Children's home run by Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited

Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 1 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 owned and managed by a limited company. It is registered to provide care and support to three young people who have a learning disability.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: Not applicable

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff treat young people with the utmost respect. Their privacy and dignity is sensitively maintained in all aspects of their care. Staff genuinely care about the children‟s welfare and work in their best interests. Parents and professionals recognise the positive impact of practice on children‟s development and growing Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 2 independence.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff work in partnership with children‟s schools so that children are able to make good progress in their education. Staff have high aspirations for children to achieve, and work together to reduce any barriers to learning.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children are observed to enjoy trusting and secure relationships with staff, who respond with warmth and genuine positive regard for their achievements, despite any challenges they might present. Children are safe within the home due to the support that staff provide for them.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff are supported by specialists to provide consistent strategies to enable children to reduce unwanted behaviours. Staff carefully observe and recognise triggers to be able to redirect children and help them to manage their emotions.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children are protected from harm by the diligent care and supervision provided by staff. This means that they are able to enjoy an extensive range of self- chosen, fun, enjoyable activities.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children are encouraged to try new activities, which increases their participation in society. Shared activities encourage children to interact socially, develop tolerance and broaden their experiences.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Complex health needs are proactively supported. The home works with other professionals, including occupational therapists, to ensure that children‟s needs are met and that they are able to access aids to support increased mobility and comfort.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Where there are any shortfalls in practice of external professionals, the home robustly and effectively challenges to ensure that children‟s needs are met. Concerns are appropriately escalated so that staff have all relevant plans to inform practice.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Shortfalls found in this inspection have not had a direct impact on children‟s welfare. Improvements have already been implemented or plans are in place to address areas for development.

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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 registered manager and area manager are aware of the need to enhance further the monitoring of the home. They recognise shortfalls in recording and steps are being taken to address this.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Ensure that all maintenance issues and repairs with regard to flooring, carpets, settees and bathrooms are addressed. Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 3  Enhance the opportunities for staff to discuss their practice through regular supervision.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff must receive supervision that is of sufficient duration and quality to evaluate practice effectively, on a regular basis.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

None Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 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 protection of children standard, the registered person must ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished, and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards. (Regulation 12 (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, areas of the property appear tired and worn – the stair carpet is stained and is frayed, the settees in the sensory room and lounge, the flooring in hallways and the bathrooms need attention, and repairs are required to the woodwork outside. 22/09/2017

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard, the registered person must– lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home‟s statement of purpose; use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (2)(a)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, staff and the registered manager receive supervision within the set timescales in the statement of purpose. 22/09/2017

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that the registered person maintain records (“case records”) for each child, which include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child; are kept up-to-date; and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, internal documents are in place for young people who are new to the home. Records of first aid are maintained. The home‟s internal plans, including risk assessment, placement plan and healthcare plan, remain current and are updated and reviewed on a regular basis. 22/09/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that a record is made of any complaint, the action taken in response, and the outcome of any 22/09/2017 Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 5 investigation. (Regulation 39 (3)) The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for the children (“a quality of care review”) at least every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must– Supply to the HMCI a copy of the quality of care review within 28 days of the due date on which the quality of care review is completed. (Regulation 45 (1)(4)(a)) 22/09/2017

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the registered person actively seeks independent scrutiny of the home and makes best use of information from independent and internal monitoring (including under regulations 44 and 45) to ensure continuous improvement. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 55, paragraph 10.24) In particular, reports should be evaluative, identify the strengths of the home, weaknesses, patterns and trends and the action taken to address these.

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the staff are familiar with the home‟s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual young people in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about young people should always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to them now or in the future. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 62, paragraphs 14.4 and 14.5) In particular the home‟s records on each young person represents a significant contribution to their life history and the use of inappropriate terminology, such as absconding, erratic behaviour and „fod‟ are not used. Young people are encouraged where possible to make comment in the records.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people enjoy new experiences and make good progress as a result of living at the home. Families are pleased with the care provided to their children and feel welcomed by staff when they visit. Contact is promoted well. Families and young people visit each other during the week. Good support is provide to families who live a long way from the home. This means that young people are able to maintain positive relationships with those people who are important to them. One young person explained how he was going home to see his mum that day. Parents and carers confirmed that they are updated of any important events between their visits. A parent said that they are „quite happy,‟ with the care and support provided. As a result their child has, „turned into a Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 6 lovely young man.‟

