Children's Home run by Oracle Care Limited in Central Bedfordshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 1 SC421531 Registered provider: Oracle Care Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home provides care and accommodation for up to three children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. All children can access the linked school provision. A private company owns and operates this setting.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 21 November 2016

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Sustained effectiveness

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Enforcement action since last inspection

None Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 2

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Key findings from this inspection

 The children are encouraged and supported to take part in a wide variety of activities, both in the home and in the community.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff understand the importance of education and actively encourage and support the children to attend.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The children know how to complain. The staff support the children to use the advocacy service.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The children are supported to learn about appropriate risk in consultation with their social workers.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff understand the importance of transitions for the children.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff understand the importance of contact for the children, with their families, and facilitate this to happen.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff understand the importance of celebrating the children’s achievements.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children are consulted in a variety of ways. The staff listen and act on the wishes and feelings of the children.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The home has had some major redecoration work completed.

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Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s areas for development

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff have not always followed the relevant plan as set out by the social worker in regards to a child.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Not all staff have completed their national vocational qualification in the required timescale.

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Key findings from this inspection

 There has been inconsistency of staffing, making it difficult for the children to build and maintain positive relationships.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff attend regular meetings with the organisation’s clinician. However, the notes are not sent to the manager in a timely way to ensure that the staff are working in a consistent way. Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/11/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 12/07/2016 Full Requires improvement 22/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 09/11/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 4

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet 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 care planning standard, the registered person must ensure that arrangements are in place to ensure each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (2)(c)) 30/06/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only employ an individual to work at the children’s home if the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform. For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained the level 3 diploma for residential childcare (England) (‘the level 3 diploma’) or a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the level 3 diploma. The relevant date is, in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1 April 2014, the date which falls two years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home or, in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1 April 2014, 1 April 2016. (Regulation 32 (2)(a)(3)(b)(4)(a)(b)(5)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12 (2)(a)(v)) 30/06/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 5

