Children's home run by Peterborough City Council

Inspection report children's home: SC058778 1 SC058778 Registered provider: Peterborough 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

A local authority owns and operates this provision. The home is registered to provide short breaks and day care for up to five children and for a further three children to live at the home. The home provides specialist care for children who have physical disabilities and/or learning disabilities and/or sensory impairments.

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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: 20 February 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children build positive relationships with familiar staff who know their likes and Inspection report children's home: SC058778 2 dislikes.  Parents say that their children are safe and happy at the home.  The children enjoy a wide variety of interesting activities.  The close work between the staff and families and professionals ensures that the staff understand each child’s individual style of communication.  There is excellent partnership working between the staff and the school that the children attend.  The manager and staff recognise the children’s achievements. The staff are observant of any change, however small, and celebrate these steps with families and professionals.  A strong, experienced management team and a suitably skilled staff team deliver a good service.

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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 children do not have individual books containing memories of their stays at the home.  Fire drills are not frequent enough to ensure that every child has gained an understanding of the fire evacuation procedure.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 01/08/2016 Full Good 29/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 30/11/2015 Full Good Inspection report children's home: SC058778 3

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Statutory requirement

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 registered person must ensure that the requirements of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005(a) and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25 (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, carry out frequent fire evacuation drills. 04/09/2017

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Recommendation

 The home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. Staff should understand their important role in encouraging the child to reflect on and understand their history, according to their age and understanding. Staff should keep and encourage children to keep appropriate memorabilia of their time spent living at the home and help them to record significant events. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The good quality of care provided ensures that children have a positive experience during their stays at this home. Some of the children have complex health needs and many are non-verbal. The staff work well with families and professionals to establish each child’s preferred method of communication. Often, body language and expressions are the most successful guide to establishing the mood and opinions of a child. A parent said, ‘The staff are very observant. They pick up on even the most subtle of signs and changes in her.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Comprehensive care plans cover every part of a child’s life. Each of the children have a ‘day in the life of’ record, which the staff complete with the children’s families. By working in partnership, staff ensure that important information is captured and recorded. Inspection report children's home: SC058778 4 This information includes the child’s likes and dislikes, cultural and religious beliefs and the level of staffing required. This means that the children’s routines, care and boundaries remain consistent.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children make good progress from their starting points. Stays at the home enable the children to experience opportunities that families may struggle to provide. A parent said:

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

She [child] absolutely loves it here. They make her feel part of society. They have given her the opportunity to socialise with other children in similar situations in the community. She has been able to flourish both socially and emotionally here.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

My son really likes coming here; it is his second home. They [staff] can provide more than we can. He gets the chance to do things we couldn’t do with him at home. He loves the sunken trampoline, activities and toys. He has made good progress at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All of the children who stay at the home attend the nearby school. An education professional gave excellent feedback about the home. The school staff report that the staff from the home attend all of the education meetings and provide daily communication. The quality of the home’s staff team’s professionalism and dedication is very high. The team works closely with the school staff to ensure that the children make progress in their education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s relationships with staff are a strength of the service. Observations during the inspection noted that staff are motivated, enthusiastic and nurturing in their interactions. The established trusting relationships between children and the staff are evident. Parents describe the home as an invaluable part of their family’s life. The parents are confident that they can rely on staff to work in their children’s best interests. A parent said:

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has provided a lifesaving service for my son and our family. He loves the staff here. It is a home from home. They [staff] care about the whole family and offer great support to us all. They make a huge difference.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a good understanding of children’s interests, likes and dislikes. The children access a number of activities, both in and outside the home. Children enjoy trips to local parks, arts and crafts activities, sensory play and days out to the seaside. These activities offer the children fun and help them to develop their social skills and self- esteem. Staff capture these moments through taking photographs. However, the children do not have their own book containing photographs of these special moments to share with their families and to keep as part of their life story.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Trained staff administer medication to the children. The arrangements for dispensing medication protect children from medication errors effectively. Two staff are present during medication administration and the shift leader undertakes a medication audit. Inspection report children's home: SC058778 5 This swiftly highlights and resolves any potential issue.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager has met the recommendation raised at the last inspection. All of the children who attend for short breaks or reside at the home now have an impact risk assessment. These comprehensive assessments consider any potential risks that a new or changed admission may have on existing children. This enables the managers to identify the correct level of staffing required to meet the needs of all the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Transitions are well planned by this thoughtful and dedicated staff team. The children are given time to familiarise themselves with the staff and other children prior to commencing overnight stays. Endings are celebrated with a trip or activity of the child’s choice prior to their move on to an adult service provision. Parents commented that they are apprehensive about the lack of comparable adult provisions. They say that the staff are helping them to challenge other agencies by offering practical support. A parent said, ‘The management team is proactive, and fighting to get the services my child needs for the future.’ Another parent said, ‘This home is a hard act to follow. I know that nothing else will be able to compete in adult care. I cannot praise the home enough. They [staff] are so good at supporting both my child and us as a family.’

