Children's Home run by Kingston upon Hull City Council in Kingston upon Hull

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 experience long-term and short breaks that significantly elevate their outcomes and quality of life. Their care, help and protection are research informed and their progress excels from their starting points.  The multi-professional relationships work exceptionally well. Specifically, the improved working partnership between the service and education promotes young people’s learning and progress. These interventions contribute effectively to meeting the young people’s identity, health, education, social and safety needs.  The further development of individual communication tools significantly helps young people to express choice and views about their daily lives and plans.  Young people’s life experiences and engagement in the wider community are achieved through a range of interesting leisure activities. This helps immensely to build young people’s confidence and provides them with hours

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The children’s home provision is outstanding because:

of fun, sustaining friendships and integrating socially.  Professionals and parents value highly the service that the young people receive. They express confidence that young people enjoy their stays.  Strong management is aspirational and challenging, and consistently strives to improve young people’s experiences and positive outcomes. The existing staff, despite a number of setbacks in recent months, have continued to place the young people at the centre of their work.

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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, the 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

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (‘the independent person’s report’) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether – children are effectively safeguarded; and the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being. (Regulation 44(4)(a)(b)) 28/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

(3) After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take. (Regulation 45(3))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically make clear the intended actions in the review report. 28/04/2017

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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 must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.2) In particular, supervision records should show that staff reflect on their practice.

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Recommendations

 Staff should be familiar with the home's policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful objective and clear recording. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 62, paragraph 14.4) In particular, risk assessments should be promptly updated and include all of the identified risks following the safeguarding investigation.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should oversee the welfare of the children in their care through observation and engagement with: each child; the home's staff; each child's family/carers where appropriate; and professionals involved in the care and protection of each child including their social worker, independent reviewing officer (IRO), teachers, clinicians and other health professionals, and so on. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 54, paragraph 10.23) Specifically, the registered person should consult with staff to inform the management review of service improvements.

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Information about this children's home

This local authority home is registered to care for and accommodate up to eight children and young people who have learning difficulties, at any one time. Some children also have physical disabilities and complex health needs. The vast majority of children and young people have short breaks at the home. Some young people are currently accommodated on a long-term basis.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 24/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 22/12/2015 Full Outstanding 17/02/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness 06/11/2014 Full Good

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Outstanding

Young people receive excellent, highly individualised care from skilled and resourceful staff. Practice is research informed and the ‘team around the child’ and supporting families’ ethos has resulted in some excellent outcomes for young people from their starting points. A parent said, ‘This is my child’s second family.’

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Outstanding

As well as providing short breaks, the home provides for some young people to live there longer term. The progress of these young people ranges from good to remarkable. Examples include wheelchair users who have become increasingly mobile. One young person who started with a range of health issues, including low self-confidence, now has fewer health concerns and improved confidence and self- esteem. The registered manager said, ‘We have been able to give him back his confidence.’ A social work professional said that the young people are ‘thriving’ and referred to one young person as ‘a different boy’ as a result of his quality of care. Staff are highly responsive to promoting the young people’s cultural and identity needs through contact with their families and life story work. This keeps them connected to their families and shows how far they have come.

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Outstanding

Young people’s strong and trusting relationships with staff help them to express themselves and make choices. Young people are making their needs understood, which, for some, is a notable breakthrough. The continued development of different communication tools is helping to reduce young people’s frustrations and anxieties that may lead to negative behaviours. Such aspirational practice indicates how staff work tirelessly to understand each child’s voice.

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Outstanding

An independent advocate regularly visits the young people. She uses sensory play, which enables her to effectively engage with the young people. This also helps her to canvass their views and observe how they relate to staff and peers. Individual sessions with young people enable them to share their wishes and feelings about their future plans.

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Outstanding

Young people enjoy many opportunities to access a wide range of social activities, to make friends and to develop social and independent skills. This enhances their confidence and life experiences, and provides fun memories. Young people’s independent skills can range from brushing their teeth and washing their own hands to receiving awards from school for doing well on their independence programmes. Their activities include swimming, horse riding, partaking in a Paralympic event, pedicures and manicures at the local salon, day trips and holidays away, trips to the theatre and drama groups. Young people continue to do wheelchair dancing and attend discos and regular movie events with peers. Their access to the different parts of the home allows them to use the computers, the television, DVDs and books, and to spend hours in the well-resourced sensory room. The regular theme nights provide hours of enrichment and stimulation.

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Outstanding

A strong focus on young people’s educational attendance and attainment ensures that they maintain their routines and have opportunities to reach their educational targets. The registered manager has overcome barriers by meeting with a school following a safeguarding investigation. This has resulted in positive changes for the young people and it has improved communication between the home and the school. A celebration of the young people’s achievements got recognition at a recent education awards ceremony where young people received ‘Outstanding Achievement’ and ‘Most Progress’ awards. The photos of the young people adorning the walls in the home capture this happy occasion. Photos of one young person in formal evening attire for her prom night value and celebrate her achievements as a proud parent would.