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff support the children to progress and are proud of the achievements that the children make. A social worker commented about a child in their care that, ‘He has come such a long way in the last six months thanks to the staff.’ A child commented, ‘I’m doing really well and I know I have come a long way.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff have a good understanding of why the children are in care. The staff are aware of what the children’s individual needs are and the future plans in place for them. This supports the children to understand and start to come to terms with why they are in care. Where plans are not clear for the child, the manager has challenged the social worker. This ensures that the staff and the child are aware of the plans and can work towards them in a way which supports the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff see education as an important part of the children’s daily life and actively encourage and support the children to attend. All of the children attend full-time education and are progressing well. One child is a prefect, an achievement that he is very proud of and is currently undertaking his GCSEs. Another child who had been out of education prior to moving to the home is engaging well. His social worker commented, ‘He was only having a few hours a day home tuition. It’s brilliant he is attending school and staying the whole day, this is due to staff supporting him in class.’ The headteacher commented, ‘Communication with the staff is very good, and they support children in class when they need it and are currently supporting a child with his GCSE revision.’ A child commented, ‘I really like school, and I’m doing well.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have regular key work sessions covering a wide variety of topics. The sessions help and support them to progress and the children comment and sign these, which shows their involvement and understanding of the session. The staff use these sessions as part of the children’s consultations of the care that they receive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff recognise the children’s achievements and comment on these in house meetings and key work sessions. The staff complete memory books where the children’s achievements are added. The staff record on positive recording sheets when a child has done something well. The manager comments and signs these along with the child. This recognition shows the children that they are valued, and that staff recognise when the children have done well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There have been 12 sanctions since the last full inspection. These are fair and proportionate. The manager evaluates each sanction to ensure that they are appropriate. The children comment and sign the majority of entries and staff have a reflective conversation with the child so that they understand the reason for the sanction and how they can amend their behaviour in the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children’s health needs are promoted. All children are registered with the local Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 6 doctor, dentist and optician. The staff support the children to attend routine health appointments along with any other health assessments. The children have a health plan in place, which supports the staff to ensure that all their needs are met. The local doctor has consented to the staff giving household medication to the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff understand the importance of the children having a wide variety of activities both in the home and in the community. This gives the children the opportunity to build and maintain friendships with their peers. A parent commented, ‘He has the opportunity to do lots of new things, which is good for him.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There are regular house meetings where the children can discuss any worries or concerns, what has gone well and plan any activities or purchases for the house. The manager also has consultations with the children, which are recorded. A child commented, ‘It felt like we were never listened to before and what we wanted didn’t matter. That’s changed now, and we can talk to the manager, and she actually listens.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff understand the importance of contact for children, their families and other important people in their lives. The staff facilitate contact in line with the social worker’s care plan. A social worker commented, ‘Contact is going well and is now unsupervised.’ A foster carer commented, ‘He can phone me whenever he likes, this is becoming less frequent as he is settling in.’ The staff have built positive relationships with parents or significant people in the children’s lives, one commented, ‘They always keep me updated. It’s important to know how he’s doing.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children are starting to develop their independence in line with their age, understanding and ability. A child commented, ‘About six months ago the staff wouldn’t let me do anything, and I felt that I couldn’t move forward. Now I am on full independence, I budget my money, buy my shopping and cook my own meals, I can use public transport, have free time and a mobile phone with internet access. It’s brilliant, and I’m doing really well.’ His social worker commented, ‘He’s really started to develop his independence skills, he has much more freedom and is able to have free time. This is something that he didn’t seem able to have in the past, and he’s now able to do his independence and manage his free time.’ This shows that staff are not risk averse and are aware of the importance of the children learning independence and to manage risks while out in the community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have individual incentive targets. The children are involved in setting the targets and can plan their reward when a target is achieved. The staff are proactive in supporting the children to understand and reach their targets. A younger child has a reward chart, which he completes daily with staff by adding stickers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have individual placement plans. The plans are detailed and support the staff in working with the children on all aspects of their lives. The children have the opportunity to comment to say that they understand the plan.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is a comprehensive child-centred children’s guide. It explains about the home, day-to-day routines and who the children can contact if they wish to complain to Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 7 someone external from the home. These are individualised with photographs of their key workers and space for the child to add comments or information and are sent prior to admission to the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff team knows and understands the children’s individual needs. However, there has not been a consistent staff team since the last full inspection, making it difficult for the children to build and maintain positive relationships with the staff. A parent commented, ‘There have been a lot of staff changes, which is not good.’ A social worker’s manager put in a complaint from a parent stating that there is no stability with staff in the home. The manager has recognised that this has been an issue and a more stable staff team is now in place. A child commented, ‘It’s hard when staff keep changing, it’s much better now.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is decorated to a good standard. There has been some major renovation work since the last full inspection. This has been in consultation with the children. A child commented, ‘It has taken a long time for all the redecoration and the new kitchen, but it’s been worth it. The home is lovely now.’ The children have been able to personalise their bedrooms.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The staff challenge unwanted behaviours and reinforce boundaries. A social worker commented, ‘He can present with challenging behaviours, but staff are consistent with boundaries which have helped him to settle.’ The staff were observed challenging a child who was displaying some unwanted behaviours during dinner in a calm but firm way. The child responded and stopped the unwanted behaviours. During the inspection, there were good interactions between the staff and the children. The staff used appropriate banter with the children, who appeared relaxed and engaging.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Comprehensive risk assessments are in place. They outline the risks and the strategies in place for managing challenging or risk-taking behaviours safely. These are reviewed regularly and amended when necessary.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Health and safety checks are completed and up to date. An area risk assessment is in place, which outlines potential risks in the area and actions for risk reduction.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The children say that they feel safe living in the home. A child commented, ‘The staff do keep me safe by teaching me what to do if I am worried when I am out.’ A social worker commented, ‘Staff keep him safe through boundaries and teaching him to manage his independence and free time.’

