Children's home run by Durham County Council in County Durham

Inspection report children’s home: SC034741 1 SC034741 Registered provider: Durham County Council

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is run by a local authority and is registered for the care and accommodation of up to five children or young people 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 outstanding

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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: 7 February 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Improved effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: None

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Key findings from this inspection

 The leadership and management are excellent. The registered manager provides a strong sense of leadership. He is confident and ambitious for the young people. He leads the staff team very well. He is influential in changing Inspection report children's home: SC034741 2 the lives of the young people who are cared for at the home.  The staff team supports the manager well. It is highly experienced, well qualified and fully trained. The staff are skilful at their job and they are enthusiastic about and committed to, their work. They work well as a team and offer good quality and consistent care to the young people.  The young people are all kept safe. The staff are proactive and work hard to address issues appropriately when they arise. The young people are helped to understand how to keep themselves safe. The staff set appropriate boundaries and expectations, and make these clear to the young people.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The young people are achieving well in their education. They attend school and college regularly and are making good progress in their chosen studies and work experience. The staff support the young people to make good progress, and work well in partnership with school and college staff.  All of the young people currently living at the home are preparing for their independence. For most of the young people, this will happen in the near future and so this independence work is prioritised. The young people contributed to the planning around their care and their future lives.  The young people are well supported to maintain and develop good relationships and contact with their families wherever possible. The staff support this work effectively, and they include family members in their discussions and their planning.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/02/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 31/05/2016 Full Good 23/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 17/11/2015 Full Good Inspection report children's home: SC034741 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has had a settled year since the last full inspection. One young person has left the home and one has moved in. The group of young people has largely remained the same. The young person moving in has settled well and is making good progress along with all of the other young people living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There have been minimal changes in the staffing, with few staff leaving or arriving. The registered manager and the staff team have consolidated their practice and are now working at a high standard, providing good quality and consistent care for the young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

It is noticeable that the home has a relaxed calmness about it. The registered manager has led the staff team well and encourages this approach. Even when there are tensions or the inevitable squabbles, the issues are dealt with calmly and effectively. This contributes considerably to the young people feeling safe and secure. One young person said that they felt that the registered manager and staff were good at sorting out problems when they arise.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The experience of living in the home has been good for all of the young people; consequently they have all made clear progress in their lives. The basis for this is the good relationships that are built with the young people by the staff. The young people are given clear guidance and advice, but are also consulted about all aspects of living at the home and of their care planning. This approach encourages respect and consideration for each other. The young people talk easily with the staff who are interested in the everyday lives of the young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The inspector observed relaxed everyday conversations that dealt with day-to-day issues which were important to the young people, and also to the staff. Young people discussed how to remove make-up, how to get a stain out of a favourite top, where to buy everyday items, and how to approach their social worker to discuss plans for their future. When the young people go out for the day, staff ring them to check that they are okay. The young people clearly valued this as care and concern rather than interference. The young people also chatted about an up-coming holiday that had been booked following joint discussion and planning.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff do work with the young people in relation to personal and individual issues. The staff are quick to refer the young people for more specialist services when it is required. Several of the young people visit counsellors, where they are able to open up and talk about difficulties in their lives. This is very beneficial and plays its part in their ongoing progress. Other young people have been working with youth offending workers or specialist advice and guidance workers, and this also works well. The staff record this work, but the inspector felt they could improve the recordings to clearly evidence the work that was being carried out. Inspection report children's home: SC034741 4 All of the young people attend school or college well. One young person’s attendance has dropped a little recently, but their overall attendance is high. This has led to some of the young people getting good exam passes and moving on to college courses. Other

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

young people are taking exams at the moment and are predicted to do well. These achievements are good considering the young people’s starting points. One young person is advancing well at college and is working successfully in a work placement. Other young people are preparing and applying for vocational courses at local colleges. Generally, education and training are given a high priority, and a culture of working hard to achieve at school and college is apparent.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Most of the young people have some contact with their families. The staff support these relationships well and the young people are able to develop them further. One young person is now able to resist some of the negative influences of their family while still remaining in contact. Another young person has improved their contact with a family member, which has developed their relationship.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people have their health needs met and the staff encourage them to make, and keep, all relevant appointments.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All of the young people living at this home are nearing independence. The staff have made preparing for adult life and learning independence skills a high priority. The staff encourage the young people to practise these skills and to learn new skills. The manager is introducing a skills audit and checker tool so that this work can become more organised; this will be a good development. The young people who are close to moving on contribute well to making plans for their futures. This planning is starting early to ensure that the process is thoroughly considered and thought about. There is good evidence of the young people making progress to learn independence skills. The inspector observed one young person who has clearly become much more confident in social situations. One young person is now able to use public transport, whereas some time ago they were not confident to be able to do this. The young people are

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

encouraged to participate in all of the household chores; this is another area where they can learn and practise skills.

