Children's home run by Derbyshire County Council in Derbyshire Dales

Inspection report children's home: SC062536 1 SC062536 Registered provider: Derbyshire County 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 local authority children’s home provides care and accommodation for up to six children and young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The age range of children and young people is between 11 and 18 years of age.

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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: 26 January 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Sustained effectiveness

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

None. Inspection report children's home: SC062536 2

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people benefit from positive relationships with staff. Staff listen to young people and spend time with them, helping young people to make progress.  Staff value and promote young people’s individuality in respect of their race, culture and religion.  Staff manage transitions well. Young people moving into the home, or moving on, receive good support. Staff implement plans well, providing young people with the best possible chance of success during these crucial periods.  The safety and welfare of young people are of paramount importance. Staff complete robust and detailed care plans.  Behaviour management is robust. Staff implement effective behavioural boundaries, and young people know what constitutes good, positive behaviour.  New staff are recruited using safe recruitment processes. Staff receive training in safeguarding and know what actions to take if they have any safeguarding concerns.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people enjoy living in a comfortable and homely environment.  Staff receive regular professional supervision, oversight and development opportunities.  The manager has robust processes in place to monitor the quality of care. She has developed a good service improvement plan to drive standards forward.

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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 manager has not yet completed a workforce development plan to manage the workforce strategically. Inspection report children's home: SC062536 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 07/09/2016 Full Good 25/01/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 13/05/2015 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children's home: SC062536 4

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Recommendation

 The registered person should have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce-related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should: – detail the necessary management and staffing structure, (including any staff commissioned to provide health and education), the experience and qualifications of staff currently working within the staffing structure and any further training required for those staff, to enable the delivery of the home’s statement of purpose; – detail the processes and agreed timescales for staff to achieve induction, probation and any core training (such as safeguarding and health and safety and mandatory qualifications); – detail the process for managing and improving poor performance; and – detail the process and timescales for supervision of practice (see regulation 33 (4)(b)) and keep appropriate records for staff in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people receive good, individualised care. This helps them to make progress in all areas of their development. Staff know the young people well and have developed very good relationships with them. Staff spend time with young people and act on their wishes and feelings when possible. Staff persevere with young people through challenges and difficulties. This has led to a culture and ethos of care and commitment, where young people receive unconditional, positive care. One young person stated, ‘The staff make it good here.’ Staff value diversity and respect the individual needs of young people in their care. Staff complete individual equality and diversity plans. These plans take into account a young person’s history, culture, race and religion. They detail the actions staff should take to meet young people’s needs. In respect of a young person who originated from an African country, staff have worked hard to help her understand the English language,

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

using a variety of materials. They have helped her understand British culture and values. They have supported her to practise her religion, promoting this through helping her to attend church, which is some distance from the home. Staff have sought to develop their own knowledge and understanding about the young person’s country of origin to ensure Inspection report children's home: SC062536 5 that they provide good quality, individualised care. Staff devise detailed care and placement plans. Staff use these plans to identify any services required to help young people make progress. Staff seek to engage these services immediately. Plans are subject to regular review and are updated or amended as required. Consequently, staff work towards agreed aims and objectives that will help young people make progress. Staff support and motivate young people to engage in education, or find employment or training opportunities. One young person has secured a full-time apprenticeship in the

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

catering industry. Another young person, who has struggled to find employment or training, has been working with a creative mentor. The young person has produced artwork and has been able to sell some pieces in a local community shop. This has helped her to develop a range of valuable skills. Staff value education and advocate for young people in support of school admissions. If there is a delay in accessing education, the manager and staff will escalate this appropriately. They provide appropriate support to young people with their homework and any coursework. Staff demonstrate enthusiasm for young people’s engagement in education and the progress they make. Staff manage transitions well, demonstrating good practice in helping young people move into the home and helping those leaving. Two new young people have moved into the home since the interim inspection. The manager gathered information from partner

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

agencies and developed a good, coherent plan that provided the young people with the best opportunity to make progress. The manager balanced the needs of the young people against the support the home can provide, the skills of staff and the needs of the other young people already in the home. Moves to the home have been managed in a planned, steady manner. This has consisted of young people coming for tea and overnight stays, meeting other young people and staff. A young person moving to the home wrote, ‘I really enjoyed coming for a sleepover. The staff were supportive and kind. I’m very excited for my stay and hopefully I will get the help I need.’ Young people leaving the home receive a good level of preparation to live semi- independently. Staff undertake structured programmes of independence work, including budgeting, shopping, cooking and using community resources. Once move-on accommodation is identified, staff help young people to decorate and furnish their

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

accommodation. Staff will continue their involvement with young people, following their departure. Examples of this include being available should the young person require any help, and outreach visits. Those young people who have left the home often remain frequent visitors, calling in for a cup of tea or a meal and a chat, as young people in families do when they have left home. This is positive testament to the quality of the relationships formed between young people and staff.

