Children's Home run by Keys Care Limited in Cambridgeshire

Inspection report children's home: SC370910 1 SC370910 Registered provider: Bettercare Keys Ltd

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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 registered to offer care and accommodation for three children between the ages of 11 and 17 who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. A private company owns and operates this children’s home.

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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 requires improvement to be 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 December 2016

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Declined in effectiveness

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children have good relationships with the staff. Inspection report children's home: SC370910 2  The children are settled and comfortable in the home.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The children each have an education plan. The manager challenges the placing authority effectively when plans are not appropriate. This is a clear strength of the home.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The children pursue their chosen activities. They are encouraged to have their own friendship groups and free time.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children are developing their confidence every day. They are making progress in developing their independence skills.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Diversity and difference is celebrated in the home.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff support the children to achieve their goals and work towards their future plans to move on from the home.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The children maintain positive relationships with their families. The staff support and supervise contact.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff understand the safeguarding protocols and take effective action when children are missing from the home.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff undertake direct work with the children that enables the children to talk about issues that are important to them.

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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

 There are gaps in the mandatory training of some staff.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Not all of the new staff are receiving regular supervision in line with the company’s policy.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The children’s meetings do not take place consistently.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/12/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 28/04/2016 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children's home: SC370910 3 29/01/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 26/08/2015 Full Good Inspection report children's home: SC370910 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

The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff regularly consult children, and seek their feedback, about the quality of the home’s care. (Regulation 7(1)(c)(2)(a)(iv)) 26/6/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33(4)(b)) 26/6/2017

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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 that 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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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have good relationships with the staff and they are settled and comfortable in the home. The staff take time to get to know the children and their likes and dislikes. The staff recognise the children’s differences and individual needs. This makes the children feel valued and cared for. Inspection report children's home: SC370910 5 Since the last inspection, one child has moved into a specialist health resource which will better meet her complex needs. There has been one new admission. The staff provided support to help with the transition process to ensure that she feels comfortable. This child said, ‘The staff are amazing and really nice. I have no complaints and I am really happy here.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children know how to complain. They are confident about speaking to the staff about any concerns, and they know the process involved. The children are aware of the role of advocates, and the staff support the children to maintain positive links with their social workers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff attend the children’s reviews with them and help them to express their views and wishes. This helps the children to feel listened to and believed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children all have education plans. One child attends a mainstream school and another attends the company’s local school. Another child undertakes home-school learning with the support of the staff, and she also has a home tutor. The manager challenges the placing authority and education providers effectively when plans are not appropriate. This is a clear strength of the home. The children’s needs are a priority, and the staff and the manager want the best for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children pursue their chosen activities, such as going to the gym. They are encouraged to have their own friendship groups and free time. The staff monitor the children sensitively and do not discriminate or identify the children as ‘looked after’. The children are able to have freedom, which leads to increased trust and responsibility.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Diversity and difference is celebrated in the home. A variety of cultural evenings have taken place, and religious and dietary needs are well catered for. The children respond well to the varying caring approaches from the different staff members. Some of the staff are from overseas, which enriches the team dynamics and benefits the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff meet the children’s health needs and ensure that the children attend all of their health appointments. The manager requests current health care plans from the placing authority and responds appropriately when the children need medical attention. Children make positive health choices. The staff provide support to help the children with smoking cessation.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are developing their confidence every day. They are making progress in developing their independence skills. The children participate in tasks such as washing, budgeting and cooking. The staff provide incentives to encourage and promote the children’s development. The children are helped to prepare to move on and to develop coping skills for the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff support the children to achieve their goals and work towards their future plans to move on from the home. The manager ensures that clear transition plans are in place well in advance of proposed moves. This helps the children to prepare emotionally and to Inspection report children's home: SC370910 6 feel supported practically.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children maintain positive relationships with their families. The staff support and supervise contact. The manager is proactive at liaising with the placing authority to arrange contact sessions and to ensure that these take place regularly. The links that the children have with their family members and carers provide them with a strong sense of identity. A parent said, ‘I am really happy with her care. She is safe and well looked after.’ Another said, ‘I am so proud of her [my daughter]. They have done a good job with her and she has improved.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Placing authorities are positive about the level of care provided to the children. Feedback confirms that communication is good and consistent. One social worker said, ‘They [the staff] have made such a good bond with her. They have encouraged her to integrate and she has changed so much. She’s done brilliantly well.’