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people enjoy caring and nurturing relationships with staff. Staff said that, „If it is not good enough for our own children, it is not good enough for them.‟ Staff have a very good understanding of the young people in their care. This is because their key workers have worked directly with them for a number of years. Consequently, they react quickly when a young person appears to be unwell or anxious.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are strong advocates for young people. They are not afraid to challenge other professionals when they feel that a young person is not getting the support they need. A prime example of this is the recent challenge to healthcare professionals. Staff fought to have more investigations carried out to get to the root cause of a medical issue for a young person. This happened. The young person is now on different medication, which has had a positive effect upon his health and well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Keen listening and observational skills are used well by staff. This helps them to understand the wishes and feelings of each young person. Barriers to communication are overcome by the persistence and patience of skilled staff. They use various communication strategies. This means that the young people‟s feelings and views are at the heart of everyday practice. Parents, carers and young people know how to raise a concern with the registered manager. These are resolved. However, they are not always recorded in the complaints log. This does not promote transparency.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people‟s education is well supported. Staff have consistently high, but reasonable, aspirations for each young person. They support their education at home effectively, interact well with school staff, and provide the consistent messages that the young people need to succeed. As a result, young people are making good progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people enjoy an extensive range of self-chosen activities at the home and community. One young person loves to listen to his music and to sing and dance with staff. Another likes to go for long walks with the staff, especially in the park or at the beach. One young person explained how he loves to play football and is in a „team‟. He explained how he was going to buy a new game for his games console with his key worker. This was because his key worker had „beaten‟ him at football and he needed a new game to „beat him on‟. This friendly rivalry is fun and infectious. It enables the young people to understand social interactions, rules and friendly competition.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are treated with the utmost dignity. Their privacy is respected and their independence promoted well. Young people develop a range of independence skills. Some young people are now able to bathe or shower with input from staff. Others are confident to make a drink of tea or coffee for staff and visitors with minimal support from staff. The young person considers how much water is in the kettle and how much coffee to use. They talk about what they are doing and why, thus showing staff how they can keep themselves safe and how to store food products, such as milk. Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 7

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

Young people are safe and feel safe. The manager ensures that staff are familiar with safeguarding procedures and protocols, in particular, safeguarding matters relating to young people who have a disability. All staff receive safeguarding training. They have a good awareness of the potential risks posed to each young person. Staff maintain a safe environment by being vigilant at all times.

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

There are no concerns regarding young people going missing from care. Young people are safe. They do not go missing. This is because of the high staffing levels and their one-to-one supervision of the young people. Each young person has a personal and individualised emergency evacuation plan.

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

Staff know the young people extremely well and use helpful diversionary techniques if they are becoming agitated or anxious, such as taking them out in the car. Staff provide clear and consistent boundaries for young people. They take the time to explain why these boundaries are in place. This helps to reduce the young people‟s anxieties.

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

Staff‟s innate understanding of the young people means that they quickly identify when young people are feeling upset or anxious. Behaviour management strategies outline what actions staff should take to reduce unwanted behaviours, such as self-injurious behaviour. This is consistently applied by staff and has seen a reduction in this behaviour. Consultation with professionals, parents and carers has helped staff to recognise potential triggers of increased anxiety. This means that staff are able to respond consistently with strategies to reduce them. Physical intervention is used minimally and always when all other de-escalation strategies have been unsuccessful.

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

Some areas are looking tired and worn, such as hallways, flooring and bathrooms. Other areas of the home have been painted and are looking bright and welcoming, such as the sensory room. A programme of redecoration is underway, but there are some maintenance issues that have not been addressed. The settees in the lounge and sensory room are damaged and one has wood sticking out of the back. The carpet on the stairs is stained and worn. This poses a risk to staff‟s and young people‟s safety. A wooden cover on the outside of the property is damaged and the insulation is coming out of it. The bathroom tiles and flooring need attention. The registered manager has reported these issues, and has been to seek quotes for the work, but repairs have not yet been carried out. This is detracting from the homely environment that the staff and manager are striving to maintain.

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

The home has been open for many years. It was re-registered in April 2017 under a new company. The registered manager and staff have been at the home for many years. They provide good-quality, consistent and supportive care to the young people. The registered manager is qualified, committed and enthusiastic. She leads from the front and spends considerable amounts of time with the young people. The manager is Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 8 supported by an experienced and competent deputy and staff team.

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

The staff are embracing opportunities to take greater responsibility for areas of practice. This promotes team members‟ professional development and a shared ownership of practice at the home. Staff reported that they are well-led and supported. Staff work very well in partnership with external professionals. This helps the staff to deliver holistic care to the young people. This means that they are able to overcome barriers to developing social skills, independence and self-control.

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

Staff are confident to challenge professionals. They request services to enhance the lives of young people, for example to secure therapeutic support. Where relevant plans are not provided by placing authorities, there is clear escalation to ensure that issues are resolved. Parents and professionals said that as a result of living here, young people are happier, safer and making good progress in all areas of their development. Team members are committed and work together well to provide consistent care to young people.

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

Records do not show that staff, including the registered manager, are receiving professional supervision in line with company policy. Plans are underway for more senior staff to carry out supervision sessions. There have been improvements in record- keeping. For example, the recording in the incident records shows the sequence of events and action taken by staff and others to support the young people. Records are individualised.

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

However, some placement plans, healthcare plans and risk assessments do not reflect the young people‟s current needs. First aid records are not recorded. There has been a delay in finalising the home‟s own documentation for one young person. The impact of this is reduced because of the staff‟s innate understanding of each young person‟s needs. Some records do not yet depict the new company name and logo. This work is prioritised and should be completed by the end of August 2017. Also the terminology in records in not appropriate. For example, the use of absconding to describe when a young person may be missing or „fod‟ to describe the young person‟sorehead. This does not help young people when they access their records now or in the future.

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

Monitoring of the home by the independent person and the manager is not yet robust. This is because it has not identified the shortfalls from this inspection. Monitoring reports by the registered manager have not been received by Ofsted within the timescales. The registered manager and staff do reflect upon incidents and adapt their practice to meet the needs of the young people, but this is not always reflected in the records.

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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 Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 9 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: 1247776 10

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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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Inspectors

Chris Scully, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: 1247776 11 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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