Children's Home run by Courtyard Care Limited in Bolton

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:

 Young people report that they feel safe and comfortable, and that they get on well with the other young people and the staff.  Parents have confidence in the care provided by the staff team. They are complimentary about the relationships which have formed between their children and the staff and the level of communication which keeps them regularly updated regarding their children‟s development and progress.

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 The manager has high aspirations for all young people. She promotes and enables the staff team to deliver a high standard of individual care.

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 A particular strength of the home is the detailed and well prepared transitional planning that occurs to ensure that young people join the home in a planned, supported and smooth way. This ensures that young people settle well into the home quickly and that their needs are met at the point of their admission.

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 The staff have an intrinsic understanding of young people‟s individual needs and understand their role in supporting and enabling young people to achieve their individual goals and aspirations. The staff provide a safe, nurturing environment for young people to grow and flourish. This is achieved because the manager ensures that the staff are provided with sufficient support, supervision and training so that they can carry out their functions and duties with young people well.

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 Five areas for improvement are noted at this inspection. These relate to behaviour management plans, independent oversight of physical interventions, supporting young people to make independent complaints, maintaining full and complete case records, and ensuring that the required information in regard to the qualifications and supervision arrangements for clinical health staff are identified within the home‟s statement of purpose.

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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 „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

(1) In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure that children are protected from harm.

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Requirement Due date

(2) In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that–

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Requirement Due date

(2)(b) the home's day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. This is with particular reference to ensuring that the responsible person identifies an authorised and independent person to monitor and evaluate any physical interventions that the registered manager has been actively involved in. 30/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children‟s home a statement (“the statement of purpose”) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1. This is with particular reference to ensuring that the arrangements for the professional supervision of staff, including staff who provide health care, are included within this document. (Regulation 16 (1)). 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 staff encourage children to share any concerns about their care or other matters as soon as they arise. In particular, children should be supported and able to take up any issues or make a complaint to their local authority if they are not being provided with services that they are entitled to, such as a suitable education provision. ('Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards', page 22, paragraph 4.13)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that expectations of standards of behaviour are high for all staff and children in the home. These standards should be clear and unambiguous. Positive behaviour and relationships should be reinforced, praised and encouraged; poor behaviour should be challenged and discussed. ('Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards', page 39, paragraph 8.11.) This is with specific regard to ensuring that all children have a clear behaviour management plan which identifies what actions staff will take to address poor behaviour consistently.

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Recommendations

 Ensure that all children‟s case records are kept up to date. ('Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards', page 62, paragraph 14.3.) This is with particular reference to ensuring that all delegated consent for any medical treatment is on file and available so that young people can access this as they require.

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Information about this children’s home

This children's home is owned and managed by a private company. It provides care and accommodation for up to five children and young people. The home enlists the support of a clinical psychologist and provides care and accommodation for children with mental health disorders, including learning disabilities.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 04/01/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 02/06/2015 Full Good 10/03/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness 17/12/2014 Full Adequate

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Good

The home has experienced a period of change and unsettlement and is now in the process of stabilisation. All but one member of the core staff team are new, and six young people have left the home and five young people have joined. The registered provider acknowledged the difficulties that the previous manager and staff were presented with in managing two young people‟s complex behaviours, and ended their placements appropriately to safeguard them and others as their behaviours escalated. A new manager and staff team have brought about a period of calm, and young people who are new to the home are welcomed warmly and settle in well.

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Good

Young people confirm that the staff provide a happy, relaxed environment in which they feel at ease. Parents and professionals validate the positive relationships that young people have forged with staff and confirm that the staff provide a good level of individual care. This ensures that young people feel relaxed and comfortable in their home and maintain positive relationships with each other and the staff. Consequently, young people make progress against their own individual targets and goals.

