Children's home run by Cherry Cottage Limited in Wigan

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 with complex and challenging needs are making sustained progress in their lives because of the quality of care that they receive from staff at the home.  Staff have worked hard to create a warm, homely environment for young people to live in.  Staff place the well-being of young people at the centre of their practice and young people receive a consistent response from a stable staff team, irrespective of challenging behaviour. Because of the consistency and stability provided, the young people have formed positive attachments with staff.  Care planning is individualised and robust, with regular therapeutic input from the child and family psychotherapist. This means that young people receive a good-quality therapeutic approach to their care which supports them to address their individual difficulties.  A key strength of the home is excellent communication between staff. parents and professionals. This ensures consistency for young people across

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The children’s home provision is outstanding because:

all areas of their life.  The manager and staff team are committed to achieving the best possible outcomes for young people, and have high aspirations for the young people whom they care for.  A small number of shortfalls were found during the inspection, relating both to a referral to a specialist child sexual exploitation service for one young person and to risk assessments.

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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

In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered provider must ensure that: (2)(a)(i) staff assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child‟s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. 06/02/2017

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Information about this children’s home

The children‟s home is one of two homes operated by a private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three young people with physical disabilities and learning disabilities.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 29/01/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 09/06/2015 Full Outstanding 13/02/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness 08/07/2014 Full Outstanding

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Outstanding

Young people live in an exceptionally homely and warm home, which is decorated to a high standard and highly personalised to the young people who live there. There are many photographs around the home of young people enjoying holidays and activities. Staff have successfully managed to emulate a positive family home experience for the young people who live there, who describe it as their home.

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Outstanding

Young people receive well-planned individualised care, which is strengthened by regular network meetings with professionals that are chaired by the in-house child and family psychotherapist. Furthermore, staff attend regular clinical supervisions at which the young people and strategies to manage any areas of difficulty or behaviour are discussed. This ensures that young people‟s needs and progress are kept under regular review, and that the work is consistent and underpinned by a therapeutic base. Young people with complex needs and backgrounds make excellent progress from their individual starting points across all areas of their development, including health and education. For example, a social worker reported that for one young person living in the home there has been a: „reduction in the cycle of negative behaviour that previously resulted in X moving to an alternative placement. X has experienced stability and consistency of care for the first time since being subject

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Outstanding

to a care order and has begun to develop positive attachments to staff at the home. One young person commented: „even I have noticed that I have changed a lot. It takes a lot to wind me up, now.‟ A strength of the home is the very strong relationships between young people and staff. Attachment theory is embedded in staff practice and, as a result, young people have formed strong attachments with staff. This forms the basis of work with young people, and provides them with a consistent and secure base to develop from and work on individual areas of need. One young person commented: „We don‟t realise how much she (staff member) has done for us, but she has and we know that she is always there for us. Whatever happens, she is there.‟ Young people benefit from the care and support of a consistent and stable team of staff who are all committed to achieving the best possible outcomes for them. One staff member commented: „it‟s like a proper home. Kids are looked after like your

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Outstanding

own. I feel lucky to be here and couldn‟t wish for better place.‟

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Outstanding

Most young people are in school or further education, and for those who are not there is a clear plan in place for them to start college in the new year. Staff support young people‟s educational progress by encouraging attendance at school. They do this by the use of reward charts and good communication with school. One social worker commented that staff had helped one young person in „maintaining mainstream school, and her attendance is brilliant‟. This means that young people are supported and encouraged to meet their educational potential. Young people are encouraged to develop independence skills to prepare them for their future, for example in budgeting, completing CVs and bidding for properties. One young person has completed 100 hours of voluntary work, which has helped him to obtain skills and experience which will benefit him when he starts seeking employment. Young people are encouraged to participate in a wide range of activities specific to

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Outstanding

their individual interests, including free running and a youth council, which helps young people to develop self-esteem and confidence. Staff promote young people‟s friendships with others by encouraging them to invite friends home. This encourages them to make positive social relationships outside their home, and some young people have formed enduring friendships which will have a positive impact on their confidence and resilience. Young people‟s views are routinely sought in key-worker sessions and young people‟s meetings. This ensures that young people are listened to and that their views are central to the running of the home. Staff are proactive in ensuring that young people maintain links with their families, when it is safe to do so and in line with their care plans. This helps young people to sustain positive and safe relationships with family members, which promotes their sense of identity. Staff have developed an individual timeline for each young

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Outstanding

person at their home, which details significant events in their life. This enables young people to understand their own unique journey since birth, which also promotes their understanding of their family identity.

