropriate intervals. Staff have undertaken additional training in specific approaches to support them with their assessments of the children. There are additional e-learning courses that staff can complete, such as on radicalisation. This helps staff to maintain an up-to-date knowledge base so that they can deliver

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Good

high-quality care. The home is currently modifying several aspects of its recording systems to reflect the assessment process that the service is now undertaking with children and their families. The manager has updated the home’s statement of purpose to reflect the new service offer. This sets out the type of care that children and their families can expect to receive. The independent visitor produces a monthly report detailing the progress and shortfalls that they identify during their visits. This provides the manager with information that he couples with his monthly audit to drive improvement in the home. The manager completes a six-monthly report that summarises the work undertaken and events that have occurred in the period. The format is currently being further refined to include feedback from children, parents, placing authorities and professionals and evaluation that demonstrates how the various aspects that

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Good

he is reporting on have improved the quality of care. This addresses one of two requirements made at the previous inspection. The manager has also addressed the requirement to ensure that records provide a reflective account of each incident that leads to a sanction. This practice encourages the staff to assess whether an alternative approach would have prevented the incident and/or reduced the possibilities of any repeat episodes, and the process reviews the effectiveness of sanctions. Feedback from staff, professionals and carers is very positive about the managers. A parent said, ‘The managers are brilliant. They work really well with us as parents.’ The new service that the home is offering continues to involve partnership working with other agencies. The local community safety officers visit the home, and the managers maintain good links with the police. The professionals spoken to cited the partnership working as a strength of the team. There have been occasions

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Good

when staff have challenged decisions made by the placing authority. A social worker said, ‘I admire the managers and staff challenging decisions, as it shows that they are working positively for the child. They are excellent.’

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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 children looked after 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 that 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 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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