Children's Home run by New Horizons (Stockport) Limited in Manchester

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:

 The ethos of this home is underpinned by warm, trusting and supportive relationships that provide young people with stability and opportunities to develop and progress.  Young people’s views are highly valued, and their participation and involvement in planning their care and the running of the home are encouraged and promoted to a good standard.  Young people confirm that they feel safe and well cared for. This is because staff give their care and safety the highest priority.  Staff make every effort to help young people to understand their own behaviour and manage their individual risks and vulnerabilities more effectively. The effectiveness of this approach is evident in the better choices that young people make about their safety.  Managers show good learning from previous experiences, including Ofsted inspections, and have been proactive in implementing change that has significantly improved the quality of care for young people.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The registered manager has a realistic understanding of the home’s strengths and there are clear plans in place to promote continuous growth and improvement at an appropriate rate.  Young people benefit from the care and support of a diverse staff group in terms of experience, qualifications, age, ethnicity and interests. This increasingly confident and cohesive staff group delivers good levels of care in an enthusiastic and child-focused manner.

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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

(2) In order to meet the protection of children standard, in particular the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure: (a) that staff: (v) understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person.

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Requirement Due date

This is with specific reference to ensuring that staff follow the agreed risk management strategies that are recorded in each child’s risk assessment, in particular those relating to when children return home under the influence of alcohol or drugs; and that, when staff deviate from this practice, a written record is made of the rationale for this decision, including the manager’s evaluation of this decision. 21/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

34: Policies for the protection of children

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must provide for records to be kept of any allegation of abuse or neglect and the action taken in response. (Regulation 34(2)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This is with specific reference to ensuring that safeguarding records are well organised, fully complete and up to date, and that they confirm the agreed outcome of any investigation. 21/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

44: Independent person: visits and reports

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person, if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44(2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This is with specific reference to improving the level of consultation with children, parents and professionals. 21/12/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  The registered person should ensure that the records kept of the administration of medication are fully complete and include all of the occasions when prescribed medication is refused. (‘Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15)  The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs. (‘Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11) This is with specific reference to ensuring that all staff complete training in relation to child sexual exploitation and the management of self-harm.  The registered person should ensure that staff annual appraisals take into account, when reasonable and practical, the views of other professionals

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Recommendations

who have worked with the staff member over the year and children in the home’s care. (‘Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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Information about this children's home

This is a one of a number of privately run children’s homes. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to five children who may be experiencing emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 23/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 28/07/2015 Full Requires improvement 01/06/2015 Full Inadequate 17/03/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Good

Managers and staff have worked hard to create a nurturing environment where young people want to live, are consistently supported, and feel safe, valued and respected. The current group of young people spoke very positively about living at this home. They recognise that the support of staff has helped them to find stability and come to terms with some of the challenges that they face in their lives. This has provided the foundation on which to build and it was a real pleasure to hear young people talking so positively about the future. For example, a number of young people spoke about the support that they have received to help them attend college, and their aspirations and goals such as working with animals, careers in social care and joining the Royal Airforce.

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Good

Staff are skilled at establishing strong, reciprocal relationships with young people. These relationships underpin the culture and ethos of the home, and are the key to why young people feel such a strong a sense of belonging and are so settled. Young people are confident in expressing themselves, and their views and opinions are integral to all aspects of planning their care and the day-to-day running of the home. They said that they do not need to make complaints, because staff listen to what they say and try to sort things out.

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Good

Staff have a good understanding of young people’s needs, and well-written care plans outline how these needs will be met. These plans are regularly updated and followed by staff, recognising young people as individuals with different backgrounds, interests and needs. Care practice is further enhanced by strong links with families, social workers and a range of different agencies, who all contribute to young people’s care.

