Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited 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 are valued members of the household. Staff support them to settle into a comfortable home where they feel a sense of belonging.  Children form secure relationships with staff and trust them to work in their best interests.  Staff support children to return to education and help them to achieve their potential.  Children recognise positive changes in their behaviour. The staff support them to self-regulate and to experience improved mental health.  Safeguarding policies and practice and close working with statutory agencies promote children’s welfare.  The manager actively seeks the views of the children, parents and professionals in her quality of care monitoring, to ensure that their views contribute to the development of the home.  The manager leads a child-focused service. She is aware of the home’s strengths and has a clear vision for the future development of the service.  This inspection identified some shortfalls in practice. One previous

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The children's home provision is good because:

requirement and one recommendation are not met. The shortfalls relate to staff supervision, training, compatibility assessment and the workforce development plan.

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person(s) meet(s) 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: In order to meet the leadership and management standard, the registered person must: 2(c) ensure that staff have the skills to meet the needs of each child. In particular, they must ensure that staff undertake training to gain specific knowledge in substance misuse and supervised contact, to meet the children’s individual needs. 30/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision. (Regulation 33(4)(b)) In particular, they must ensure that supervision is in line with regulation and organisational policy. 30/12/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  Ensure that children are informed of how to contact the office of the Children’s Commissioner for advice and assistance about their rights and entitlements. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 23, paragraph 4.19)  Ensure that an updated workforce plan details the necessary management and staffing structure, the experience and qualifications of staff currently working within the staffing structure and any further training required for those staff, to enable the delivery of the home’s statement of purpose. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)  Ensure that the assessment of new placements fully considers the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children. (‘Guide to the

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Recommendations

children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4)

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Information about this children's home

A private company owns and operates this children’s home. The home provides care and accommodation for up to four children aged between 11 and 18 years who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

02/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

23/03/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Good

This recently redecorated home offers children a comfortable living environment. It provides large spaces for community living and personalised bedrooms where children experience privacy and personal space. One child commented, ‘I live in a nice house. My bedroom is nice and I chose the colours and decoration.’ The children describe how the staff support them to settle when they first move into the home. One child said, ‘Staff helped me to settle. They made it feel homely.’ The staff are skilled at building rapport with the children, which helps to reduce the children’s anxiety. It enables children to feel accepted and valued as members of the household. Children have good relationships with the staff. They identify staff that they particularly like. One child said, ‘They are my favourites. They are easy to speak to and I trust them.’ Relationships develop through the regular key-work sessions undertaken with children, which provide an opportunity for the child and the staff

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Good

to discuss particular events. The manager recognised that, for some children, taking part in residents’ meetings did not meet their needs because some children prefer to give individual views about how the home operates. The manager and staff have developed individual feedback opportunities with a ‘teen-talk’ programme. Staff are mindful of children’s preferences and how to ensure that children’s voices are heard. The children have trusting relationships with the staff and have confidence and belief that the staff work in their best interests. The home operates a positive behaviour management system whereby incentives support the children to reach set targets. One child said, ‘The incentives work for me.’ Positive change prevails because of the incentives and the good relationships between children and staff. One child reflected on their changes and said, ‘It is my confidence. I am much more confident. I am comfortable here and I am back in

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Good

school.’ A social worker added, ‘Staff get to know the child. They have good relationships, which mean that they are able to defuse situations. They have stick- ability even when challenged.’ The staff support the children to self-regulate, to manage their emotions and to grow in confidence. Staff creatively encourage the children to attend and engage in education. One child, who had experienced placement breakdowns due to their lack of education engagement, is now attending school. Staff have supported a phased return into school and they support continued learning in the home. A bright student has benefited from living in the home because the staff support her to reach her potential. A social worker said, ‘There has been massive progress, particularly around education.’ The staff have supported the older children to find employment in their particular area of interest. Staff support and motivate them to present

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Good

themselves appropriately for a work environment. When particular employment has not worked out, staff have continued to assist and support in locating further work. All of the children are physically fit. They contribute to the planning of a healthy, nutritional and balanced diet. All of the staff are trained in first aid and the administration of medication. Staff encourage the children to attend their routine medical appointments and, if the children refuse to attend, the staff make further dates. Some of the children’s experiences of early-life trauma have had an impact on their mental health. The staff work with the children who suffer from depression and high anxiety and they work closely with the professional teams to support good mental health. Staff closely monitor moods and behaviour. This support and intervention has led to physiological changes and stabilised behaviour for some of the children.

