Children's Home run by Crossway Services Limited in St Helens

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged good at the full inspection. At this interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has sustained effectiveness .

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager has taken effective action to address the requirement and recommendations made at the last inspection. Before any staff work alone in the home, they are trained adequately in first aid. The ‘Children’s guide’ has been updated to include the correct details of the children’s commissioner. However, the front door has not yet been modified to allow the home to be secured, while ensuring that the young person is able to open the door. The registered manager is keen to find a suitable solution to this issue and is currently considering the options.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There have been no new admissions or discharges at the home since the last inspection. There has been progress made in relation to the safeguarding, contact and the behaviour of the current young person. However, there continues to be a delay in accessing an appropriate education provision for the young person.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager and staff have sought to prioritise the young person’s education. They have liaised with professionals to attempt to secure an appropriate education provision and have challenged the local authority on the delay in achieving this. Furthermore, they have supported the young person to make a formal complaint about the delay in providing appropriate levels of education. Currently, the young person is not yet receiving 25 hours of education provision per week. However, the home supplements his education by staff providing him with work to complete and supporting him to engage in education-based activities, such as visiting local museums and castles. The young person has an education timetable in place at the home that demonstrates what he is doing on a daily basis in relation to educational activities. The home has liaised with education professionals to ensure that the young person not only receives tuition in

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

mathematics and English but also in science, which is a particular interest of his. Therefore, although the young person is not receiving appropriate levels of education to meet his needs, the home is pro-active in taking action and advocating on his behalf to promote his education.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The young person has experienced a lot of disruption in his life, which has affected him emotionally. The home has recognised this and has been proactive in identifying appropriate support for him. For example, the child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) have completed an assessment to establish whether the young person requires their intervention and an advocate is now supporting the young person. In addition, the registered manager and staff have developed good relationships with the young person and offer him lots of emotional support through good levels of communication with him and direct-work sessions. Consequently, the young person is more settled and has gained the confidence to make formal complaints to other professionals when he feels that they have failed him.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The young person’s health needs are well met. For example, staff took appropriate action in response to a recent incident whereby the young person required hospital treatment. The young person is well supported to receive ongoing medical treatment and emotional support following this incident.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Behaviour management in the home is robust and has contributed to the behaviour of the young person improving and him being much more settled. There have been no incidents of physical intervention since the last inspection. Consequences for negative behaviours have been agreed between the home and the young person and are restorative in nature. Communication, negotiation and compromise are apparent in the relationships between the young person and staff. This avoids the need for constant sanctions and consequences as a way of managing behaviour. Following incidents, staff and the young person have the opportunity to discuss the incident independently and use this time to reflect. The registered manager has a clear overview of all incidents and carefully considers the effectiveness of staff members’ responses. However, one of the records viewed relating to a consequence was not recorded within the home’s central log. Therefore, although

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

consequences are appropriate and have reduced, the recording of these needs to be strengthened.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The effective approach to safeguarding in the home ensures that the young person is safe. The registered manager and staff are adequately trained in safeguarding and are familiarising themselves with the new company’s safeguarding policies and procedures. The home has a suitable location risk assessment in place and the young person’s risk assessment is clearly understood by the staff. On the one occasion since the last inspection when the young person has been missing, the home has taken appropriate action to locate him and ensure his timely safe return. In line with statutory guidance about children who run away or go missing from home or care, the young person was offered an independent return interview. The home has offered the young person emotional support in relation to some bullying he has been subject to outside the home. Furthermore, the staff supported him to make a formal complaint in relation to this, and the offenders were dealt with

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

appropriately. The robust safeguarding practice in the home means that the young person’s safety and well-being is maintained.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager and staff work collaboratively with other professionals to ensure that the young person receives the best possible support to meet his individual needs. For example, involvement of CAMHS, health and education professionals, social workers, independent reviewing officers, an independent advocate and the local police community support officer has resulted in an increase in the hours of private tuition that the young person has, the introduction of a science teacher, an advocate to support him to make complaints, an increase in indirect contact with his family in addition to his supervised contact, and positive intervention to address his emotional well-being. Consequently, the young person is happier and more confident.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home in general is a very comfortable environment and the young person has his personal items throughout the home. Consultation with the young person is good. He is consulted about things that he would like to do and enjoys spending time with the only male member of staff working in the home. They have attended football and rugby matches together, which the young person has really enjoyed. The young person said: I get to do lots of things like go to football and rugby matches. I am really looking forward to a rugby match I am attending soon with a member of staff. He is really good because he came to a rugby match with me, which was for his rival team.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The good relationships the young person has with staff support him to engage in various social and recreational activities and give him the opportunities to express clearly his views, wishes and feelings.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Monitoring of the home by the registered manager and independent person is robust and helps drive forward continuous improvement. This is due to the registered manager using the information to identify shortfalls and then to take action to make improvements, such as all staff now signing their supervision records.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private organisation. It provides care and accommodation for one young person who has emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 20/12/2016 Full Good 25/02/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 08/10/2015 Full Outstanding 17/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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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 locking of external doors, or doors to hazardous materials, may be acceptable as a security precaution, if applied within the normal routine of the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 50, paragraph 9.62) This is specifically in relation to having an appropriate lock on the front door to allow the home to be secured, while allowing the young person to be able to open the door.

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Recommendations

 Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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. Whenever 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, 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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