Children's Home run by Leeds City Council in Leeds

Inspection report children’s home: SC033657 1 SC033657 Registered provider: Leeds City 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

This children’s home is operated by a local authority. It provides care for up to four 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: 13 December 2016

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Requires improvement

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff offer consistent and considered care which meets young people’s needs.  Young people are helped to keep themselves safe through creative individual and group work. Inspection report children’s home: SC033657 2  Leaders and managers monitor the progress of young people effectively and challenge on their behalf to further promote positive outcomes.

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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

 The report by the independent visitor does not provide a comprehensive evaluation of the safeguarding and welfare of young people at the home. This compromises the monitoring systems in place to protect young people.  Managers do not use all the available data to measure, through their review systems, the progress of young people.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/12/2016 Full Requires improvement 11/10/2016 Full Inadequate 22/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 02/07/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC033657 3

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Recommendations

 Any individual appointed to carry out visits to the home as an independent person must make a rigorous and impartial assessment of the home’s arrangements for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in the home’s care (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.5).  The registered person should undertake a review that focuses on the quality of the care provided by the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.2). Specifically, to use a wide range of information to evaluate the quality of care and experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are beginning to build secure and trusting relationships with staff. This is good progress for some young people who have experienced traumatic relationship breakdowns.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people have a range of positive experiences through flexible individualised care and a wide range of activities. A trip to the beach was the first time some young people had seen the sea. A camping trip to a farm has been particularly successful and is being repeated in the summer holidays at the young people’s request. Young people have also attended a volunteer fair to explore ways that they can become involved in helping others.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people participate in care planning reviews. They have been helped to understand when it is not possible to act on their wishes or when other action is taken in their best interests. Sensitive endings to placements have been promoted for young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are encouraged to actively participate in day-to-day decisions. For example, they are creating a computer room. Group meetings are enjoyed by the young people, who engage in lively debate and make a range of suggestions. Their requests are acted upon when possible.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people attend school and some are making excellent progress. There is effective liaison with schools and staff monitor their educational progress. For others, the manager is challenging exclusions and advocating for a return to full-time education as soon as possible. This maintains the impetus to young people’s achievement in Inspection report children’s home: SC033657 4 education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people’s life experience and knowledge of diversity are being promoted in creative ways. For example, young people have prepared food and served it to homeless people, working with a voluntary organisation. A member of staff who is Muslim has shared his experience of Ramadan with them and is taking them to visit a mosque. As a result, they are learning to understand and respect different ways of life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The health needs of young people are identified and they are receiving support to understand different aspects of health. For example, they have had a group session around sexual health. Young people are receiving therapeutic support where appropriate and staff have received training in the most appropriate ways to support this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff team is working hard to help young people build emotional resilience through role modelling and individual work. The quality of individual key-work sessions is very good, with a wide range of topics covered in creative and interactive ways with the young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is a careful, considered approach to contact with family to ensure that it is safe and positive for young people. One parent thinks that the home is ‘brilliant’. He does not worry about his son now that he is living at the home.

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

Young people are protected by regular and effective care planning involving the staff, social workers, families and other professionals. Professionals are positive about the way the staff team is managing the needs of the young people, despite some of their challenges. Referring to an emergency placement, a social worker commented that: ‘The staff have worked really hard to understand his needs. As a result, the placement is far more successful that anyone thought it would be.’

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

Young people’s vulnerabilities are known and are supported by individual risk assessments. There are clear procedures in place for staff to follow if young people go missing. Due to the skilful use of relationships between staff and young people, none of the young people currently living at the home have gone missing since their arrival.

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

Young people learn how to keep themselves and others safe by group and individual sessions around areas such as bullying and racism. A recommendation in regard to this is met.

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

Behaviour management is restorative, as stated in the home’s statement of purpose. This is being implemented in line with the reviewed behaviour policy and a requirement with regard to this is met. One young person is ‘earning’ parts of a bike. He receives a picture of each component, which he uses to build up the whole bike, which he will then receive. This visual aid helps him to feel a tangible sense of achievement, while promoting positive behaviour. Inspection report children’s home: SC033657 5 Staff seek to understand the triggers for young people’s behaviour and respond accordingly. Restraint is used as a final resort, in accordance with legislation. A restorative approach is used in managing behaviour. This is implemented in line with the behaviour policy and a requirement with regard to this is met.

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

Fire drills involving all young people, are being carried out on a regular basis. The manager is monitoring and evaluating these. A requirement in respect of this is met.

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

Young people’s bedrooms are carefully monitored to ensure that they are safe. The recommendation made at the previous inspection regarding this is met.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Young people are cared for by staff who have the appropriate qualifications and experience. The manager holds a level 5 management qualification.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Care plans clearly identify young people’s needs. Leaders and managers are actively monitoring young people’s progress. This results in them being able to quickly identify where improvements to care can be made. They then work proactively with other agencies and in the community to meet these.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The views of young people, families and other professionals are being gathered and used to inform evaluation of the quality of care, reported on at six monthly intervals. A requirement in respect of this is met. However evaluation would be further enhanced by consideration of additional evidence from other data which would further demonstrate the progress of young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Reports by the independent visitor do not evaluate a sufficient range of information to make a rigorous assessment of the home’s arrangements for safeguarding. One young person has never been seen by the visitor, as visits are occurring at a time when he has gone to school. This compromises the evaluation of the care and welfare of young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team members work effectively with each other and others to provide consistency and stability. There are clear responsibilities and accountability. Staff have a sense of shared ownership about the practice in the home and this is being encouraged by the management team. Staff show enthusiasm and motivation in areas where they have been chosen to lead. For example, the member of staff leading on activities has researched numerous local events which the young people can participate in. This has a positive impact on the range of experiences had by young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are supported by effective and regular supervision and appraisal. They have access to a wide variety of training, in line with the statement of purpose, which sees this as ‘key to meeting the needs of the young people’. A number of speakers from a wide range of organisations have attended team meetings, such as a drug and alcohol organisation, the youth team and fire service. This has helped the staff to learn about organisations that can assist the young people in their care and enhance their practice. Inspection report children’s home: SC033657 6 Staff have also had recent training in a social learning theory based programme for children’s homes’ staff. This has enhanced their knowledge about how trauma affects the brain of children as they develop and they are applying this to their understanding of the young people.

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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 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: SC033657 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Leeds City Council, 40 Great George Street, Leeds LS1 3DL

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Inspector

Janet Black, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC033657 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

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Inspector

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Inspector

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