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Good

The staff recognise the value of contact between children and their families. They support children to have contact in the home and in community activities. The manager said, ‘A child’s sibling came. They had Sunday lunch together and watched television. They loved it. It was the first time a family member had come to the child’s home and this is her home!’ Staff support the children to maintain family ties and a sense of identity and they encourage friendships. Some children enjoy spending time in the recently refurbished and decorated conservatory to play computer games and watch television with their friends. This has helped to broaden the children’s social circles and enhanced their sense of community belonging. One child who is preparing to leave care experienced several moves before living in this home and he plans to settle in the area as he moves into adulthood. Staff encourage the children to engage in activities, although some of the older

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Good

children prefer to spend time with their friends. Staff encourage physical activity and ensure that the children engage in activities that promote social interaction and social competence and help to build their self-esteem. The staff consider the particular talents of the children and how to use them to develop individual employment opportunities, such as being a good artist.

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Good

The organisation has sound safeguarding processes in place. The staff and manager work closely with partner and statutory agencies when harmful behaviours are evident, whether these relate to children or staff. The manager completes risk assessments and management plans and reviews them regularly. The risk assessments identify potential hazards and the control measures, required, to minimise potential risks for children. Robust internal processes ensure that any allegations against a member of staff receive a swift response. Immediate suspension helps to safeguard children, and the internal processes ensure that only suitable people return to their posts. Staff promote positive behaviour through their approach to behaviour management and their good relationships with the children. The staff use de-escalation techniques to support the children when they present with heightened behaviours. Staff have successfully used these techniques, avoiding the need for physical

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Good

intervention. The staff are empathetic to the children’s past experiences and recognise how trauma can emerge as aggressive or confrontational behaviour, leading to injury or damage to property. The staff do not criminalise the children; they use sanctions and reflection to help the children to understand and modify their behaviour. The children have learned to exercise self-control and self- regulation when faced with adversity and distress. Although relatively few incidents of missing from care have occurred since the last inspection, the number of incidents has risen more recently. The organisation has robust missing-from-care procedures. The staff follow the procedures, and their close working relationship with the local police means that any potential incidents of children going missing receive a well-coordinated response. Staff receive training on safeguarding matters to develop their knowledge in this

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Requires improvement

The registered manager resigned on 1 July 2016. The organisation provided suitable interim management arrangements, and a new manager is in post. She has applied for registration with Ofsted. The new manager has a relevant level 5 qualification and significant experience to bring to the post and has already made an impact on team building and performance. The manager leads a team whose ethos and core values hold children’s well-being at the centre of team members’ practice. The team’s nurturing style has helped the children to settle and to progress in areas of their lives. The home has undergone many staff changes in recent months. A process of vetting and selection of new recruits ensures their suitability to work in the home. The organisation’s induction programme offers new recruits a timetable of learning about the home’s operations and time to build rapport with the children. A core- training programme ensures that staff develop their knowledge of essential

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Requires improvement

subjects, and ongoing training promotes their understanding and practice development. All eligible staff are either working towards or hold the required diploma in childcare. Staff supervise contact between children and family members, but the staff have not trained in this complex area of practice. This does not provide them with the knowledge that they need to ensure the safety and well-being of the children and the staff. Staff supervision offers time and space to discuss children’s individual needs and an opportunity to review performance and practice. However, the staff have not received regular supervision and new staff have not benefited from more frequent supervision, as defined in the home’s organisational policy. This is an essential element of practice to support staff to execute their duties and meet the needs of children. Lack of regular supervision means that the staff do not receive the

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Requires improvement

support that they should expect and does not enable the manager to regularly review performance strengths and shortfalls that may have an impact on the children. Monitoring of service delivery is good. The manager has good oversight of the home’s strengths and areas for development. The review of the quality of care gathers the views of children, professionals and parents, and this feedback contributes to service improvement. The independent person undertakes monthly monitoring, highlighting areas of good practice and development opportunities. He offers an ongoing independent view as to how the home is safeguarding the children and promoting their welfare. The manager takes full advantage of this independent view and quickly rectifies the areas for improvement raised. The workforce plan does not reflect the current staffing arrangements, and the children’s guide does not hold the correct information in respect of the Children’s

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Requires improvement

Commissioner. This is of particular importance because the children need to have all of the necessary information should they wish to raise an issue of complaint. One requirement and two recommendations were raised at the last inspection. The requirement was for staff to undertake training in substance misuse. Staff have not received this training. Substance misuse remains a concern for some children in the home. This requirement is raised again to ensure that the staff are knowledgeable in this area of practice and to support the children to maintain good physical and mental health. One of the two recommendations remain. The home’s compatibility assessment is not robust. It does not provide a clear rationale and evidence of how managers assess the risk of harm, disruption and vulnerabilities for the children coming into the home in the context of those children already resident, and vice versa. Records of the children’s key-work sessions and the recently introduced

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Requires improvement

compliments book offer children a more balanced record of their time in the home, because positive accounts of their time are celebrated and recorded. The home has experienced a period of change. The new manager’s style and management experience have moved the home to a stable place where children have a sense of belonging.

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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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