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Good

Young people‟s individual risks and vulnerabilities are identified, understood and managed by staff, and they provide support to keep young people safe and minimise risk-taking and negative behaviour. Risk assessments are regularly updated and shared with relevant professionals to ensure that there is a multi- agency approach to reducing risk and keeping young people safe. While staff have a good understanding of each young person‟s individual risks and actions to take to reduce risk, individual risks and actions are not always clearly recorded in each young person‟s risk assessments. This means that there is no single point of reference for staff to refer to in managing any risk-taking behaviour. Staff are proactive when young people go missing. They look for young people and follow missing from home procedures. There is good-quality direct work with young people afterwards to help staff to understand the reasons for the behaviour, and to

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Good

work with young people to help them to understand the risks and make better choices to keep themselves safe. The manager thoroughly evaluates „missing‟ episodes and physical restraints, and monitors them to establish trends and patterns to this behaviour, and to understand the reasons for any increases to take steps to minimise future risk. These are discussed in clinical supervisions and network meetings, at which strategies to address risks are discussed and reviewed. Staff have undertaken training in identifying child sexual exploitation and young people have specific risk assessments on their case files. However, for one young person a referral was not made to „Deter‟, despite this being advised by the police. The manager was quick to address this during the inspection, but it highlighted gaps in knowledge about the role of online grooming in child sexual exploitation which could leave young people at risk.

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Good

Young people have detailed positive handling plans on file, and it is clear from speaking to staff that they a good understanding of young people‟s behaviour and vulnerabilities. Staff are trained in behaviour management and are skilled at identifying the best de-escalation techniques to use for each individual young person. There have been a number of physical restraints for one young person, mainly guides and holds to keep her or others safe, but the frequency of such incidents is reducing, demonstrating the benefit of a consistent approach to managing her behaviour. The registered manager and staff have a good understanding of safeguarding procedures, and respond appropriately when young people make allegations by referring to the local authority designated officer and notifying Ofsted. The manager ensures that the correct process is followed when young people make allegations. This approach ensures the safety of young people and protects the

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Good

staff who care for them. The local authority designated officer reports: „the managers have been proactive in sharing information and reviewing incidents and have an open approach to consider each allegation/disclosure, as and when it occurs.‟

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Good

Young people are safeguarded effectively by the safe recruitment and vetting process for new staff.

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Outstanding

The manager started in post in July 2016 and has submitted her application for registered manager to Ofsted within the required timescale. She has substantial experience and is suitably qualified for the role, having obtained the level 5 diploma in management. The manager is well supported by a very experienced deputy manager, who has been in post since the home opened in 2007, and by the outgoing registered manager, who manages the other home in the group. Considering the short time that she has been in post, the manager showed a good understanding of the young people‟s individual needs and is committed to ensuring positive outcomes for young people at the home. The manager makes good use of monitoring systems to monitor young people‟s progress. The home now holds young people‟s files electronically and the manager utilises tools on the electronic system to give her a good oversight of young people‟s plans and progress. The manager is forward thinking in respect of

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Outstanding

progressing the home and there is a detailed home development plan in place, identifying future actions for development at the home. Staff like working at the home and are committed to achieving the best outcomes for the young people whom they work with. All staff receive regular supervision and spoke about the benefits of clinical supervision and the positive impact that this has on their practice with young people, particularly regarding behaviour management strategies. Staff all felt well supported in their role and describe management as approachable and supportive, which enables staff to continue in this emotionally challenging role. There is good evidence of the manager and the child and family psychotherapist keeping staff up to date with relevant research and theory through clinical supervision, team meetings, training and staff supervision. The manager has a system in place whereby staff have to record their learning on a continuing

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Outstanding

professional development document to ensure their continued development. The manager is proactive in developing staff and has put a model in place whereby individual staff become „champions‟ in specific areas, such as child sexual exploitation or team teaching. This means that staff are encouraged to develop specific areas of interest and share knowledge within the team, which ensures that staff remain motivated in their role and have the knowledge and skills to meet the needs of the young people whom they are working with. The manager and staff work closely with professionals such as young people‟s social workers and schools to ensure that young people receive consistency and are kept safe. Professionals and relatives all spoke highly of staff‟s communication with them. One social worker commented: „The manager communicates with me on a regular basis. She provides comprehensive and up-to-date risk assessments of X

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Outstanding

that promote a positive solution to all of the challenging behaviours. This has required a flexible approach, during which (the manager) has demonstrated a “thinking outside the box” approach to X‟s care planning.‟

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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

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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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