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Good

Young people are well supported to maintain good physical and emotional health and well-being. Staff encourage them to take responsibility for their own health, offering good advice, guidance and access to information. As a result, young people demonstrate an age-appropriate understanding of their own needs and are generally making good choices in this respect. For example, they attend routine appointments such as visits to the doctor, dentist and optician. Staff monitor the outcomes of these appointments, ensuring that any prescribed medication is available to them. However, staff are not always recording when young people refuse their medication and a number of gaps were evident in one young person’s medication record. When necessary, staff are quick to start the process of engaging the services of specialist agencies, such as the child and adolescent mental health services and substance misuse team. This ensures that the right

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Good

people are available at the right time. Young people are encouraged to engage in education or training. Improved links with schools and colleges mean that they are better supported to access an appropriate resource soon after admission. There is less reliance on a home- tutoring approach, and this is now seen as the exception rather than the norm, only being used as an interim measure while a placement is sourced. Individualised arrangements are in place, with the majority of young people attending college or training. Attendance and engagement are generally good, with staff reinforcing the importance of gaining recognised qualifications and accreditation. One young person proudly spoke about completing the National Citizenship Service Award after attending the awards ceremony during the inspection, noting this to be a good thing to have on her curriculum vitae.

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Good

Young people are encouraged to engage in purposeful and age-appropriate leisure activities and spoke enthusiastically about some of the things that they have done. Staff encourage young people to keep a memory book which contains photos of their time at the home. One young person was keen to show this to the inspector and excitedly spoke about some of the things that she had done. This included trampolining, canoeing and doing a ‘high-trees’ experience. For some young people, free time has to be carefully managed due to their individual risks and vulnerabilities. In these circumstances, staff and young people have written agreements which include young people’s responsibilities to keep in touch and the expectations in terms of returning to the home. This ensures that young people are not inhibited by historic behaviour and can take age-appropriate risks.

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Good

Staff recognise the importance of young people maintaining contact with family members and other individuals who are important to them. Well-organised and safe arrangements are in place to ensure that contact is maintained in accordance with each young person’s plans. This helps young people to maintain their identity and ensures that attachments with key people are maintained.

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Good

Staff give young people’s safety a high priority, and young people say that they feel safe. Staff are trained in child protection and fully understand their safeguarding roles and responsibilities. Young people’s risk assessments are regularly reviewed to ensure that they reflect their known and emerging risks. This includes clear direction in relation to what staff should do when young people return under the influence of alcohol or drugs, which is a relatively rare occasion. However, on the small number of occasions that this has happened, staff have not always followed the agreed procedure which clearly stipulates that medical advice should be sought. There is no record that verifies the rationale for not doing this and no written evidence that the manager is in agreement with this deviation. This has not proven detrimental to young people’s safety, because due care and concern have been afforded through good supervision and monitoring.

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Good

Staff demonstrate a good understanding of each young person’s risks and vulnerabilities, and have been effective in the management and reduction of these, over time. This is because they work hard to help young people to value themselves, and offer good parent-like support and guidance. This, in turn, helps young people to make informed and better choices about their own safety. For example, young people who have a history of going missing and putting themselves at risk of exploitation are showing a significant reduction in this type of behaviour.

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Good

Robust procedures are in place in the event of young people going missing. Since the interim inspection, there have been six reported absences, the majority of these relating to young people returning late. In all cases, staff have taken the right action by making efforts to locate the young person prior to reporting their absence to the police. Each response is individual and based on the young person’s age and level of risk. This ensures that responses to this type of behaviour are proportionate. Good links are maintained with the police, who undertake welfare checks when young people return. Despite not being trained to counter child sexual exploitation, staff are very aware of the potential indicators for this behaviour. They have shared information with relevant agencies, ensuring that any concerns are fully investigated and any necessary action can be taken.

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Good

There have been a number of safeguarding concerns, including one allegation against staff, since the last inspection. These have been referred and managed in line with the local authority’s and home’s procedures. The manager has worked collaboratively with other agencies to ensure that investigations are conducted without delay and in the best interest of young people’s safety. Records are maintained, but these are not well organised. This made it difficult for the manager to provide cohesive evidence on all aspects of the investigation, although it was clear from other information seen and gathered that the right action had been taken in all cases.

