Children's home run by Keys Child Care Limited in Telford and Wrekin

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:

 Young people make exceptional progress from their starting points.  Dedicated staff make substantial effort to support young people to access education by providing them with the right foundation, which helps to trigger academic success.  Staff work diligently to make sure that young people experience a wide range of social and recreational activities that promote their social skills, talents and abilities.  Staff have an extensive knowledge of young people’s individual vulnerabilities. Staff take all the necessary steps to minimise the potential impact of self-harming behaviour on young people’s physical and emotional well-being.  The manager makes sure that therapeutic services are integral to the care provided. This in turn, helps to ensure that young people’s emotional health and their ability to self-regulate their emotions are safely managed.  Resilient, motivated and enthusiastic staff work hard to develop and

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The children’s home provision is outstanding because:

maintain trusting relationships with young people.  Young people have wonderful access to positive and inclusive activities that meet their diverse needs.  The child-focused registered manager is ambitious for young people and ensures that staff deliver excellent-quality care in line with the statement of purpose.  The manager uses research to ensure that the care that young people receive is supported by the application of informed knowledge.  The manager ensures that multi-agency partnerships have a positive effect on the general health and development, including psychological well-being, of every young person.

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Information about this children’s home

The children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for three young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is operated by a private company.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

30/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

04/03/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Outstanding

Staff are intuitive, caring and sensitive in their delivery of tailored support for young people. Staff’s insight into the individual needs of young people is excellent, and, as a result, young people are making significant progress in their social, emotional and educational development. A member of the clinical team told the inspector, ‘The team [is] very responsive to the needs of the young people. Staff are really switched on over how to support young people. For example, [the young person]’s profile was very high risk. Her progress has been quite dramatic, in terms of education, relationships with staff, and self-esteem.’ The warm, nurturing approach of staff helps young people to develop meaningful, trusting relationships. This has enabled one young person to feel safe enough to make significant disclosures about their childhood. Staff are alert to the impact that these disclosures have had on the young person’s emotional health and associated

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Outstanding

risk of self-harm. Staff’s insight into the emotional well-being of all young people is further strengthened by the collaborative approach of the clinical team that works hand in hand with the staff to ensure that young people receive tailored therapeutic care. A member of the clinical team explained to the inspector, ‘There is a philosophy of using the therapeutic approach every minute of the day, not just in response to an incident.’ Staff are equally efficient at addressing the physical health needs of young people, ensuring that young people access primary healthcare services, such as the dentist, doctor and opticians as required. Furthermore, staff promote healthy eating and lifestyles, and this has contributed to one young person achieving a significant weight loss goal. Young people become increasingly healthy due to the advice, guidance and support offered by staff. Dedicated staff work tirelessly to promote the educational needs of young people,

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Outstanding

consistently going beyond expectations to ensure that young people have the very best opportunities to learn and achieve. For example, the manager and staff have passionately advocated on behalf of young people. This has resulted in tailored timetables, additional homework provision and changes in how the school manages challenging behaviours, thereby avoiding unnecessary exclusions. This means that not only is young people’s school attendance excellent, but they are making academic progress, which is remarkable when considering their starting points. A curriculum manager told the inspector, ‘They just want the very best for the young people. It’s brilliant. Every little recommendation [the manager] follows up on, and she chases us to make sure that we do it as well. It is not just [the manager]; it is all the staff.’ Patient and persistent staff provide young people with the guidance and motivation

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Outstanding

to develop the skills that they need for adulthood. Young people are encouraged to cook with staff, go food shopping and complete basic household chores. The staff team’s approach enables these skills to be developed at the right pace for young people and often without the young people even being aware that they are taking on extra responsibilities and learning new skills. Staff promote additional life skills in creative ways. For example, one young person is now part of the interview panel for new staff recruits, which is helping to develop their own awareness, confidence and skills. This is a remarkable achievement and a reflection of the significant progress that the young person has made since coming to the home. Energetic and enthusiastic staff are proactive at encouraging young people to access an excellent range of social and recreational activities. For example, young people attend a youth club, drama society and roller blading club and take part in