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Good

The arrangements for supporting young people to move into the home are exceptional. The manager makes suitable attempts to match the extremely complex and challenging needs of the young people joining the home to those who already live there to ensure that each young person‟s placement is safe, secure and well managed. Detailed and well-thought-out multi-agency transition plans, which include the clinical psychologist, support young people with their move so that they know where they will be moving to, with whom and when. These plans are shared and reviewed with the staff team prior to young people‟s arrival to enable the staff to have a greater understanding of the young person‟s needs. This ensures that the staff have the knowledge and skills that they require to meet the young people‟s needs on their arrival.

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Good

Young people have been supported to expand their childhood experiences. One child has visited the cinema, parks and swimming baths, where they have developed some positive relationships with other members of the local community. This has been possible because the staff have worked effectively with this child and their parents to improve the child‟s tolerance of social situations and improve their behaviours while away from the home. Consequently, young people‟s social experiences have been enhanced as they have been safely supported to engage within local community activities. Staff assist and encourage young people to develop the knowledge and skills that they will require for their independent lives in a safe, nurturing and supportive manner. Staff encourage young people to get involved in the shopping, cooking and cleaning of their home. While some young people will engage positively with these tasks, others need continued support, encouragement and prompting.

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Good

Staff listen to young people carefully and respond to their wishes, views and concerns quickly. Their wishes and views are actively sought through individual consultations, informal daily discussions and weekly residents‟ meetings. Staff provide good support for young people and enable them to attend and participate in all meetings that are pertinent to them, such as their children looked after review meetings. One independent reviewing officer said: „They are offering [name] a significant amount of support. They were very positive with her during the review, they supported her well, and were very sensitive towards her needs so that she could remain involved‟.

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Good

Young people confirm that the manager takes their concerns seriously. They report that they are confident that the manager addresses quickly any issues or worries that they may share with her, to make sure that a suitable outcome is reached for them. The manager has worked tirelessly to secure a suitable education provision for two young people. However, she has failed to support the young people in making their own formal complaints to their local authorities about the continued lack of education provision that is available to them.

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Good

Two young people who joined the home in October and November 2016 have yet to benefit from a suitable full-time education provision. The manager and registered provider continue to address this with the placing authorities to identify a suitable solution. As an interim measure, the manager ensures that young people are provided with a timetable of educational activities, such as online learning and trips to the library and museum, to maintain some educational structure and learning.

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Good

Young people are supported to manage their own emotional health needs. Staff fully understand young people‟s individual and complex health needs and work effectively with members of the clinical psychology team to ensure that a multi- disciplinary approach is delivered. Staff receive regular input and support from the clinical psychologist who delivers training and guidance on the most effective ways of supporting young people when they are in turmoil. Young people seek out support from the staff at times of heightened anxiety, and the calm and nurturing support offered by the staff has reduced the numbers of self-harming incidents for some young people. The manager ensures that all young people receive adequate health care and are registered with a doctor, dentist and optician on their arrival. However, she has failed to ensure that the medical consent forms for all young people are available and on file.

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Good

Young people confirm that there is no bullying at the home, and report that they are safe and kept safe by the staff. This is because the staff receive adequate safeguarding training and know their safeguarding roles and responsibilities. The staff spoken with during the inspection demonstrated their sound understanding of the home‟s whistleblowing policy, and reported that they would be confident in applying this, should the situation arise.

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Good

Staff are consistent in their care of this vulnerable group of young people. They demonstrate a thorough understanding of each young person‟s identified risks and vulnerabilities and offer a good level of care in their attempts to keep young people safe. Young people‟s strengths, needs and vulnerabilities are identified within their individual care plans and risk assessments. These plans are understood and consistently implemented by staff. They are reviewed and updated by leaders and managers following any significant events, and then shared appropriately with family members and placing social workers. Key conversations are regularly undertaken with young people following any significant incident. This affords them the opportunity to discuss their wishes, views and concerns in a safe space. This supportive approach gives young people the opportunity to reflect on their behaviours to make positive changes in the future. Consequently, the number of

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Good

self-harm and missing-from-home incidents have reduced.

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Good

Young people‟s safety is promoted within the home, as they live in a physically safe environment. This is because the manager and staff ensure that health and safety issues are well managed. Written records clearly show that staff carry out routine health and safety checks around the home, and insurance and gas and electrical appliance certificates are up to date.

