Children's home run by Care Management Group Limited in Mole Valley

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged requires improvement 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

Young people are making good progress from their starting points. Two young people live at the home on a full-time basis and two have shared care between the home and their parents. All of the young people have lived at the home for a long period. The newest resident moved in three years ago and the others over six years ago. Young people have benefited from the stability and the consistent routines offered. Although progress is often slow due to complex needs, young people make progress and continue to learn new skills, for example trying a more varied diet, eating healthily and being more active to support weight loss.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

A number of requirements made at the last inspection have either been met or partly met. Three requirements continue to be worked on, and recommendations are made to ensure that this good work is continued. The recommendations are made in respect of ongoing skills training to ensure that staff safeguard young people and form a workforce that is trained to meet the needs of each child, furthermore to ensure that case records are signed and dated by the relevant author or parent.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff monitor and support young people’s health needs carefully. They work closely with a range of health professionals to ensure that young people’s needs are met, for example planning a social story and arranging for a phlebotomist to visit the home to undertake an essential blood check for a young person, carefully monitoring a prescribed drug reduction plan for a young person, and working in partnership with the community paediatrician and the family to ensure that this is managed safely.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people are encouraged and supported to attend education. Staff ensure that routines are consistent and that transport is arranged which supports their attendance. Staff form positive working relationships with young people’s schools. For example, they have home-to-school communication books which report observations and record information. When young people move onto 16-plus education, this is well planned, thought through and supported with the use of social stories and introductory visits. Effective and close working relationships with education recently supported one young person to manage a planned school trip, which went smoothly and which he enjoyed.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff have recently received positive behaviour support (PBS) training. This helps them to recognise triggers to behaviours and feel more confident to manage and use strategies to prevent escalations. This has, in turn, helped to support young people to better manage some of their complex behaviours, and there have been fewer incidents reported since the last inspection.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager has arranged for additional staff to work at weekends, and some staff are also trained to use physical interventions. This ensures that young people can be safely managed and supervised together. Physical interventions are rarely used. However, the registered manager organises the staff rotas to ensure that someone trained is always on shift.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff say that they have attended autism training which has helped to support them to understand and manage young people with more confidence. Staff share positive and helpful relationships with young people. The staff know the young people well and pre-empt their moves and behaviours, allowing them to be prepared for any potential difficulties. The home feels calm and organised, and young people appear happy and relaxed.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Leaders and managers provide an improved presence in the home, and the impact is clear and obvious. Key areas of improvement in the organisation and leadership of the home are as follows:  A new independent person visits the home once a month and prepares a report of the findings. This helps managers to think about compliance with regulations and how positive work and feedback are evidenced.  The registered manager has undertaken a thorough review of the quality of care at the home. This report is helping leaders and managers in developing an action plan to improve the service at the home.  There is a new bathroom upstairs and new flooring fitted in one of the downstairs lounges. In addition, basic repairs have been completed, making the home environment much more practical and pleasant.  The management of administration of medication and health is improved to provide safer, clearer systems.  Support for staff is improved through more effective team meetings,

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

supervisions, appraisal and training. The leaders and managers have worked hard to establish better working relationships both with schools, the PBS team and parents, and together as a team. This has meant better joined-up thinking and consistency for young people.

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately run home. It provides care and accommodation for up to five young people who have autistic spectrum disorder and/or special needs and learning difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 01/11/2016 Full Requires improvement 15/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 28/10/2015 Full Requires improvement 19/03/2015 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 recommendation(s):

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Recommendations

 Staff skills for safeguarding should include being able to identify signs that children may be at risk, and support children in strategies to manage and reduce any risks. Staff should encourage children to express their views about whether they feel safe both within and outside the home. Staff should support children to understand how to ask for help to stay safe and that the home is an environment that supports this. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.10)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs, and should understand the key role they play in the training and development of staff in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

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Recommendations

 Ensure all children’s case records are kept up to date and stored securely whilst they remain in the home. Case records must be kept up to date and signed and dated by the author of each entry. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)

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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 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 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

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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