Children's home run by Care Today (Childrens Services) Ltd

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

At the last inspection, this home was judged good. At this inspection, the home is judged to have sustained effectiveness. The home is run by a suitably experienced and qualified registered manager who has been in post since November 2011. Since the last inspection, one young person has moved back to her home community and there has been one new admission. There are two young people resident in the home. Educational attendance and achievement is well promoted. Young people have full- time educational placements in college and secondary school. One young person said, ‘I am really looking forward to starting my new school. I hope to make new friends and get myself on track.’ Staff work well with educational providers to ensure that each young person is provided with the most suitable support in order to make consistent progress. Since the last inspection, episodes of young people going missing have significantly

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

reduced. Up-to-date risk assessments, good daily routines and regular keywork sessions ensure that young people understand the impact of risk-taking behaviour. Consequently, there have been no episodes of young people being missing since October 2016. A young person said, ‘I like it here, why would I run away? I used to run away from home because I didn’t like it. It is good here.’ Arrangements for the protection of young people are good. Mobile devices, internet use and social media are routinely monitored and suitable restrictions are in place. Young people and staff have undertaken training on matters such as internet safety and social media and this has enabled them to have a better understanding of risk, particularly in respect of sharing information. Young people are registered with local healthcare providers and attend routine appointments consistently. Likewise, staff work well with specialist healthcare

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

services to ensure that specific healthcare concerns are consistently managed and monitored. In-house healthcare training takes place on a regular basis and is delivered by the home’s manager. This enables staff and young people to work together to develop healthcare plans unique to each young person. Relationships between young people and staff are well established. Young people speak highly of staff and say, ‘The staff are great. I get on with all of them. They talk to me and help me. If something is wrong it gets sorted out. I am happy about that.’ Consequently, young people feel they are very well supported in the home. Young people confirm they know how to complain and feel that staff would manage any complaint appropriately. Information such as helplines are displayed in the home. There have been no complaints since the last inspection. Family contact is suitably promoted. Young people confirm they enjoy planned

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

contact with family members. One young person said, ‘My mum visits me here and she stays for the day. It means we can do things together. I like it when she visits.’ Another young person is supported to maintain contact with her family in the community. A social worker said, ‘I am happy with how contact is managed. The impact on the young person is always the deciding factor.’ Young people are encouraged to take part in social and community activities. Some young people are members of the gym, while others like to attend trampolining or the cinema. In-house games and activities are readily available and include arts and crafts. Young people have developed excellent skills in art and create wonderful paintings that are displayed in the home. Internal and external monitoring takes place in accordance with regulation. This monitoring highlights the progress young people make and the steps in place to ensure consistent progression. However, monitoring does not routinely identify

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

areas for development with regard to the building and accommodation. For example, as stated at the last inspection, the majority of double-glazed units are misted and this restricts visibility. Likewise, the exterior presentation of the home remains poor and repairs such as the badly fitted back gate and derelict outbuilding have not been identified by the quality monitor as areas to be addressed. Furthermore, the rear escape route to be used in the event of a fire is not always hazard free. This is because the home is situated next to fast food premises, the staff of which use the narrow rear passageway to discard refuse, including waste food. The manager said, ‘We assess the passageway and clear it away regularly.’ However, the passage was not hazard free at the time of the inspection. While it is acknowledged that the manager has taken steps to address the concerns raised at the last inspection with the landlord of the property and proprietor of the take-

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

away, no progress has been made to address these matters. Consequently, requirements are made to address matters in respect of the accommodation, fire safety and external monitoring and a recommendation is made to address the internal monitoring of the home. The interior of the home is clean, warm and suitably decorated. On the ground floor, young people have access to a large living room, newly fitted kitchen and dining room. However, as detailed in the last inspection, the dining room is also used as a staff sleep-in room. This is because the home does not have available space for staff to have a designated bedroom. The staff sleep-in arrangements on the first floor comprise of an extremely small office space, which includes a bed. In accordance with the quality standards, staff should be provided with appropriate accommodation to sleep in the home and facilities to do so. A recommendation is made to address this matter.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

At the last inspection, one requirement and three recommendations were made to improve practice. They are partially met. Information pertinent to new placements to the home is now in place and provides current concerns. Refuse collection is now occurring on a more regular basis. This means that bins do not remain full at the front of the property for extended periods of time. However, recommendations specifically in relation to the property and sleeping-in arrangements for staff remain unmet and are restated at this inspection. Three requirements and two recommendations are made at this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The children’s home is operated by a private company. It is registered to accommodate up to two young people who may 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

21/01/2016 Interim Sustained 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

Ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child effectively from harm, with specific regard to misted windows, broken gate and derelict outbuilding. (Regulation 12 (2)(d)) 20/04/2017

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Requirement Due date

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 applies to the home The registered person must ensure that the requirements of the Order are complied with in respect of the home. This is with specific regard to the fire safety risk assessment and the removal of hazards at the rear of the home. (Regulation 25 (2)(b)) 28/03/2017

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that the independent person monitoring the home inspects the internal and external premises and includes the findings in their report. (Regulation 44 (1)(b)) 28/03/2017

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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

 The design of the home should provide staff who are required to sleep in the home overnight with appropriate accommodation and facilities to do so. (Guide to the children homes regulations including the quality standards, page 17, paragraph 3.26)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should actively seek continuous improvement through internal monitoring. (Guide to the children homes regulations including the quality standards, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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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 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 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 at: 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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