Children's home run by The Daughters of the Cross of Liege in Kensington and Chelsea

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

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

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The children have made good progress since the last inspection. They are encouraged to attend activities in both the home and in the community. This enables the children to build and maintain positive relationships. A child commented, ‘I’m going to play football tonight with my best friend from another house. I like seeing him after school and playing football.’ The children have good relationships with a staff team that knows and understands their individual needs. The children have a snack and drink on returning to the houses after school. They are observed having a positive interaction with the staff. They spoke to the staff enthusiastically about their day and their plans for the evening.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The manager has been in post for 10 years and is supported by deputies who are assigned to each of the houses. She has the qualification and experience to manage the home and has a clear vision regarding the development of the service. There were three requirements from the last inspection, two of which have been met, and two recommendations, which have been fully met.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The children continue to attend the organisation’s on-site school. There is good, regular communication between the school and the home. Learning support assistants work in the boarding houses, but do not work in the same house as the children who they support in class. This shows that the manager has thought about how the children can have a fresh start in the home after school if there has been an incident in school. This means that the children can relax and enjoy their time in the house.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff understand the importance of the children transitioning both in and out of the home. A child who is due to move to a provision closer to home was proud to show her transition plan, which was on her bedroom wall. She commented, ‘I have been to visit and stayed overnight. I will be sad to leave, but I am excited.’ There is good evidence that the staff are supporting her with the move. A parent commented, ‘Staff are very sensitive about the move and are doing what they should do to support her, she has been very happy in the home.’ A child said, ‘I came for a stay before I moved here. My mum and dad did my bedroom, it’s brill.’ A parent commented that it helped to have some input into decorating her son’s bedroom and somehow this made the transition easier for her.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff understand the importance of the children developing their independence skills in accordance with their age, understanding and ability. The children have an individual plan in their bedrooms which shows them what they are working towards and how they are progressing. The children spoken to knew what their targets were and what they needed to do to achieve these. A parent commented, ‘He’s coming on [in] leaps and bounds, the staff are providing a brilliant service.’

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff support the children to learn and to manage risk in line with consultation with parents. A child is being supported to use public transport. As the home is in a rural location, the staff take her to a bus stop where she will get the bus into the local town, do some shopping and return by bus to be met by staff. This has been successful in developing her independence skills.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff have thought about how to engage the children in key work sessions. One key worker has added pictures to show the child what they are going to talk about and has completed a picture exchange communication system (PECS) to support the child in understanding the session. This shows that the staff use different communication methods to support the children in understanding and participating in the key work sessions. An audit on key working roles and responsibilities has resulted in a clear guidebook and PowerPoint presentation for staff to use. This has supported the staff in being able to give the children meaningful key work sessions.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff use social stories to support those children who may need extra support. These inform the child of sensitive issues and the support that staff will be providing. The staff have put a lot of thought into what the child needs to understand a difficult situation and any thoughts or feelings that they may have. These are in the PECS and have been used successfully in supporting children in communication skills.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff understand the importance of rewarding positive behaviours and these far outweigh any negative consequences. The children have the opportunity to sign all consequences, and the staff will complete children’s comments if they are unable to do this themselves. There has been a reduction in negative consequences since the last inspection.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There have been two complaints since the last inspection. One of which was sent to Ofsted. The manager and the senior staff responded within the time frame and Ofsted were reassured that the manager and senior staff had rectified any issues. However, the parents feel that the complaint has not been fully addressed and there are still some outstanding questions that they want to be answered. The manager is looking at how further reassurance can be given and hopes to be able to address any outstanding questions. The other complaint is new and the manager has responded in the appropriate timescale. Due to the high level of staffing, children have not gone missing from the home since the last inspection.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

All health and safety checks have been completed and are up to date. A new system has been set up, making it much easier to ensure that all checks are completed on time and easier to access information.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff have completed new training to support them in being able to hold children. There has been a significant decrease in one child’s need to be held. A parent commented, ‘I know there have been a number of holds on my son, I have no issues with how this is being done and [I] am kept informed. It’s a brilliant service.’ The staff complete the appropriate paperwork using the new computer recording system. The recording has improved, in that the staff and the children’s roles in the incident are clear. The children receive debriefs. However, the staff are not always debriefed after an incident to ensure that a consistent approach is being used. The staff do not always sign each entry.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The children have detailed individualised plans, which support the staff in being able to look after and support them. The staff complete half-termly reports to evaluate children’s progression. However, these are not signed or dated by the staff completing them. This makes it difficult to ascertain when the reports were written. The children do not sign their placement plans to say that they understand or have had any input in their development.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

One house has begun to complete ‘all about me’ care plans with the children. The children have been supported to comment about how they want to be looked after. This supports the children in understanding their plans and being able to have an input into their daily living support.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There are detailed behaviour management plans in place. The staff have worked hard since the last inspection to make these documents more readable. These describe the behaviours and proactive strategies to address any issues. However, the manager does not always sign them. Also, not all staff sign to say that they have read or understood the plans to ensure that they are all working in a consistent way with children, although the plans are discussed in staff meetings.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There are still some gaps in the monitoring of care practice in regards to some areas not being fully evaluated by the manager or staff signing paper work. A new computer system has been introduced but it still needs to be fully embedded to be able to support the manager with evaluating patterns and trends and ensuring that staff are signing and dating paperwork.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff are using a new daily recording log for each child, which is changed monthly. However, staff are not signing when they have completed an entry, making it difficult to know who has completed each entry if an investigation was needed. The checklist at the back of the log book, which checks that children’s files have been updated and reviewed, has not been completed. The home is in a rural location set in large, well-maintained grounds, which have plenty of activities for children. A new playground has been completed and there are basketball and football areas. The children have access to bikes or can go for a walk with staff.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Each house is decorated to a high standard. They are individualised and of a good size to accommodate children who use wheelchairs. Each child’s bedroom has been personalised and contains different furniture, which some parents have brought in. The children and the staff are clearly proud of their environment and were happy to show it off. A parent commented, ‘Her room is a lovely size and very personalised.’ A child said, ‘My mum and dad did my room, it’s cool isn’t it? I love my room.’ This shows that the staff support parents who wish to decorate or purchase items for their child’s room for them to feel safe and secure.

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Information about this children's home

The home is registered to provide accommodation for 58 children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Children attend the on-site school. It caters for pupils aged five to 19, irrespective of gender, who have complex medical needs, autism, epilepsy and/or associated learning difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The home is managed by an organisation founded by the Daughters of the Cross of Liege. The school shares the campus with a specialist college for students aged 19 to 25 and a care home for adults with learning difficulties and disabilities.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 26/07/2016 Full Good 18/08/2015 Full Good

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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

13: The leadership and management standard In order to meet the leadership and management standard, the registered person must: (2)(h) use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. 25/05/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child, which are kept up to date and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(b)(c)) 25/05/2017

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  Staff need to demonstrate that they fully understand the risks associated with any restraint technique used in the home by completing the staff debrief. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.56)  The young people should have the opportunity to comment and sign their placement plan. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 18, paragraph 3.31)

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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

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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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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