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Good

Eight new staff members, including the manager, have joined the team since the last inspection. Robust recruitment practice ensures that staff are safe and suitable to work with vulnerable young people. Suitable induction processes and training schedules ensure that staff have the necessary skills and understanding to provide safe and effective care for all young people.

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Good

The behaviour management protocols and records are unclear and confusing. It is not clear how young people are being supported and encouraged to maintain positive behaviour, and what staff are doing to assist young people to improve their known risk-taking behaviours. Furthermore, the manager is unable to review how suitable, fair and effective these interventions are in promoting positive behaviour. Physical interventions are used appropriately by the staff. These are used as a last resort to safeguard young people when diversionary techniques have been proven to be unsuccessful. All but the registered manager are fully trained to implement this care practice safely. Staff support young people sensitively after the incident to ensure that they are given the time, space and support to consider and reflect on their behaviours and subsequent actions to minimise any further incidents. There are systems in place to ensure that all physical interventions are reviewed and

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Good

evaluated. However, these systems do not indicate who will undertake the review and evaluation when the managers themselves have been involved. Consequently, there is no independent oversight offering additional scrutiny, monitoring and evaluation to these physical interventions, to ensure that young people‟s safety and welfare are promoted.

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Requires improvement

This home is managed effectively by the new registered manager. The manager has the experience to undertake this role sufficiently and has enrolled on the necessary training to obtain the required qualification. She was registered with Ofsted in November 2016.

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Requires improvement

The manager and staff are effective in meeting the aims and objectives identified in the home‟s recently updated statement of purpose. The manager and staff work directly with young people, their families and partner agencies to continue to support young people to develop emotionally and socially in a safe, managed and homely environment. During the inspection, young people were observed to be happy in the home and had lots of conversation and interaction with the staff. Staff spoken with during the inspection said that they felt supported by the management team to deliver a high standard of care. As a result, young people continue to make some progress against their individual starting points.

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Requires improvement

The quality of staff supervisions and support makes the staff feel valued and respected. Staff members work effectively as a team, which contributes to the positive care that young people receive. Young people benefit from the care and support from their own core staff team, and regular support from consistent staff from a sister home. These staff members bring with them a wealth of knowledge and experience which supports the newer staff in delivering good care and support. All staff are enthusiastic, caring and share the manager‟s commitment to delivering a high standard of care.

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Requires improvement

The manager uses her internal and external monitoring systems well. She articulates the progress that young people make, and maintains good management oversight. She plans well with families, young people, partner agencies and staff to ensure that young people can continue to make progress against their individual targets and goals.

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Requires improvement

Parents and professionals are complimentary about the level of communication, commitment, care and support that the staff provide to young people and their families. Parents and professionals confirm that with the support of the staff, and the positive working relationships that staff have fostered with parents and professionals, young people continue to thrive. One parent wrote: „[Name] has a lot of very complex needs. It takes time to get to know her, but I feel that her needs are very much met by the staff. All the staff have planned routines with [name] and staff are very good at supporting her with these.‟ A professional said: „The best thing about the home is it allows [name] a safe and therapeutic environment where she has been able to enjoy safe family contact in a homely environment.‟

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Requires improvement

The manager has taken suitable action to address the three recommendations raised at the last inspection. Fire evacuations for young people and the staff are now routinely carried out as required and, therefore, the safety and well-being of young people and the staff is promoted. All but the manager have now received appropriate Team-Teach training. Consequently, staff can now support and manage young people‟s behaviour appropriately and safely during times of crisis. Furthermore, young people‟s privacy is respected, as the arrangements for transporting staff supervision records have been strengthened.

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Requires improvement

The children‟s guide and statement of purpose are reviewed and updated regularly by the manager. These documents are shared with young people, parents and placing authorities to ensure that they are clear about the services and support that is on offer and provided. The manager ensures that the staff work within the ethos and aims of these documents. However, she has failed to include the qualifications and supervision arrangements for the clinical health staff as required.

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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 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 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

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

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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