Children's home run by Total Care Matters Limited in Nottingham

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged outstanding at the full inspection. At this interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has sustained effectiveness . Staff at this home provide young people with good support for all their needs, including those relating to gender identity. Where partners have been slow to provide services, such as educational placements, there is clear evidence that the manager pursues these with the necessary rigour and holds partners to account. In the meantime, staff support young people with their learning. Young people’s interests are promoted, and contact with family and friends is facilitated, in order that young people maintain their sense of belonging. Transitions into the home are managed well. There is good information sharing to ensure that staff are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to meet the young person’s needs. A robust assessment of the impact on the other young

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

people in the home is also undertaken, prior to offering a place. This ensures that, as far as possible, there is minimal disruption to the other residents. Children and young people who have left the home since the last inspection have done so in a planned way. If a decision is taken that the home can no longer meet a child’s needs, this is not taken lightly, and the local authority is given notice to enable it to find a suitable alternative. This notice period can be extended to meet the needs of the child if necessary. Young people have left the home, with appropriate planning for their transition, to become more independent or to be closer to family members. Staff at the home demonstrate a good understanding of their responsibilities in relation to safeguarding. Where there have been concerns about staff practice, these have been responded to appropriately, through referral to, and discussion with, the designated officer of the local authority. Young people are kept as safe as

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

possible because there are clear and comprehensive risk assessments, safety plans and good staffing levels. If young people absent themselves from the home without permission, staff know what they need to do and they put that into practice. Staff follow young people, they contact the police and, when young people return, their social workers are asked to complete return home interviews. Strategy meetings have also been held when there have been situations of particular concern. This multiagency working promotes safe and consistent care practice. Until recently, physical intervention was being used on a regular basis in response to the challenges posed by one child. The records demonstrate the reasons for this and the actions taken, and these appear appropriate and necessary. There are a small number of instances when the manager has not signed to indicate that she has monitored the record and, on one occasion, the person involved in the

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

intervention was also the person who provided the managerial oversight. This is inappropriate. Evidence of discussion with the staff involved is not clearly documented, and the managerial assessment of the record is somewhat repetitive, comments mainly being, ‘risk assessment updated, key work completed’. Consequently, these incidents are not being evaluated as robustly as required, staff are not reflecting on their practice, and opportunities to improve the staff’s response to challenging behaviour are lost. There has been a high turnover of staff since the last inspection. The company has worked hard to recruit suitable staff to fill the vacancies and decrease the reliance on agency staff. It has been successful in its efforts, but as a result of this the current staff team is, in the main, relatively new to the home. The home is managed by an experienced manager and she is providing a good level of support

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

to the staff team. Staff are regularly supervised, there are team meetings and handovers to promote communication and consistency of care, and staff are enrolled on the relevant diploma course to support their learning and development. Good partnership working with other agencies enables staff to access the specialist advice, guidance and information they need to provide effective support to the young people they care for. This includes agencies that are specialists in gender identity, youth offending, drug and alcohol awareness, and sexual exploitation. Communication is good. A stakeholder commented: ‘I am really impressed with the home and the care of the young person. There has been very good partnership working.’ There were no requirements or recommendations made at the last inspection. The manager uses a variety of effective monitoring systems that enable her to have a good understanding of the progress that young people are making, and where she

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private provider. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children and young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

03/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

19/03/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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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

The registered person must ensure that, within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (‘the authorised person’) has spoken to the user about the measure, has signed the record to confirm it is accurate, and, within five days of the use of the measure, adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)(ii), (c)) 31/03/2017

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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 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 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, work- based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for children looked after 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 at: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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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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