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

Young people’s safety and welfare are of paramount importance to the manager and staff. Staff complete detailed safe-care plans for all young people. These plans set out the vulnerabilities of young people and the actions staff should take to keep young people safe. Staff implement these plans effectively. For some young people, the risk of self-harm is high and staff demonstrate vigilance at all times. Staff benefit from effective working relationships with agencies, such as the child and adolescent mental health Inspection report children's home: SC062536 6 team, to monitor young people’s anxieties and ensure medication is correct. Staff understand that knowing the triggers for the behaviour and taking pre-emptive action minimise the likelihood of these behaviours. Since the last inspection, there have been no serious incidents. Staff have had no need to use physical intervention to manage difficult situations. The manager and staff do not

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

use sanctions or punitive approaches to behaviour management. Staff have strong and effective boundaries; young people know and understand what is expected of them in relation to their behaviour. Staff quickly intervene when the standards of behaviour fall. For example, if staff hear young people using bad language, they will quickly address this. Staff are effective in using a restorative approach to managing behaviour. They will expect young people to make amends for poor behaviour. Staff will use key-work sessions with the young person to discuss the impact of their behaviour on others. This helps young people develop an awareness of other people’s feelings and the consequences of negative behaviour. Staff and managers understand the damaging impact bullying can have on young people. Staff will speak to young people individually to ensure that they are not feeling bullied or intimidated by others. At all young people’s meetings, staff raise the issue of

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

bullying to ensure that the prevention of bullying remains a key priority for everyone. Young people report that peer relationships are good. They spend time together and there is a great deal of humour, mutual respect and understanding between them. This has led to a pleasant and positive atmosphere, with a great deal of laughter and fun. Staff receive the training and support they need to care for young people safely. They undertake training in safeguarding young people. They understand what constitutes risk and what actions to take, in accordance with the organisation’s safeguarding policy, to keep young people safe. The manager ensures that recruitment processes are robust. References from previous employers are verified. A full employment history is expected, with any gaps in employment accounted for. These measures help to prevent young people coming to harm through those caring for them. The manager is vigilant regarding young people’s safety in the community. She has

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

completed a comprehensive location risk assessment. This assessment takes into account the views of key agencies, such as the community safety partnership and local police. Where the manager has identified areas of risk and vulnerability to young people within the community, she has ensured that staff have specific training to address this. The manager invites key professionals to visit and speak to the staff team. She ensures that relevant information is transferred to young people’s safe-care plans and actions taken to keep young people safe. This is good practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An experienced registered manager leads the home. She is currently undertaking a level 5 diploma in leadership and management. Two deputy managers support her and they work together well. They now have regular managers’ meetings and have a shared vision for taking the service forward to benefit young people. Young people enjoy a homely and comfortable environment. The home is personalised Inspection report children's home: SC062536 7 and reflects the young people living there. Some young people have completed artwork, which is on display around the home. Young people’s rooms are furnished and decorated in accordance with their wishes. Young people, staff and creative mentors have recently carried out significant work in the garden in readiness for an annual garden competition. They have made hanging baskets and planters with great skill. This demonstrates that the young people and staff care about and take pride in their home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are experienced, knowledgeable and communicate effectively. They benefit from good training and development opportunities. Staff have completed all the core training required to provide good care to young people. They have regular team meetings as well as daily meetings between shifts. Staff have mutually respectful, positive relationships and are a stable team. This helps communication, benefiting young people. One member of staff stated, ‘I feel relaxed, content and understood in the staff team.’ The managers provide staff with regular and professional supervision. The welfare and needs of young people remain central to the individual supervision sessions, alongside the professional performance and development of the staff member. The manager understands that staff development is crucial and she completes individual staff development reviews. These reviews identify further training and development

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

opportunities to improve the knowledge and skills of staff. The manager has not completed a workforce development plan. This prevents her from taking a strategic approach to managing staff and foreseeing any potential shortfalls with skills or training. The manager takes pride in the home and ensures that recording systems are well organised. Young people’s files are in good order, and documents are easy to locate. The manager undertakes file auditing, ensuring that crucial dates for meetings are recorded, and staff update files and documents as needed. She understands care planning and remains focused and ambitious for young people to fulfil their potential. Consequently, the manager provides good leadership, and young people benefit from good quality care. The manager understands the strengths and weaknesses of the service. She has recently completed a robust quality of care review. In order to complete this review, the

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

manager utilised information from monthly independent visitor reports. She also used information gathered from other professionals and reviewed the progress made by young people. The manager has developed an action plan for the home which focuses on continuous improvement and development for the benefit of young people. Inspection report children's home: SC062536 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 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: SC062536 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, Matlock, Derbyshire DE4 3AG

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Inspector

Phillip Morris, social care inspector Inspection report children's home: SC062536 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 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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