Children's home run by Blue Mountain Homes Ltd in Ealing

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged as Requires improvement at the full inspection. At this interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has Improved effectiveness . There have been significant improvements since the last inspection and these are well embedded. In addition to addressing weaknesses, the manager has built on the strengths of the home, ensuring very good progress. Young people are extremely positive about their progress and about what the staff have done for them. Their comments include: ‘Where I gave up on myself, the staff never did’, ‘It feels like a family’, ‘Staff never stop trying’ and ‘I feel happy and lucky to live here’. Young people can see their own progress and development. This has helped them to feel more confident and to develop a better outlook on life. As a result, young people look forward to their futures and have higher expectations. Admissions and discharges are managed well. There is a robust process for

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

assessing each child’s needs, to make sure that they are well suited to the home before their admission. The provider challenges local authorities about insufficient information and reiterates the importance of receiving thorough assessment information prior to any admission. This is likely to influence local authorities’ practice in the future and reduces the likelihood of placement breakdown. Young people said that staff make them feel welcome and support them well when they are new. This helps them to settle in and to start making progress quickly. The manager has worked tirelessly to turn the home around in the last 12 months. He, his deputy and staff team have positively influenced young people’s progress. This has not been an easy task because of the previous serious shortfalls and the complexity of young people’s needs and behaviours. The progress is testament to the efforts of all who work in the home. Young people feel exceptionally confident

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

in the manager’s ability to lead the home and their comments include: ‘I am lucky to have him.’ They also greatly appreciate the deputy manager. Their comments about her are equally exceptional. A ‘family like’ ethos has developed and this is well suited to the current residents’ needs and personalities. Young people have exceptionally good relationships with staff. The inspector observed extremely positive and caring relationships. Joint working with other professionals is good. For example, there are particularly good relationships with the youth offending team. A youth offending team worker said that one young person has much improved attendance and engagement since moving to the home. This demonstrates a significant and positive development for this young person. Their criminal activity is likely to reduce as a result. The two requirements made at the last inspection have been met. All young people

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

are in receipt of education, which is very well suited to them. Some are attending and attaining for the first time in a number of years. When holiday accommodation is used for young people, there is now a proper risk assessment made for the environment and for activities. Risks are now considered and recorded, which will help to keep young people safe. Three out of the five recommendations from the last inspection have been met. This has led to an improvement in the way that young people are supported to prepare for adulthood. Furthermore, each young person now has a photograph album to mark his or her achievements, so that they will be able to reflect on their positive experiences. The staff recruitment procedure has also been improved. This will help to protect young people from unsuitable adults in the future. Progress has also been made on the two remaining recommendations. However, these have been repeated to support the work continuing in this area. The

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

manager has made efforts to obtain information about young people’s past educational achievements and has chased up local authorities for associated information. However, some documents are still outstanding. This means that staff still may not fully understand young people’s past educational strengths and difficulties. There have been some significant improvements to young people’s documentation, but this could be further developed to ensure that records fully reflect which staff are on duty, the actions that staff should take with regard to managing young people’s free time and what to do if they become missing. The inspection identified some minor health and safety issues:  There was debris and rubbish to the front exterior of the home.  The young people’s shared toilet and one hand washbasin in the staff toilet area were dirty. The above shortfalls do not detract from young people’s very positive experiences

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

and significant development since the last inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned and provides care and accommodation to 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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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:

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Recommendations

 Ensure that staff have the knowledge and skills to understand each child’s education and training targets and next steps for learning. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.11)  Ensure that staff understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. This is in relation to records, such as risk assessments, which should support the procedure if a child goes missing, and the staff roster, which should always state which staff have been on duty and when. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  Ensure that the home complies with relevant health and safety legislation. This is in relation to debris left to the front of the property and to the toilet and washbasin, which were found to be dirty. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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 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 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, 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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