Children's Home run by Stoke-on-Trent City Council in Stoke-on-Trent

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged outstanding at the full inspection. No requirements or recommendations were made. At this interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has declined in effectiveness .

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Overall, the home continues to offer a good service to young people. However, there have been a number of serious incidents since the last inspection. This has had an effect on some young people’s progress and experiences. In addition, staffing is not always consistent. On one occasion, staff failed to take effective action to protect a young person. Some areas of record keeping also require improvement.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

One young person has moved into the home since the last inspection. The registered manager made sure that this move was well planned. The young person’s social worker stated, ‘The staff and the registered manager were really focused on the needs of the young person. They put her views and wishes into everything. The transition was managed really well. I have not seen her this happy for a long time.’ Another social care professional also commented, ‘The young person is really settled because of the quality of her transition.’ The young person is making good progress because of the support that she receives from staff.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

One young person has left the home since the last inspection. The registered manager has developed excellent relationships with young people’s families and a number of other agencies. This includes education, adult services and children’s social care. He used these relationships to make sure that a number of different professionals were involved in planning the young person’s move. Other professionals were highly complementary about the work of the registered manager and staff during this period. For example, one professional working in a safeguarding team stated, ‘The young person had great relationships with staff. The working between all agencies was better than I have ever experienced before. The registered manager was a big part of this.’ Despite a significant amount of planning, the young person struggled at this time. This had an effect on her behaviour and feelings of security. This led to a high number of significant

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

incidents. These issues also had an effect on another young person living in the home.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There have been several changes to the staff team since the last inspection. A number of staff have also had long periods of absence from work. The registered manager has taken some action to tackle these issues. Despite this, at times he has been unable to ensure that consistent ‘core’ staff are available to support young people. This has had an effect on the continuity of care that young people receive. On one occasion, a member of staff (who does not normally work in this home) failed to supervise a young person adequately. The registered manager recognised this issue, and took some action to address this. However, the lack of supervision resulted in a significant incident that put the young person at risk.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Overall, the registered manager continues to have good oversight. He provides clear guidance and effective support to staff. His monitoring and review processes are generally strong and identify weaknesses in a timely way. He is committed to young people and keeps them at the centre of his practice.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Record keeping is generally of a high quality. In contrast to this, there are omissions in some areas. For example, it was not possible to find complete review meeting minutes in one young person’s electronic file. In addition, staff had not adequately recorded a discussion with a medical professional in a young person’s ‘medication log’. Finally, some records in the ‘physical restraint log’ also lack clarity. These shortfalls are primarily recording issues. They have little impact on young people or the support that they receive.

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Information about this children's home

The home provides care and accommodation for up to two children or young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is operated by a local authority.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 07/06/2016 Full Outstanding 03/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 24/11/2015 Full Good 23/02/2015 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

In order to meet the protection of children standard, the registered person must ensure that staff:

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Requirement Due date

(2)(vi) take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child's welfare. 14/04/2017

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Requirement Due date

13. The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard, with particular reference to staffing, the registered person must:

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Requirement Due date

(2)(e) ensure that the home's workforce provides continuity of care to each child. 14/04/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child. (Regulation 36(1)(a)) 14/04/2017

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation:  Ensure that staff are 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. 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, 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

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Information about this inspection

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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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