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

Managers and staff understand the additional vulnerabilities of the children who stay at the home. Each child has detailed risk assessments and behaviour management plans. These plans guide staff in how to manage individual risks effectively. All of the staff receive training in safeguarding and additional training in safeguarding children who have a disability. The staff recognise that they have a duty to safeguard. Through training and good quality risk assessment, staff have the necessary skills to ensure that children remain protected.

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

Some of the children have self-injurious behaviour. Staff are observant; they supervise closely and intervene during these times. Cushions are placed to protect children banging themselves on hard surfaces and their hands are held to prevent them scratching themselves. Staff are conscientious; they update risk assessments, complete body maps and share any new information with family members and professionals. This ensures that there is a clear record and that staff are aware of interventions to use that are effective.

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

An independent advocate visits the home every month. This ensures that all of the children, whether verbal or non-verbal, have an opportunity to make their views known to an independent person.

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

No safeguarding incidents have occurred at the home since the last inspection. The manager has good links with the designated officer, who confirmed that no concerns have been raised, and that the home follows procedures correctly.

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

The staff write detailed moving and handling care plans and personal emergency evacuation plans. These plans ensure that staff are aware of the action to take for each Inspection report children's home: SC058778 6 child in an emergency situation. However, fire drills are not occurring frequently enough, and not all of the children who attend for short breaks have experienced a mock evacuation from the building. This means that they do not have an awareness or understanding of the procedures to follow in an emergency.

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

Parents report that their children are safe and happy at the home. They know this by watching their child’s response to staff and witnessing the trusting relationships that have developed. A parent said, ‘My son hugs the staff all the time and really likes being here.’ Another parent said:

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

Fantastic service. When you have a child with disabilities you find it hard to trust anyone with the care of your child. The staff worked with me and we had lots of tea-time visits until I felt comfortable with an overnight stay. She [child] absolutely loves it here. They fully involve her and know how to make her happy.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An experienced registered manager and deputy manager provide good leadership. The manager has been in post since 2007. She holds a level 4 national vocational qualification in residential child care. The established staff team remains, with minimal changes to staffing since the last inspection. This means that the children continue to receive consistently good care from experienced staff who understand their individual needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say that they feel supported and morale is good. One staff member said, ‘The manager and deputy work very well together. They are approachable and always make time for staff. It’s a great place to work. The home is very well managed.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The managers and staff team know the children well. Some of the children have complex health needs, and progress for them can be feeling well enough to enjoy their day. The staff are attentive and act on the slightest changes in a child’s presentation. Any change that is concerning is communicated to families and professionals. The manager is proactive in challenging effectively when engagement from other services is not forthcoming. One of the children is now receiving one-to-one support from health professionals. This is a result of the manager working tirelessly and in partnership to ensure that the child’s needs are recognised.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has met the two requirements set at the last inspection. The staff who were required to hold the level 3 diploma have now obtained their qualification. All of the remaining eligible staff are currently undertaking the qualification and are within the timescales to complete it. The second requirement related to producing a six-monthly quality-of-care review. A comprehensive review has been undertaken. The manager has identified areas requiring further development and has a detailed development plan.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers and staff work very well with families and professionals. The managers and the staff respond promptly to any concerns or niggles and work in a transparent manner. As a result, there have been no formal complaints. Inspection report children's home: SC058778 7 All of the parents spoken to during this inspection were very complimentary. One parent said, ‘The manager is amazing. The staff are such a good team, always consistent and I trust them 100%. They are knowledgeable and completely on the ball.’ A professional said, ‘Staff always address any shortfalls immediately: no defensive practice at this home.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive good-quality supervision that includes discussions about the children. Regular supervision and yearly appraisals provide the staff with opportunities to reflect on their practice and to identify further training required for their personal development. This results in the staff remaining up to date with their practice skills and well equipped to care for the children safely.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff write detailed care plans, working in partnership with families and social workers. The manager’s monitoring is strong, with regular reviews and updates to ensure that the plans reflect the children’s changing needs accurately. Communication between the staff and the social workers is excellent. A social worker commented:

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

They [staff] have provided an over-and-above service. The key-worker system works very well. They really understand the children’s moods and needs and contribute fully by providing reports and attending all meetings.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The regularly updated statement of purpose says that the ethos of the home is to provide a safe, stimulating and happy place for children while they learn, develop and progress. Throughout this inspection, it was evident that the home is achieving its aims effectively.

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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. Whenever 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 and 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: SC058778 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Peterborough City Council, Town Hall, Bridge Street, Peterborough PE1 1PJ

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Wendi Ogle-Welbourn

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Inspector

Lynne Drage, social care inspector Inspection report children's home: SC058778 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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