Children's home run by London Borough of Waltham Forest in Waltham Forest

Inspection report children's home: SC036735 1 SC036735 Registered provider: London Borough of Waltham Forest

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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 short-break home managed by the local authority provides a service for up to eight children who have learning and/or physical disabilities.

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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: Sustained effectiveness

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Key findings from this inspection

This children’s home is good because: Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 2  Families value the time their children have in the home. One parent said, ‘The care for our daughter is good.’  Children enjoy trips out and experience new things.  Children gain confidence about staying away from their families.  Children receive care from staff who understand their specific needs.  Parents appreciate their children may do activities that they are unable to arrange.  Children are provided with sensitive support to help them move in successfully.  Arrangements to keep children safe are sound.

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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

 Ensure that the independent visitor’s reports confirm how the home promotes children’s well-being.  Ensure that children live in an environment that is homely and suitably maintained.  Ensure that all children’s case records are kept up to date.  Improve the levels of communication between the home and parents/families.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 10/08/2016 Full Good 22/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 05/11/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 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 independent person must produce a report about a visit (‘the independent person’s report’) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being. (Regulation 44(4)(b)) 01/11/2017

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Recommendations

 Ensure that, for children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they are, in most cases, homely, domestic environments. Children’s homes must comply with relevant health and safety legislations (alarms, food hygiene etc.); however, in doing so, homes should seek as far as possible to maintain a domestic rather than ‘institutional’ impression. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) Specifically, maintain outdoor play equipment and all garden areas, review the use of numbers on bedroom doors, be aware of any excessive noise, e.g. from banging doors, and refresh those areas of the home which appear ‘tired’.

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Recommendations

 Ensure that all staff have a copy of the record of their supervision in a timely manner. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.4)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that all children’s case records (regulation 36) are kept up to date and stored securely while they remain in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3) Specifically, update risk assessments, assess whether individual fire evacuation plans are required for any child and archive old documents and out-of-date guidance on how to respond when children are missing.

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Recommendations

 Registered persons have a key role in seeking to develop the home’s effective working relationships with each child’s placing authority and with other relevant persons, which may include services and individuals (including parents). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.3) Specifically, improve communication with families so it is Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 4 consistent about all children’s stays, staffing updates and any other news about the home. Also, improve the effectiveness of communication with families during ongoing investigations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Families appreciate the short break because they know that their children enjoy staying in the home. One parent described feeling anxious when first leaving their child. They now trust the staff’s care and appreciate that their child wants to attend. Another parent said, ‘She loves it here. It’s been a great resource.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents describe a good system to introduce their child to the home, including elements such as tea visits. They appreciate that staff work well with school professionals to plan for their children’s short breaks. One child said, ‘They allowed me to start coming for after school clubs before I started sleeping over. This helped me to get used to the environment and staff.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children appear comfortable and at ease with staff and relaxed in the home. They move around the building choosing activities they like, such as using the soft play equipment or the musical instruments. One child said, ‘I like coming here.’ Staff help children to feel secure with firm boundaries and routines. They recognise that some children like time alone, so supervise from a distance to respect their choice.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Most children look forward to their short breaks. Parents describe their children as getting excited when they know they are going for a short break and getting their case ready. Some children rush into the building, eager to get to their favourite places and activities. One parent says their child ‘grumbles a bit then settles’ but always appears fine the following day.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience a good range of activities, including sensory experiences. One parent said, ‘He loves the garden and trampoline. Likes the space.’ Another parent said they were ‘amazed’ at what staff had supported their child to do in the community. Children enjoy trips out to places of interest, such as bowling and rides on a boat. Some parents are pleased their children experience activities which may be difficult for families to arrange. They notice increased confidence in their children and improved socialising skills as a result of their mixing more in the community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to help the staff and do things for themselves when possible. For example, some children help prepare meals, take dirty dishes to the kitchen and shop for food with staff. Some children have improved communication and personal care skills as a result of attending the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Partnership working is improving. Most parents describe good communication with the Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 5 staff. One said that staff ‘communicated well and worked with me’. Another said, ‘Communication has improved’, finding effective use of home–school books and chats with staff. In surveys, one parent said they would like more communication about what is going on in the home, for example changes to staff. Another parent finds that not all staff engage as much as others with their child. A suggestion from staff is that training on communication with children would be beneficial to some staff.