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Outstanding

charity fundraising and volunteering. Staff and partner agencies are consistent in discussing how excellent an achievement this is for each of the young people. A social worker said, ‘The activities that she is involved in [are] really quite mind blowing. I mean she went to Disneyland.’ Staff actively promote contact between young people and their families, facilitating transport and using video calls when geographical distance is a barrier. A social worker told the inspector, ‘They manage contact with birth family really well. They supervise contact well. They also promote positive contact with her siblings, taking them to a trampoline park so that it is more enjoyable for them.’ As a result, young people feel less isolated, and families continue to feel involved in the lives of their loved ones.

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Outstanding

Young people are safe due to the staff team’s diligence and understanding of safeguarding and risk management. Staff actively review risks to ensure that tailored strategies keep young people safe. Self-harming behaviour continues to be a feature of some young people. However, staff have developed coping strategies that, overall, are helping to reduce the severity and frequency of such behaviours. The staff team’s therapeutic approach and use of creative resources, such as a newly introduced sensory room, has helped young people to develop their emotional resilience. The strength of relationships with staff and their sense of belonging at the home result in young people rarely going missing. Despite this, staff remain vigilant to such behaviours, taking proactive steps, such as ensuring that young people’s basic demographic sheets, and torches and high visibility jackets are easily accessible. Young people are kept safe by alert staff, who are responsive to unexpected crises

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Outstanding

and plan well. When behaviour management strategies have been unsuccessful and a restraint has been required, staff are highly reflective and self-critical. As a result, staff are good at identify learning, which can be disseminated to other staff, informing future practice and ensuring that behaviour management plans are tailored to the individual needs of young people. For example, staff have recently introduced a weighted blanket for one young person, after they identified that the young person was deliberately triggering a restraint due to an emotional need to be held. Attentive staff are highly effective in managing young people’s potential vulnerability to child sexual exploitation. For example, staff use key-work sessions to develop young people’s understanding and awareness of how to keep themselves safe both online and in the community. Staff demonstrate a high level of insight into the success of these interventions and the need for additional

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Outstanding

The impressive and experienced registered manager has been in post since August 2012 and is qualified to the national vocational qualification level 4 in leadership and management for care services. The majority of staff have completed the diploma level 3 in residential childcare or equivalent. All staff are expected to have completed the qualification by September 2018, which will be within two years of their starting in the relevant posts. The registered manager makes sure that she stays up to date with current legalisation and seeks advice relating to disability from external professionals. This helps to ensure that her knowledge is current and well informed. This includes identifying relevant research documents and sharing them with staff. The registered manager leads a highly skilled and resilient staff team that shows genuine passion and drive to provide high-quality care to young people. Staff are

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Outstanding

consistently positive about working at the home and they say that they feel well supported by a manager who adopts a firm but fair approach. Reflective supervisions and purposeful team meetings support staff to understand how to support young people to make continual progress and stay safe. A comprehensive training programme, which includes mandatory training in safeguarding and behaviour management, is complemented by specialist training in dealing with self- harm and working with young people who have learning difficulties. As a result, staff have the skills and knowledge to deliver tailored quality care in line with the statement of purpose. The registered manager actively and regularly monitors the quality of care provided, continually learning from practice and feedback, to improve the experiences and care of young people. For example, staff, professionals, young people and families complete consultation questionnaires, providing the manager

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Outstanding

with a holistic understanding of the care provided to young people. This means that the manager has a sound understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. Young people make significant progress from their starting points as all staff champion their needs, providing comprehensive tailored care. The registered manager has an in-depth understanding of the plans for young people and actively drives the achievement of important milestones, goals and permanence for their futures. The registered manager is a passionate advocate for the young people, holding partner agencies to account so that young people receive the very best care. Integrated partnership working and effective communication are the cornerstones of good practice for all staff. Partner agencies consistently feed back how knowledgeable staff are about young people and how effective communication is. For example, excellent links with education, police, social workers and the clinical

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Outstanding

team ensure that there is a joined-up approach to meeting the holistic needs of young people.

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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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