Children's home run by Norfolk County Council in Norwich

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:

 Children say that they are safe and enjoy coming to spend time with friends and with the staff in this home.  Staff are highly effective in working alongside family members, carers and multi-agency partners to support and promote the children’s welfare needs and to prevent the children from coming into care.  Social workers say that these short breaks have been influential in maintaining the children’s placement within their families.  Children receive an excellent level of consistent care. Staff know and understand the children’s needs and meet them through careful and well- considered care plans.  The children access opportunities that they would not usually have because of their short breaks. This widens their experiences and provides exciting activities.  The staff use their skills and knowledge of the children to build extremely positive relationships.  Research-informed practice, based on a number of strategies and

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The children’s home provision is outstanding because:

approaches, enables the staff to work effectively with the children. The staff are able to use these approaches to help children to manage their frustrations, which reduces incidents of escalating behaviours.  The manager skilfully deploys the staff group to meet the needs of the children.  Staff provide excellent reports which detail the child’s short-break experience. This provides detailed information that reflects the outcomes for the children.  Staff work extremely well with education providers to support the children with their education. Consequently, children make friends in school and develop their interests outside of the curriculum in addition to gaining knowledge and skills.  The manager has not written to the placing social workers to inform them of the use of door alarms. However, the statement of purpose highlights the use of these alarms, which minimises the impact of the shortfall.

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Recommendation

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendation:  Gain consent to any monitoring or surveillance from the placing authority in writing at the time of placement. This is in respect to the bedroom door alarms. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.16)

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority children’s home provides short-term breaks for children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. Up to four children can stay at the home at any one time.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

13/12/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

07/12/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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people living in the home are

This short-break home provides children with outstanding support. The children who stay at this home live, for the most part, with their parents or, in some cases, foster carers. The staff work alongside family members and multi-agency partners to support and promote the children’s welfare needs. Some of the children who stay at this home receive this support to help them during periods when their families are having difficulties. This helps to lessen the risks for the child and to maintain their family relationships. Social workers say that these short breaks have been instrumental in maintaining the children’s family life. One social worker said, ‘Initially they [the child] would not come to the home. The child had some very challenging behaviours, which the parents were struggling to manage. Working together with the family, the staff managed to get the child to attend for short breaks. Now the child has started to enjoy the stays. This has supported the parents to be able to

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people living in the home are

focus on the needs of the child and prevented the child from becoming accommodated full time.’ The children attend schools near to their family homes. Staff from this short-break home liaise closely with these schools, to ensure that information is shared. This has been particularly helpful in sharing useful skills and approaches used by multi- agency workers to meet the children’s needs. Children who attend the home are encouraged to have fun through a range of activities. One child said, ‘I get on with the staff and when I come we can go out to the cinema, go bowling or on trips out.’ Another child said, ‘I can come for my short breaks with my siblings, which is great, but I also enjoy it when I come on my own.’ Staff use these activities and their positive relationships with the children to support the children to engage in education. Some children who had not been attending school returned to education because of the input of the staff. The staff

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people living in the home are

have been successful in helping the children to return to a routine of attending school regularly. Consequently, the children are now able to develop the skills and knowledge that they will need to prepare them for further education or work. This has also helped them to make friends in school and to develop interests outside of the curriculum. Children are involved in the day-to-day running of the home, making decisions with staff about menus and activities during residents’ meetings. Staff help to personalise each child’s room prior to their arrival and they encourage the children to bring particular toys or comforters from home that help them to settle . Observations of the children with the staff show that they have extremely positive relationships. The staff build these relationships by using their skills and their knowledge of the children. The staff use research-informed practice to relate to the

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people living in the home are

children and to manage the children’s behaviours and anxieties. The staff have training in understanding foetal alcohol syndrome, using social stories and using a model to understand and work with children who have autism. As a result, the children have excellent relationships with trusted adults. The children’s parents comment on how much these relationships have supported their children and, in turn, supported them. Children are supported to gain confidence with some independent living skills. Some children enjoy cooking. Staff go with them to the local shops to purchase the ingredients, and help in the preparation of cakes and meals, which the children share during their short breaks. This helps to develop the children’s budgeting skills. Other children have learned how to use public transport safely as part of their short-break experiences. Staff work in partnership with health professionals to support children’s health

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people living in the home are

plans. The staff promote self-care skills so that the children who need this support can manage their personal hygiene and maintain their medication regimes. The highly effective risk assessment process enables the manager to ensure that the group dynamics for each short break are considered well. The manager deploys the staff skilfully to ensure that staff who have a suitable skill mix are on shift to meet the needs of the children. This means that children experience compatibility in their peer groups during their breaks and are supported by staff who know and understand them. The manager has worked in partnership with a social worker to plan the short break for one particular child. This child has significant learning needs and associated physical care needs. Following the completion of a detailed assessment of this child’s needs, the manager ensured that staff completed a training programme. This means that the staff now have the skills and confidence to meet