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

There have been seven incidents of a child going missing since the last full inspection. This led to a placing authority making a complaint against the home stating that the staff were not following procedures put in place to keep the child from absconding and failing to keep him safe, which led to two staff members being disciplined. The responsible individual fully investigated the complaint and worked with the placing authority and the staff to ensure that strategies were put in place and followed by staff. Since the Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 8 complaint, the organisation has ensured that all staff have received extra training around roles and responsibilities and clear instructions for staff to follow should they have a potential absconder. The manager has undertaken designated safeguarding training as well as attending missing from care conferences. Good evidence was seen during the

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

inspection that the home has learned from incidents and put robust strategies in place to safeguard children.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The staff have a good relationship with the police. The missing person’s coordinator sent an email to the manager thanking her and the staff for their support during incidents of children going missing. On the day of the inspection, two local police community support officers came to visit the children to begin to build up relationships. The designated officer commented, ‘The home report incidents appropriately and I have no concerns.’

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

There have been two incidents of bullying since the last inspection. These are recorded appropriately. Both the victim and the perpetrator were spoken to, and the conversations are recorded. The children comment and sign to say that they are happy with the outcome. This shows that the staff take incidents of bullying seriously.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

One child has moved into the home since the last inspection. Due to the circumstance and the distance, the child did not have the opportunity to visit the home. The manager sent him a comprehensive children’s guide and staff phoned him several times to introduce themselves. The social worker commented, ‘The transition was quick, but staff worked hard to ensure he had all the relevant information and supported him when he arrived, which meant that he settled quickly.’ One child has left the home since the last inspection. The staff supported the child through the transition and supported him to visit the placement several times before moving in.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The children know how to complain. There have been three complaints from children since the last full inspection, which have been resolved in a timely way. The children have the opportunity to sign and comment to say that they are happy with the outcome. One child who was not happy with the outcome was supported by the staff to contact his advocate to support him taking the complaint further. This support led to the complaint being resolved to the satisfaction of the child. This shows that the staff take complaints seriously and support the children in contacting independent people when needed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has been in post since December 2016 and has the relevant experience and qualifications to manage the home. She has a clear vision for the home and recognises the strengths and those areas that she would like to develop.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There were five requirements from the last inspection, three which have been met and two which will be repeated. There were also two recommendations, which have been met. The children are regularly consulted regarding the home and care that they receive. They are involved in completing their placement plans and have the opportunity to sign all relevant paperwork. The staff actively celebrate children’s achievements. However, Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 9 not all staff have completed their national vocational award within the timescale, and not all staff have followed the guidance in following procedures for safeguarding children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff have good insight into the children’s needs and behaviours and treat them as individuals taking into account their ages and levels of understanding. The children are treated with dignity and respect. There is good communication between the staff and the social workers and parents. One social worker commented, ‘Communication has improved. We communicate regularly and have risk management meetings which are really helpful.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team is relatively new since the last full inspection. The staff spoke about the strengths of the home and are aware of how the manager is working to improve and develop the home. The staff actively work with the children to give them a positive experience of their time in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has built good relationships with a wide range of professionals who work with the children, including health professionals, education and the police, to support the children in staying safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Most of the staff have completed their national vocational qualification level 3. However, some staff have not completed this in the timescale required. All staff have completed and are up to date with their mandatory training.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring is robust. The manager, with support from a senior support worker, performs weekly and monthly checks. The organisation has started to use a new company and the manager commented that she has found the independent visitor’s reports to be helpful in supporting her to monitor and maintain good practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff receive regular supervision to support them with working with the children and developing care practice and personal development. The staff spoken to commented that they found supervision supportive. All appraisals are up to date.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are regular staff and clinical meetings to support the staff working with the children. However, the clinical notes are not sent to the manager in a timely way, meaning that staff may not be working in line with the clinician’s recommendations.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference made to the lives of children and young people. They watched how professional staff work with children and young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care provided. Wherever possible, they talked to children and 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 Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 10 children and young people who it is trying to help, protect and look after.

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Information about this inspection

Using the ‘Social care common inspection framework’, this inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, 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’. Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Oracle Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 54 Wrest Park, Silsoe, Bedford MK45 4HS

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Inspector(s)

Trish Palmer: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC421531 12 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, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector(s)

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Inspector(s)

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Inspector(s)

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: http://www.gov.uk/ofsted

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