Children's home run by The Together Trust in Stockport

Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 1 SC025715 Registered provider: The Together Trust

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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 voluntary organisation. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up three young people who may have learning 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 Outstanding

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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: Improved effectiveness

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Good

Enforcement action since last inspection: None

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people are growing in confidence because they have trusting relationships with the staff.  Young people are well cared for in a safe, supportive and nurturing environment.  The safety and well-being of each young person is at the centre of staff practice. Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 2  Staff ensure that the young people are offered a range of activities that develop their skills and interests.  Placing social workers and parents are united in their opinion that the home is having a huge and positive impact on the lives of young people.  Managers are highly inspirational, confident and ambitious for the young people. They create a culture of high aspiration and positivity, which is clearly evident in care practice.

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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

 Staff have not sufficiently planned for the use of covert administration of medication for some children and young people.  The manager and staff work effectively with parents and stakeholders to ensure good-quality programmes of care. However, placement plans and risk assessments for one young person have not been signed by the parents, social worker and staff.  The independent visitor does not consistently seek the views of parents, relatives and stakeholders on the conduct of the home during their visits.  The staff are hindered in their ability to consistently support young people’s communication needs due to a lack of training in communication and sensory needs.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 13/12/2016 Full Good 14/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 15/12/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 3

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Recommendations

 Ensure the registered person seeks to involve the placing authority for the looked-after children in the home, which in practice means working primarily with their statutory social worker, and those with parental responsibility for children, when compiling children’s placement plans and risk assessments. In particular, ensure social workers, parents and all staff working in the home read and sign children’s care plans and risk assessments. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 11, paragraph 2.5)  The registered person should ensure that all medication administration follows National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance, particularly with regard to reducing the need for covert administration of medication. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.17)  The registered person should ensure that staff are skilled and competent in

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Recommendations

understanding autistic spectrum disorder as well as communication and sensory needs. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The registered provider should ensure that the independent person, when carrying out their visits, seeks the views of parents, relatives and stakeholders on the conduct of the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.8)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and young people receive good-quality care that is tailored to meet their individual needs. Staff provide a warm, nurturing environment that is very child centred. This enables children and young people who have autistic spectrum disorder and learning disabilities to build trust, and feel very settled and secure. Children and young people continue to make small but measurable progress. One placing social worker commented, ‘I have found the placement to be excellent. The quality of care to [names] is very good… I feel that they put the needs of the children first.’ A parent described the staff team as ‘superb’. Some children and young people spend time at the home for short breaks, while others live at the home. Transitions are very well managed to ensure minimal disruption and upset for the children and young people. Managers and staff recognise the importance of transitional work to help children and young people understand why change is taking

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

place. This ensures that children and young people are well prepared for moving into or on from the home and settle quickly. For example, one young person who moved from Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 4 the home in May 2017 was gradually introduced to his new home environment. Furthermore, three staff from the home moved with him, which gave him continuity of care. Interaction between the children and young people and staff throughout the inspection was positive. Children and young people were observed seeking the staff out for help and reassurance. For those children and young people who are not able to express themselves verbally, staff are alert to changes in their moods and respond appropriately. Children and young people’s plans refer to them using a range of communication tools, including picture exchange communication systems, to expand their communication skills. However, the staff’s ability to support this is limited because of a lack of training in

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

communication and sensory needs. All children and young people attend school. The staff ensure that children and young people’s routines support their full participation. There is regular liaison between the home and all the schools to ensure that the children and young people’s learning needs are fully supported. Specialist services, including speech and language and occupational therapists, work well with the children and young people in school to support their progress and development. In the home, children and young people enjoy the use of a well-equipped sensory room. Children and young people’s health needs are effectively supported. Staff work well with parents and health professionals to ensure improvements in children and young people’s overall health and well-being. The home has safe and effective medication arrangements in place. Parents and health professionals have given consent for some children and

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

young people to have their medication dispensed in food, as they find it difficult to swallow their medication. However, staff have not reviewed plans to reduce the need for this practice in line with national guidelines. Children and young people enjoy a range of experiences and activities that help to broaden their horizons. Some enjoy learning to swim, visiting places of interest or going out and about on local transport. Two children recently enjoyed a short holiday to Presthaven Sands, and their father was able to go and spend a night with them. Family members are welcome at the home. Maintaining significant relationships for children and young people is extremely important and a key strength of the home. A placing social worker commented, ‘Staff have built excellent relationships with the boy’s parents and they support contact at every opportunity.’ Children and young people make progress in their self-care skills, dependent on their

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

needs and abilities. For example, some children and young people develop a level of independence in feeding themselves and toileting. They are also supported to go shopping for personal items, which helps to increase their levels of independence.

