Children's home run by London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in Hammersmith and Fulham

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged good at the last full inspection. At this interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has sustained effectiveness . One requirement and two recommendations have been made as a result of this inspection. Three requirements and three recommendations resulted from the last inspection. The home has met two of the requirements. The statement of purpose has been reviewed and appropriately updated. It now accurately describes how the home is being run and its objectives. Care staff have had their safeguarding skills refreshed, mainly through team meetings, and formal training is planned to be rolled out over the next few months. This means that care staff are now better equipped to identify safeguarding concerns. A new recommendation has been made about ensuring that staff’s safeguarding skills are recorded in the home’s workforce plan. The third requirement made at the last inspection has not been met. This related

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

to ensuring that staff performance is appraised at least annually. The registered manager has given this requirement due consideration, and has concluded that the imminent staff restructuring means that the timing is inappropriate. He has, however, increased supervision sessions for some staff so that their work performance can be discussed more often. This requirement has, therefore, been repeated with a new timescale for completion. A recommendation relating to workforce planning has appropriately not been progressed at this point because of the planned restructuring, but will be completed over the next few months. The second recommendation related to giving young people more choices, and has been met. Finally, the third recommendation concerned increasing the level of summary evaluation in the well- targeted independent visitor’s reports, and this has been broadly met. The home has continued to offer a very good quality of care to young people. Staff

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

demonstrate pride in young people’s achievements, and offer them a high level of emotional warmth. Activities are well planned at the beginning of each shift and reflect staff’s excellent knowledge of what young people prefer to do. For some young people, doing certain things in a particular environment is vitally important for their emotional well-being. Successfully meeting these emotional needs minimises young people’s distress and helps to maintain the generally relaxed atmosphere in the home. Staff are skilled at offering appropriate challenge to young people. This is demonstrated through young people’s individual targets, which are monitored and reviewed on a routine basis. Most targets are focused on increasing young people’s daily living skills in areas such as washing, feeding and sleeping. These outcome areas are well chosen, in that improvements in these areas mean that young people may be able to stay at home longer, and spend their adulthood in the least

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

restrictive environment possible. Since the last inspection, the management team has been significantly stretched by a pragmatic organisational decision to place a new, full-time young person in a part of the home. This has reduced the available premises for existing young people, and has made major demands on management time. However, this placement was an emergency response to events, and is not planned to be other than very short term as this home is not appropriate in the longer term to meet this young person’s needs. Some young people can display very challenging behaviour, and staff are competent at dealing with this appropriately. The number of restraints imposed is kept commendably low, and the vast majority of those are at the lowest level of intervention. Staff will always try all non-contact measures first. For example, on occasion, managers are contacted at home to talk down young people and this can

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

be very successful. The management team is also skilled in responding promptly and effectively to safeguarding concerns. This helps to protect not only young people but staff as well.

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority children’s home is registered for up to seven children who have learning disabilities and physical disabilities. The home mainly provides short breaks, but, when it is in the best interest of the child, it also provides interim emergency and some longer-term placements.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

14/12/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

14/02/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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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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Requirements Due date

33: Ensure that all employees have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33(4)(c)) 30/04/2017

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:

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Recommendations

 Ensure that skills in safeguarding are gained, refreshed and recorded in the home’s workforce plan. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.12)   Ensure that the registered person only accepts placements for children where they are satisfied that the home can respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, and where they have fully considered the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4)

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What the inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspection, we make a judgement on whether the home has improved in effectiveness, sustained effectiveness, or declined in effectiveness since the previous full inspection. This is in line with the ‘Inspection of children’s homes: framework for inspection’.

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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 focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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Information about this inspection

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 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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