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people living in the home are

the child’s physical care needs. This has provided the child with a bespoke and flexible service. The home has changed its statement of purpose and registration conditions. This means that children are provided with a high-quality service, which has helped them to remain in their family home. A social worker said that their child speaks positively about her experiences. The staff provide excellent reports which detail the children’s short-break experience, including the variety of activities on offer. This reflects the positive experiences that the children enjoy and the progress that they are making. A parent commented on the positive impact that the short breaks have had. They said, ‘He [child] has been helped to learn to manage his emotions and his behaviours to be able to cope in the environment. He has been able to cope with spending time with other youngsters. Without the support of this home,

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people living in the home are

his placement with the family would have been vulnerable.’ The home is decorated particularly well, and in a homely manner. The children have access to arts and crafts equipment as well as numerous board games. There is a large games room with computer gaming equipment, including gaming chairs, which the children particularly enjoy. The staff have good access to information and resources that they use to work with the children. They use DVDs and information sheets to work with the children on subjects such as going missing from home and safe use of the internet. This helps the children to understand how to keep themselves safe.

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people are helped and protected

Staff work in partnership with families to promote good behaviour. There are rewards for good conduct, which include trips out or visits to theme parks, camping or caravan breaks. Some of the children have not had the opportunity of these activities with their families, so receiving short breaks has widened their experiences and knowledge. Trained staff intervene to prevent children from harming themselves or others. Following a shortfall at a previous inspection, the manager completed a refresh of the restraint policy and record-keeping with the staff. The training has helped the staff to reflect on the methods that they use to intervene. Analysis of incidents, along with the training, has led to a reduction in the use of restraint. The home provides short breaks to 25 children. The staff regularly review and apprise themselves of the risk factors for all of these children. There is a highly effective handover system and the staff use a communication book to ensure that

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people are helped and protected

all staff are alert to the important issues for each child during every shift. The manager and senior staff ensure that risk assessments are updated and that changes in the children’s needs are reviewed and recorded. The manager shares this information with the staff to ensure that they are aware of any concerns and to enable them to care for the children safely. Children go missing from this home but only for short periods. When the children go missing, the staff follow the missing-from-care protocols. They contact the police and other agencies, as well as searching the locality to find the children and return them to the home. Staff have completed training which has raised their awareness of the concerns of child sexual exploitation in the community. They have well-defined observation skills, which they use alongside the children’s individual up-to-date risk analysis and assessments. The staff are alert to the signs

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people are helped and protected

and symptoms of child sexual exploitation. The staff complete direct work with the children and their families to help them to understand these issues. This joint work strengthens the safe care for these children. Children say that they are safe in this short-break home and that they enjoy coming to spend time with friends and with the staff. During the inspection, children identified staff that they enjoy being with. The children’s rooms have door alarms, which alert staff to children entering and leaving their bedrooms. This helps to monitor the children and is a positive safeguard for them. The manager has not written to the placing social workers to inform them of this monitoring. However, the statement of purpose highlights this system, and reviews of care plans identify this. This limits the impact of this shortfall.

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leaders and managers

The manager has been in post for three years. She is a qualified social worker and she has a level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare. She has the required knowledge and experience for her role. The manager drives a culture of improvement. She inspires the staff to learn and to take responsibility for leading on research-informed approaches and strategies in the home. The staff are invested in practice that results in significant change for children and has far-reaching impact on their lives. The staff cascade their knowledge to the team and they all know and understand how to use these strategies and approaches to the best effect. The home has been a significant contributor in supporting children to stay with their families and to re-engage with education after prolonged absences. The manager provides high-quality supervision and support to the staff. She uses a style of supervision that focuses on the children’s needs and how the staff work to

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leaders and managers

improve the outcomes for the children. All eligible staff have the required level 3 diploma qualification. The carefully considered induction and ongoing training pathway provides the staff with the skills to meet the children’s needs. The manager has inspired the staff to focus on improving their practice, to make each short break a time for the children to enjoy as well as to ensure that safe care is provided. She routinely monitors incidents and records to assure herself that children are making as much progress as possible during their short breaks. The manager reviews the reports provided by the independent visitor and acts quickly to address any identified shortfalls. The statement of purpose has recently been updated to reflect the changes in the service provided. There is a useful children’s guide, which is sent to children ahead of their stay to inform them about the services provided in the home.

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leaders and managers

The manager and staff have extremely good relationships with the placing authority, with a high level of open communication. This is particularly true with regard to safeguarding concerns. The manager reviews the reports of the children’s stays and immediately passes any concerns to the social workers to consider as part of the children’s care plans. The manager has challenged the placing authority’s decisions about the children’s care. She has requested urgent meetings to review decisions about children’s care packages when she believes that the decisions are not in the child’s interests. The manager is clear that the quality of the relationships that the staff have with the children is a significant asset. She sees that these relationships have enabled the children to trust the staff. Children make excellent progress because of the short breaks provided by this home. The manager ensures that the children are well cared for both in this home

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leaders and managers

and in their family homes. They continue to live with their families or permanent carers, in some cases, because of the stability and security of their short breaks.

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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 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 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: 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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