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

The young people at this home are safeguarded. Staff have good relationships with the young people and know them well. The staff also understand risks associated with the young people, and make good assessments of these risks. They introduce effective plans so that risks to young people are minimised.

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

In the year since the last full inspection, there have only been a few safeguarding incidents, which staff have responded to appropriately. One young person had to leave the home after an allegation was made against them by another young person. This incident was reported and investigated quickly, and then dealt with appropriately.

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

There have been some missing-from-home incidents. These are mostly young people returning to the home later than agreed. These incidents have been steadily decreasing Inspection report children's home: SC034741 5 and are now at a low level. When the young people are reported missing, staff do make good efforts to locate and return them to the home.

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

There have been a small number of incidents when young people have drunk alcohol or experimented with drugs. There have also been some incidents of anti-social behaviour in the community or concerns about the young people mixing with others outside the home who are a negative influence on them. However, these incidents have all been low level. Staff do take these issues seriously and work with the young people to educate them and to try to positively influence what they are doing. This approach works well and is effective. The young people are referred to specialist workers when required. Some of the young people have been referred to the youth offending services and others have been referred for substance misuse guidance.

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

The staff are able to provide clear boundaries for the young people and make their expectations clear. They will make sure that inappropriate behaviour is challenged and that there are appropriate consequences. This works well. The staff do use sanctions when required and have used physical interventions when necessary. They have also called the police when their support is helpful. However, these interventions are infrequent and only used sparingly. This is excellent work. The young people are guided and advised, and understand clearly when they have fallen short of expectations. This approach builds respect and trust and prepares the young people well for life outside of the home. It also allows the young people to feel safe and secure in the home, as they know that issues will be dealt with in a firm but caring way. This approach is down-to- earth, consistent and effective.

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

Some of the young people have previously had experienced incidents of self-harm, but with support, guidance and good care, these issues have mostly disappeared. The young people in this home have become increasingly safe over time. They are learning to manage their own actions and are able to better protect themselves. They are being well prepared for independence.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is qualified and experienced. He has been at this home for over two years and has led the staff team effectively during this time. He has had a clear idea of how he wanted to develop the home. He has introduced positive changes which have enhanced the work and practice of the staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has understood the strengths and weaknesses of the staff team and has addressed these issues over time, which has developed the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The statement of purpose is up to date and the staff clearly meet the aims and objectives set out in this document.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager’s clear priority has always been the young people living at the home. He is a calm and considered man and has brought a calmness to the home. He has been able to work with a settled group of young people who have grown up and matured. Inspection report children's home: SC034741 6 Within this environment, the manager has guided staff to provide high-quality care. He has been supportive and ensured that supervision and appraisals have been completed on time. He has identified training needs of each member of staff and has ensured that all of their training is up to date. The staff team is qualified and very experienced. It is now working together as an effective team. Staff spoken to during the inspection commented on the good support they get from the manager. They clearly appreciate his leadership skills.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has led his team well, particularly when it comes to developing relationships and networks outside of the home. He and the staff have developed good relationships with the families of the young people. This has contributed to improving contact arrangements for several of the young people. Staff commented during the inspection that there have been improvements to contact and relationships with placing social workers. The manager has overseen some changes to enable staff to make more day-to-day decisions with the young people. The staff now take responsibility for assessing requests from the young people to stay out overnight with their friends. The staff meet these people and then make an assessment about what is appropriate, safe and reasonable. This works well, as decisions are made quickly and the young people get a clear answer to their requests. These arrangements can also be constantly

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

On the few occasions when the police have been involved, relationships and communication with them has been effective. Recently, one young person had started to mix with a group of young people who were a negative influence. The joint work with the police has contributed towards discouraging and disrupting some of these relationships. This has led to this young person being kept increasingly safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Overall, the leadership and management of the team by the manager has been excellent. Significant progress and development has been made. This has meant that the outcomes for the young people are improving. The young people are making good progress and the experience of living in the home is improved greatly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There were no requirements or recommendations made at the previous inspection and none has been made at this inspection. Inspection report children's home: SC034741 7

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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 differences 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 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: SC034741 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, Durham DH1 5UL

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Inspector

Colin Imrie, social care inspector Inspection report children's home: SC034741 9 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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