Children's Home run by The Place Young People’s Company in Leicestershire

Inspection report children’s home: 1241261 1 Registered provider: The Place Young People’s Company

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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 is privately owned, and is registered to provide care and accommodation for two children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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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 : This is the first inspection of this home since registration in October 2016.

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Not applicable

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children benefit from their placements being settled, and are both making progress in all areas of their lives.  Children have very positive relationships with staff. They enjoy spending time with staff and know that the staff genuinely care about them. Inspection report children’s home: 1241261 2  Staff manage behaviour effectively, and support children to begin to regulate their own behaviours.  Children are learning to be more independent.  Children feel listened to. They are supported to make decisions, and staff consult them on all aspects of their care.  Children feel safe and are protected by effectively implemented risk-management strategies.  A strength of the service is the consistent implementation of a therapeutic approach. It is evident that staff understand the model and that the approach is woven through all aspects of care.  Children are cared for by an experienced, knowledgeable and, for the most part,

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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

 Records must always confirm that children are spoken to after the use of a physical intervention.  A recommendation is made to strengthen a specific aspect of medication administration.  A recommendation is made to ensure that children always have a supply of any personal care products that they need.

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Enforcement action since last inspection

None Inspection report children’s home: 1241261 3

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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

35: Behaviour management policies and records.

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Requirement Due date

Within 5 days of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint the registered person or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so adds to the required record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 53(3)(c)) 09/06/2017

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Recommendations

 Ensure that there are suitable arrangements to manage, administer and dispose of any medication. In particular, this relates to strengthening the current arrangements. To implement a more formal system which ensures that medication that may be required when a child is away from the home is immediately available. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15)  Ensure that each child’s day-to-day health and well-being needs are met. In particular, this relates to always ensuring the provision of individual personal care products. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 33, paragraph 7.3)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The two children admitted since the home opened in October 2016 have settled happily into positive placements. One of the children spoke about how she felt anxious when she first moved in, but that this quickly changed and she soon felt comfortable. Children welcome the relaxed atmosphere. They have built trusting relationships with staff and enjoy spending time with them. One child said, ‘It feels like family here’. Staff are reflective and adjust their practice to balance the provision of very nurturing care with the setting of boundaries when necessary. Children respect this and become even more confident in the staff because of this. Children say that staff talk to them about their care. It is evident that staff respond to their wishes and feelings. Although one child has repeatedly asked for his bedtime to be extended, he knows that staff have Inspection report children’s home: 1241261 4 heard his views and he has been told why this is not appropriate.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is viewed as important. One child attends a local mainstream school, where he is reported to be ‘achieving really well’. As well as progressing academically, the school experience has enhanced social opportunities for this child, for example in making new friends, taking part in school holiday trips and being invited to birthday parties. This has resulted in a sense of achievement and inclusion. The support provided by staff for this child is seen as very helpful by the school. Due to a college placement breakdown, one child has not attended full-time education for several weeks. Although this is not ideal, the staff team has advocated tirelessly on behalf of the child’s right to education. Staff promote learning opportunities during what should be a school day, while managers continue to liaise with the placing authority to identify how educational needs will be met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are generally in good health. Staff teach children that healthy eating and physical activity are important. Children are encouraged to make healthy choices. One child stands out as being particularly active, enjoying and engaging in a range of sports. One child has felt unable to attend a dental check-up. However, staff continue to work on this and are currently planning to take the child to visit the surgery for an initial look around, in order to reduce anxieties. This demonstrates that staff remain focused on and are creative in meeting children’s health needs. A generally safe medication administration system is operated. However, a recommendation is set for one area to be strengthened further.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have many opportunities to take part in stimulating and exciting activities of their choice. Recent activities include regular attendance at a football club, boxing, trips to the seaside, activity holidays and shopping trips. As a result, children learn new skills and improve their social skills, and their self-esteem is enhanced. Children learn to be more independent. Examples include taking increasing responsibility for daily routines and personal hygiene for younger children, and developing budgeting skills and using public transport for those moving towards adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A particular strength of the service is the well-implemented therapeutic parenting model which broadly underpins care arrangements. Staff and managers have received training, and practice is overseen by an accredited psychotherapist. This means that staff understand children’s emotions and behaviours in the context of their individual history. Children are helped to be reflective, to understand the world around them, and to be creative and playful. Effective placement planning links planned care to specific lines of therapeutic care, providing broad opportunities for children to develop in the most positive manner.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A weakness identified at the time of the inspection relates to a child not being provided with a necessary personal care product. Staff were unclear exactly why this occurred, but not all staff understand how such haircare needs, linked to ethnicity, should be met. The child seemed unaware of this shortfall and, as such, it has had limited impact on him. Managers responded promptly during the inspection to address this shortfall. Inspection report children’s home: 1241261 5

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

Children’s welfare is promoted and they are kept safe. There have been no child protection referrals to the local authority and no issues necessitating a safeguarding notification to Ofsted. Children do not go missing and there have been no unauthorised absences. Safeguarding concerns are identified promptly and discussed with external safeguarding agencies, in line with local and national guidelines. Care practice is underpinned by good staff training, risk assessments, policies and procedures which guide the safety and well-being of children. This means that staff understand individual vulnerabilities, including those relating to sexual exploitation. Staff have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities in relation to keeping children safe.

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

Children feel safe and are confident to talk to staff if they are anxious or have a complaint about their care. Children are supervised at the appropriate level for their individual needs. This means that younger, more vulnerable, children are with staff at all times.

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

Children become increasingly safe while living at this home. For one child, there has been a significant reduction in the number of concerning behavioural incidents. Positive behaviour is consistently promoted. While staff are very tolerant, they also consistently reinforce boundaries. This helps children to accept the need for rules and routine. Physical holds are used only as a last resort and in order to keep children or others safe. Records are maintained of such incidents, but these do not consistently confirm that the child has been spoken to about the use of physical intervention.

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

Careful recruitment of staff prevents unsuitable people from having the opportunity to harm children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager who was registered when the home opened has very recently resigned from the role. The deputy manager has stepped up as interim manager while a new permanent manager is recruited. The impact on the operation of the home and the children has been minimal, as this process has been well managed. A member of staff said: ‘We work like a well-oiled machine. We plan well, but are also reactive when things come up.’ The acting manager has a clear understanding of the progress that each child is making and ensures that changing needs are met. While this is a time of change in the management structure, the interim manager understands the home’s strengths and is able to recognise areas requiring further development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The acting manager is very accessible to children and talks to each of them on a daily basis. Children are comfortable making suggestions or raising a concern. Opportunities are created which encourage children to air their views. Examples of children’s views being responded to include supporting a child to join a boxing club and providing additional support to a child who was anxious about going to the dentist.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An independent person visits the home each month and produces a report on the Inspection report children’s home: 1241261 6 quality of care. This process aids the manager in identifying areas for further service development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have confidence in the leadership structure, and say that children always come first in decision making. A member of staff said: ‘This is a happy place to work. The team members support each other.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The service meets the aims and objectives of its statement of purpose. Specific training on child development and the adopted therapeutic parenting model used at the home is provided for the team. This means that staff are confident in the approach used and are able to link theory to practice. The emphasis placed on learning and development means that staff are generally clear about their roles and responsibilities. The service promotes tolerance and helps young people to celebrate their differences. The two children in placement have diverse needs. Because of the care provided, they have become more accepting of each other’s needs.

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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 children and young people whom 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: 1241261 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Place Young People’s Company

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 18b Market Place, Nottingham NG13 8AP

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Inspector(s)

Mary Timms, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1241261 8 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)

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