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Good

Young people benefit from clear and consistently applied boundaries and expectations. Staff constantly view young people positively and use their relationships with them effectively to maintain a mostly calm and respectful environment. Young people are encouraged to set their own behaviour targets that are designed to address their specific behavioural needs and encourage socially acceptable behaviour. Tangible rewards including more pocket money, takeaways and special activities, and most young people do well in this respect most of the time. Staff take a non-confrontational approach to negative behaviour and make every effort to support young people through troubled times. For example, they will talk to them and try to understand what their problem is, as well helping them to identify how they can put things right. This restorative approach is helping young people to improve their behaviour, and the need for sanctions and physical

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Good

restraint is extremely rare, because young people are making better choices. Recruitment practice throughout the organisation has improved significantly. Rigorous assessment of all staff takes place prior to them starting work in the home, including thorough checks and vetting. This has ensured that the staff who have been recruited have the necessary qualities and skills to work with this vulnerable group of young people, and, more importantly, that they are safe to do so.

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Good

The registered manager has been in post since October 2015. He is suitably qualified and has used his previous management and childcare experience effectively to maintain a journey of continuous improvement. He is well supported by a deputy manager who has a comprehensive understanding of the issues which led to a judgement of inadequate at the inspection in June 2015. Supported by the responsible individual, managers have worked hard to rebuild the service including the development of a now stable, confident and child-focused staff team.

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Good

Suitable action has been taken to address the one requirement and three recommendations from the interim inspection in February 2016. This has resulted in improvements to some of the content of regulation 44 reports, overcoming barriers to participation in education, the delivery of mandatory training and the management of missing from care.

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Good

Young people benefit from the care and support of a well-motivated and enthusiastic staff team. They clearly enjoy their work and are proud of each young person’s progress and achievements. They show a strong commitment to ensuring that young people are safe, feel valued and are provided with opportunities that promote their life chances. Young people are making good progress as a result of staff efforts, which have been effective in helping them to settle and find some level of stability in their often chaotic lives. One young person said, ‘Staff have been really supportive. They have always done the right thing for me and it’s been a good place for me to live. It is a good home and I feel safe.’

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Good

There is a good balance of skills, knowledge and experience within this increasingly cohesive staff team. New staff are thoroughly inducted to the home and all staff are well supported in their day to day practice. Rotas are well planned and ensure that the person responsible for running the shift is competent to do so. Daily handovers are used effectively to ensure information is routinely shared between staff going off duty and those coming on. Team meetings are held monthly and are used effectively to discuss young people’s progress and needs as well as any action required to improve the home.

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Good

Formal supervision is regularly provided by either the manager or deputy manager who are suitably trained in this respect. Staff performance is appraised annually to ensure their development needs are clearly identified and can be considered and met the subsequent year. The last tranche of appraisals did not take into account the views of young people or other professionals. The manager is aware of the value in gathering third party feedback and has started considering how he can do this next time.

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Good

Improved monitoring of training means that all staff have now completed mandatory training including safeguarding, first aid, medication management and the use of restraint. A large majority of this training is completed online. The manager is aware of the limitations of on-line learning and is looking for ways to provide more in-depth learning opportunities for his staff team. This includes training that relates to the known and emerging needs of young people. For example, a number of staff have not been provided with training in the management of self-harm or child sexual exploitation. This means they are reliant on the expertise of a few staff when managing this type of behaviour.

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Good

Monitoring and oversight has improved because quality assurance is now an integral part of the home’s operation. Monitoring activities are shared between the manager and deputy manager who each take responsibility for ensuring high standards are maintained. Both demonstrate a strong commitment to an improvement agenda and on the whole these processes are effective in identifying areas for improvement, which are fed into the homes overall development plan. This plan is regularly updated and shared with staff who demonstrate a sense of ownership in terms of the homes improvement agenda.

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Good

Monthly monitoring visits are undertaken by an independent visitor. Following each visit the visitor prepares a report which the manager can use for the purpose of improvement. These reports now better represent the independent visitor’s opinion about whether children are effectively safeguarded and the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being. This process would benefit from a more consistent approach to gathering and representing stakeholder views, in particular those of young people and professionals. For example, visits always take place when young people are either getting ready for, or have left for school or college. This does not allow sufficient time or opportunity for young people to have meaningful and purposeful discussions with the visitor and is a missed opportunity to acquire their perspective about their home, should they want to offer it.

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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

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

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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