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Outstanding

The home is welcoming and comfortable. The communal areas and bedrooms, which are personalised for those young people who live there, are furnished and decorated to a very high standard. The home offers stimulating indoor and outside space for young people to live and enjoy their short breaks. One parent said, ‘The home is comfortable and he feels at home and settles well.’

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people are helped and protected

The management team has high expectations in relation to the protection of young people. It is considered to be everyone’s responsibility to safeguard young people’s vulnerabilities from a range of threats in the home and community. Individual and generic risk assessments, good staff supervision and vigilance protect young people from bullying, going missing from home and child sexual exploitation. Health and safety checks on fire, gas and electric appliances protect all who are present in the home. Good internet safety arrangements limit young people’s access to unsafe material. Parents and professionals raise no concerns about the young people’s safety. A parent said, ‘He feels safe and happy at the home.’

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people are helped and protected

The staff team’s strong, collaborative relationships with professionals help them to refer safeguarding concerns and monitor young people who are on safeguarding plans. The relationships also promote a strong ‘team around the child’ ethos that is empowering families to remain together and that strives to reunite families within strong and effective support systems.

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people are helped and protected

A range of positive factors supports the effective management of young people’s behaviour and emotions. These include suitable matching, bespoke behaviour management plans, good use of the environment, the upbeat relationships that are shared between the young people and the staff and improved communication tools. A senior staff member charged with developing the communication tools said, ‘Communication is the key to our work and I think it’s the lack of communication that brings out their anxieties and behaviours.’ Consequently, restraint is non-existent. The registered manager said, ‘We don’t do that here.’

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people are helped and protected

The police and social care have undertaken a thorough safeguarding investigation about recent concerns. The home has been instrumental in supporting and cooperating with the investigations, attending strategy meetings, supplying the required information and notifying Ofsted. A social work professional involved in the investigations said that the staff team ‘really work hard at keeping children safe’.

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people are helped and protected

Whistleblowing is taken very seriously, which safeguards young people from staff who fail to carry out their duty of care to the expected high standards. A management investigation into a staff misconduct issue has taken place. Although no young people experienced harm, the action taken gives a clear ‘no tolerance’ message to all staff about expectations. This includes the lessons learned post investigation.

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Good

The registered manager has held this position since 2010. He holds the required qualifications. He has relevant experience in managing and working with children and young people who have physical and learning disabilities in addition to complex health needs.

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Good

The registered manager represents a strong corporate parent for the young people that fits within a highly aspirational culture. He is not averse to challenging other services that fall short of expectations, for example education services. The strong leadership enables the conscientious staff to work above and beyond their role, which has helped the young people to thrive significantly. This is strengthened by the effective research-based multi-disciplinary approach with other professionals that works with the whole family, striving to keep them together. A member of staff said, ‘It’s how I want to work, pulling together. You are not on your own and everyone feels part of a team.’ This strong and well-coordinated approach makes it possible for the registered manager, staff team and professionals to speak consistently about the progress young people make as a result of their interventions.

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Good

The recent safeguarding and staff conduct incidents have unsettled the staff, but the incidents have toughened their resilience. The registered manager said, ‘If anything, it has pulled us together. It has strengthened the team.’ A review of the individual risk assessments has not taken place in light of the safeguarding concerns. There is no apparent detriment to young people’s welfare, but this oversight requires immediate action in light of the concerns.

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Good

The registered manager understands most of the key strengths and weaknesses of the service. He has consultations with young people and parents, which he incorporates into his six-monthly review of the service. He has undertaken to ensure that the quality standards match the regulations in this document and that the next review incorporates staff consultations and an action plan. The requirement raised with respect to the independent visitor’s opinion about young people’s safety and welfare, although alluded to in the reports following her monthly visits, remains unmet.

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Good

Not all safeguarding notifications have been sent to Ofsted in a timely way. The registered manager has given an undertaking to forward safeguarding notifications to Ofsted without delay. This enables Ofsted to carry out and monitor its regulatory duties.

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Good

Staffing shortages have put additional pressure on the already busy staff team. Creative use of other services and the flexible use of existing staff have helped and the situation is close to a resolution through staff recruitment. The registered manager has supported the staff team by working some shifts, which allows him to observe practice and bond further with the young people. Staff keep up to date with young people’s progress through daily handovers, reflective team meetings, and management and peer support. Staff know the young people well and show a keen interest in them.

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Good

Staff receive formal supervision, but the records do not show reflective practice. This is a missed opportunity to further review care practices, but is not currently affecting the young people’s quality of care. Mandatory staff training that includes refreshers enables staff to renew their practice. Specifically, the sensory awareness training was described as ‘brilliant training’ by one attendee.

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Good

Despite the challenging setbacks experienced by the team, their commitment to the young people is unwavering. A parent said, ‘They treat my son as a person, not a disability. They involve him in everything. Time and patience is are needed and they provide them by the bucket load.’ Another said, ‘We have great communication with all of the staff.’ A social care professional said that they have a ‘good rapport’ with the staff team.

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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 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, 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 ensure that their welfare is 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 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 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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