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

Staff understand how to safeguard children. Recent training has refreshed their skills and knowledge about how to respond to any concerns or allegations. A member of staff said, ‘As a team, we’re good at safeguarding.’

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

Children enjoy warm relationships with most of the staff. A child said, ‘The staff are friendly and caring. They always keep an eye on me.’ Staff respond well to children’s needs, understanding what may trigger more challenging behaviour. There are very few serious incidents of challenging behaviour, with only two incidents requiring notification to Ofsted during this inspection year. Staff use restraint only rarely and the registered manager monitors its use to make sure that this is appropriate.

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

Staff recruitment continues to be safe. New staff are subject to all the checks required by regulation before starting to work in the home with vulnerable children.

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

Staff manage medication well. Children often bring quite complex medication from home. Staff carefully log this and then a second member of staff witnesses drug administration. These measures help reduce the risk of any medication errors, to keep children safe.

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

The management team has taken additional safety measures in response to children’s individual needs, for example to protect those children who try to leave the building through fire-exit doors. Such actions help to reduce risk to children.

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

Effective monitoring helps the service develop. An independent person visits the home monthly, writes good reports of their visits and makes useful suggestions. However, these reports do not always make explicit the visitor’s view of whether the home promotes children’s well-being.

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

Staff seek and value children’s views on the service. They do this through key work and children’s meetings as well as individually using ‘Have your say’ forms. The registered manager welcomes complaints and comments. The home has received only one low- level complaint this inspection year which managers investigated satisfactorily. Ofsted has not received any complaints about the service.

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

Action taken since a child went missing from the home before the last inspection has resulted in no further incidents. Relatives suggest that there should be improved information sharing with them about investigations following such incidents. Apart from this incident, families say their children are safe at the home and that they trust the staff Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 6 to keep them safe.

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

Some aspects of leadership and management require improvement but these do not directly impact on children’s safety or well-being.

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

Staff report that staff morale is improving and there is more effective teamwork which benefits the children using the service. Some staff show passion for their work and want to make a difference. One staff member said, ‘I love working with the children.’ Team members and managers ‘step up’ to try to cover shifts, and good use is made of agency staff. However, staff calling in sick at the last minute impacts on the team and the service and on a few occasions has resulted in the cancellation of children’s stays.

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

Cover arrangements for when maintenance and catering staff are on annual leave or sick leave are not effective. As a result, maintenance in a few areas of the garden declines and there are difficulties in planning and preparing evening meals.

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

The building has a lot of resources which suit children’s needs, such as a sensory room and soft-play room. Bathrooms contain suitable adaptations. Redecoration has improved some parts of the building, but a few areas appear in need of redecoration, such as the soft-play room. Children’s bedrooms are of a reasonable standard, but numbers on bedroom doors do not make it feel homely. Furthermore there is excessive noise when a few doors close which affects the atmosphere in the home.

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

The registered manager ensures that necessary checks take place to keep the premises safe for children. For example, staff check fire safety equipment regularly and a fire risk assessment helps reduce risk. It is not clear whether any children may require an individual evacuation plan in light of their disabilities and needs. However, the manager is looking into this.

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

Children’s files are generally good. Simple profiles advise staff of children’s needs. However, a few files include out-of-date guidance and old documents. In one file, a review of risk assessments is overdue.

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

Personal development is encouraged. Staff receive a range of training to ensure that they have the skills they need. Staff experience team meetings, appraisal and supervision. However, sometimes there is delay in providing staff with a record of their supervision, so it may be difficult for them to address any points raised.

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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 differences made to the lives of children and young people. They watched how professional staff work with children Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 7 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: SC036735 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Waltham Forest Adult Learning Service, Queens Road Learning Centre, 97 Queens Road, London E17 8QR

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Anthony Lyseight-Goslin

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Inspector

Jacqueline Graves, social care regulatory inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 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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