Children's home run by Carbrey Care Ltd in Gloucester

Inspection report children’s home: 1155761 1 Registered provider: Carbrey Care Ltd

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Marsh Villa is a three-bedroomed, privately owned residential children’s home for up to three girls.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 27 February 2017

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Improved effectiveness

p.1

Enforcement action since last inspection

None Inspection report children’s home: 1155761 2

p.1

Key findings from this inspection

 Young people live in a home that is safe and very homely and provides them with space to grow and develop. Staff have paid attention to detail in respect of furnishings and design, which means that each young person has personalised space that they are proud of and which very much reflects their individuality.  The staff help the young people to understand risk and how to stay safe. Staff understand the need for young people to become independent and to take appropriate risks. Young people are helped to manage their behaviours and regulate their responses. Professionals speak very positively about the impact that the staff have had on helping young people develop.  The registered manager is very well qualified and experienced and has a strong commitment to improving the outcomes of the young people. He leads a team that has high aspirations for the young people. Staff have a good understanding of each of the young people and are motivated and passionate in the support

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

they provide. Relationships between the young people and staff are sincere and positive.  Since the last inspection, the staff team has changed a number of times. The current team is committed and consistently provides good care. Young people make good progress as a result of the consistently high quality of care.

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s areas for development

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

 Leaders and managers must work hard to ensure that there remains a stable, skilled workforce that can provide consistency of care for young people.  Consultation with young people must improve to ensure that they are included in the development of the home and the recruitment of staff.  The registered manager must ensure that young people eat more healthily when away from the home.

p.2

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/02/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 26/07/2016 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children’s home: 1155761 3 12/04/2016 Full Inadequate Inspection report children’s home: 1155761 4

p.2

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 with the given timescales.

p.4

Requirement Due date

The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard

p.4

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.

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff help each child to express views, wishes and feelings; regularly consult children, and seek their feedback, about the quality of the home’s care; keep the children’s guide and the home’s complaints procedure under review and seek children’s comments before revising either document. (Regulation 7(1)(c)(2)(a)(ii)(iv)(c)) 01/11/2017

p.4

Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home.

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child, ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child and ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13(1)(2)(c)(d)(e)) 01/11/2017 Inspection report children’s home: 1155761 5

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and the staff team have created an environment that is extremely homely and very well furnished. They have created spaces in the home where the young people can play, relax and socialise. The heart of the home is the kitchen/diner where young people are very much involved in learning how to prepare and cook meals. Most importantly, by routinely sharing meals young people have opportunities to socialise, talk and share experiences. Young people make very good progress in developing independence skills and taking responsibility for decisions they make. Young people spoke extremely positively of the mealtimes, the conversations they have between one another and the learning they take from eating meals together. However, it was noted during the course of the inspection that young people are eating unhealthily when away from the home. Leaders and managers are aware of this.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people have opportunities on a day-to-day basis to learn, meet friends and have fun. Staff demonstrate a very good understanding of each of the young people’s likes and with them design structured, well-planned schedules.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people attend school regularly and do very well. Staff understand that education comes in many guises and ensure that there is learning from each planned activity. During the inspection, one young person had been caving and showed a real sense of pride in her achievement. Another young person was pleased with her visit to an optician and with playing her flute with an orchestra in London.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, there have been a number of changes to the staff team. However, consistency of care has been provided by making use of regular agency staff. Young people have not been negatively affected and make good progress from their starting points. Young people who have moved on from the home have done so by means of a planned and collaborative approach with their local authority.

p.5

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

The staff team provides the young people with a very safe place to live. The staff team has a good understanding of the young people. Staff use well-written and clear risk assessments that support young people safely in and outside of the home.

p.5

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

The registered manager has a very good understanding of each of the young people’s therapeutic needs. Collaborative working with the young people’s social workers and a clinical psychologist results in behaviour and care plans that are informed by current research. Structured and personalised responses mean that challenging behaviours are reducing significantly. With the kind support of staff, young people are gradually learning how to manage their anxieties and worries.

p.5

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

In particular, the staff demonstrate a range of skills and expertise in engaging with Inspection report children’s home: 1155761 6 young people and developing trust. As a result, young people feel safe. They speak warmly of the staff, and are making good progress in relation to keeping themselves safe and to understanding independence.

p.5

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

Young people rarely go missing from the home. Nevertheless, when this has occurred, staff are proactive in their responses. They follow their missing from home protocol and report to all relevant agencies in a timely manner. Staff use key worker sessions to help young people to understand how to keep themselves safe when not with an adult. The staff demonstrate a good understanding of the risks that young people take. Compassionate, proportionate and warm responses from staff result in young people learning from their experiences.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is well established in his role. He is a qualified social worker and, by continuing with his professional development, he remains up to date with research and practice. Since the registered manager’s appointment, he has driven improvements, resulting in positive outcomes for the young people.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is extensive evidence of close working with all of the professionals involved with each young person. An independent reviewing officer spoke highly of the registered manager’s communication abilities. As a result of these abilities, all parties feel very well informed of the young people’s needs and progress.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager advocates well for young people. Well-written reports, informed and supported by the clinical psychologist, are presented at local authority meetings. This demonstrates that young people are helped and supported to share their views, and challenge takes place when necessary.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager demonstrates a real drive to improve the quality of care that the young people receive. He prioritises the needs of the young people, their safety and their development. Well-structured strategic development plans focus on continuing improvements for the home and young people.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is good evidence of how the young people are involved in the daily running of the home, for example preparing and cooking meals and planning activities. Unfortunately, there is insufficient evidence of ways in which young people influence the development of the home. The registered manager recognises the importance of young people’s participation, and plans are in place to develop this area of practice.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, there have been a number of staff changes. All staff receive a good-quality induction, including appropriate training, and their practice is supported by regular supervision. The registered manager and registered individual have covered a high number of staff vacancies. They have both worked long hours. However, by their taking on the additional work, young people have received consistency in care, and agency use has been kept to a minimum. Inspection report children’s home: 1155761 7 There has also been an over-reliance on both the registered manager and the registered individual to provide training for staff. Furthermore, while training is good, there is a need to broaden the training pool to cover subjects with a greater depth, for example gender-related issues, mental health and self-harm.

p.6

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.

p.7

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: 1155761 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 17 Brunswick Square, Gloucester, Gloucestershire GL1 1UG

p.8

Inspector

Linda Bond, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1155761 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.

p.8

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: http://www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9