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

The staff understand the safeguarding protocols and take effective action when children go missing from the home. The number of incidents of children going missing has reduced. There are effective relationships with the community police officers, who often visit the home informally. Missing from home protocols are implemented and the staff request return home interviews to provide the children with the opportunity to discuss the incidents.

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

Children feel safe and generally get on well together. Staff provide ongoing support and relationship advice. The children have positive relationships with each other, and the number of incidents has reduced.

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

Staff successfully use de-escalating techniques, and there have been no physical interventions since the last inspection. The staff genuinely care about the children’s well- being. This is reflected in the stability of the home environment.

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

Children are able to identify a trusted adult with whom they can talk if they have any concerns or worries. One child said to the inspector, ‘Before, no-one had really good role models. I don’t think you should fail us this time, as they are all really good. The manager is doing a good job.’

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

There are regular reviews of the behaviour plans and risk assessments. There is a consistent approach to behaviour management and positive behaviours are rewarded. This helps the children to make good choices which have a positive impact on their lives and future opportunities.

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

The staff undertake direct work with the children, talking about issues that are important to the children, as well as exploring issues in relation to keeping healthy, fire safety and education. These sessions help to equip the children to recognise safe and positive behaviours. Inspection report children's home: SC370910 7 Staff know how to report concerns about the safety of a child. The manager and the staff share child protection concerns immediately with the placing authority and appropriate agencies. The manager fully investigates allegations and seeks advice from the designated officer when required. Consequently, children’s welfare is promoted.

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

The children are at risk of child sexual exploitation and this is key area of work in the home. The staff are not all able to identify the main signs of child sexual exploitation confidently, which means that important indicators may be missed. However, the staff understand the importance of getting to know the children well and keeping the lines of communication open.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The registered manager resigned in February 2017. There are suitable interim management arrangements in place and a newly-appointed manager is in post. She has applied for registration with Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The new manager is suitably qualified and has worked as a senior residential worker in the home for the last 12 months. She has previous experience of working with children looked after in a role as a qualified social worker for the local authority.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff have access to an appropriate induction programme and training. The manager oversees their progress. There are gaps in the mandatory training of some staff. This does not ensure effective professional development or support good practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The new staff, some of whom are from overseas, have been recruited using safe- recruitment processes. On occasion, regular agency staff are used. The manager requests information from the agency prior to an agency member of staff working at the home. This ensures that proper checks are in place to safeguard vulnerable children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager has made a number of significant positive changes within a short time. She has good relationships with her staff team, and she is supportive and nurturing of their skills. She is proactive at building relationships with other agencies and has a clear vision to develop the home and to continue to improve outcomes for children. A member of staff said, ‘My experience of working here is good. Everyone helps out and is supportive.’ Another staff member described the team as a ‘family’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Not all of the new staff are receiving regular supervision in line with the company’s policy. This does not ensure robust oversight and support of these staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Children’s meetings do not take place consistently. This does not provide the children with a regular opportunity to express their views. However, the internal and external reporting is effective and the manager considers the views from other agencies, children and parents to influence the future development of the home. Inspection report children's home: SC370910 8

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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 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: SC370910 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bettercare Keys Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Keys Group, Laganwood House, Newforge Lane, Belfast BT9 5NW

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Inspector

Debbie Young, social care inspector Inspection report children's home: SC370910 10 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

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Inspector

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Inspector

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