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

Children and young people appear safe and happy. Excellent relationships with parents, placing authorities and other professionals mean that the staff are able to carefully identify any risks and minimise them. Parents and professionals confirm that the staff keep them well informed about the welfare of their child. Staff receive regular Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 5 safeguarding training and know what to do if they feel a child or young person is at risk. Good levels of staff supervision and a secure environment protect children and young people from going missing. Staff do not use sanctions to modify children and young people’s behaviour. There have been three physical interventions since the last inspection. Records clearly show that these were low-level interventions to prevent individual children and young person from hurting themselves or others. Staff have a good understanding of caring for children and young people with autistic

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

spectrum disorder. Staff are able to identify triggers in behaviour and they use their skills, experience and positive relationships really well to effectively prevent or de- escalate situations. Staff have a good understanding about children and young people’s risks and vulnerabilities. Detailed risk assessments clearly identify all risks and how these should be managed. Risk management does not overly restrict the opportunities for children and young people to experience the world around them. Staff are required to sign the risk assessments to demonstrate that they have read and understood them. However, a number of assessments have not been signed by all the staff. This means that, potentially, if staff are not fully aware of the risk management strategies, they could not follow them within their practice. There have been no safeguarding concerns or complaints about staff since the last inspection. There has been one complaint from a neighbour, in relation to a professional

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

who was visiting the home parking outside the neighbour’s house. This matter was resolved quickly and satisfactorily. Children and young people live in a physically safe and secure environment. They are protected by a number of suitable health and safety procedures and routine checks. All visitors are asked to provide identification before entering the home and are suitably monitored during their visit. This ensures that children and young people are protected from coming into contact with unsuitable people who may pose a risk to them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is managed by a suitably qualified and extremely experienced manager. She has been registered with Ofsted since December 2009. She is highly skilled and knowledgeable about working with children and young people with autistic spectrum disorder. Parents and social workers are very positive about the quality of care provided by the manager and her staff team. The manager can clearly demonstrate the positive impact that living at the home has had on individual children and young people’s progress and experiences. Staff spoken to throughout the inspection confirm that the manager provides highly effective leadership to the whole staff team. Staff benefit from regular supervision and team meetings, which provide them with the opportunity to reflect on their practice, and ensures that they continually improve the quality of care. Consequently, staff morale is very high. The registered manager and the assistant manager create a culture of high aspiration

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 6 and positivity. There is a high expectation of the staff to improve the lives of children and young people. The assistant manager said, ‘I am impressed with how well the staff get to know the children and build relationships.’ The staff team works collaboratively to provide consistency and stability for vulnerable children and young people. The majority of the staff are qualified in caring for children and young people. For new staff, the provider has a comprehensive induction programme that includes mandatory courses, including safeguarding, administration of medication and first aid. The provider is committed to delivering training that improves the skills of the staff team, so that staff can meet the needs of children and young people with autistic spectrum disorder effectively. An autistic spectrum disorder awareness training programme is currently being delivered to all staff in the home and the wider organisation. This training matches

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

the needs of the young people using the service. The statement of purpose, which is kept under review, clearly sets out the ethos and objectives of the home. The home is accredited with the National Autistic Society, demonstrating that it meets the required standard for delivering care to children with autistic spectrum disorder. A further key strength of the home is its excellent partnership working with parents and key professionals to ensure the best possible care for the children and young people. Social workers and a parent were extremely positive about how the staff team is improving the experiences and outcomes for children and young people. Home staff regularly attend ‘Team around the child’ meetings, education reviews and transition meetings, which helps to keep parents well informed about their child’s placement. The registered manager has an excellent understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the home and uses both internal and external monitoring really well to

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

ensure that the high standards of care practice are maintained. However, the independent visitor does not always seek the views of parents, relatives and stakeholders on the conduct of the home. This does not impact on the children and young people.

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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 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.

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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 Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 7 children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Together Trust Centre, Schools Hill, Cheadle, Cheshire SK8 1JE

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Inspector

Michelle Bacon, social care regulatory inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC025715 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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