Children's Home run by Timeout Children’s Homes Limited in Calderdale

Inspection report children’s home: SC358349 1 SC358349 Registered provider: Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited

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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 is a privately run children’s home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for one child who has emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 13 February 2017

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: Improved effectiveness

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: None Inspection report children’s home: SC358349 2

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Key findings from this inspection

This children’s home is outstanding because:

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Key findings from this inspection

 The child has benefited from long-term stability as the staff continue to build on the child’s needs while they live in the home.  The child is helped to understand his condition of autistic spectrum disorder by staff in a child-focused way.  Despite the complexities of the child’s risk and needs, the staff help the child to understand and respond well to challenges.  The child’s positive experiences create life-long memories, such as their first aeroplane flight and going on their dream holiday.  The child continues to make progress in all areas of their life, and the staff strive to maintain this progress and ensure that the child has positive outcomes.

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Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s area for development:

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Key findings from this inspection

 To ensure that areas in the home that are accessed by the child are designed to support their free movement. This is with particular reference to the need for the basement door lock to be changed.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/02/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 20/12/2016 Full Outstanding 25/02/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 06/08/2015 Full Outstanding Inspection report children’s home: SC358349 3

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Recommendation

 The locking of external doors, or doors to hazardous materials, may be acceptable as a security precaution if applied in the normal routine of the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 50, paragraph 9.62). This is with particular reference to the external basement door. Although it is identified that this needs to be locked, there is no internal thumb turn lock to ensure that a person inside the room can exit safely.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The child is frequently gaining positive life experiences. Staff go the extra mile to provide these. This requires much planning due to the child’s complex needs but staff recognise the importance of ensuring equality of opportunity for all children. As a result, the child has experienced a dream holiday to ‘Disneyland Paris’. The child says: ‘All the staff are brilliant, and I am hoping we will be outstanding, because it is outstanding.’ The child is able to recognise and value their own achievements because the staff routinely celebrate and report on the exceptional progress that the child is making. This progress is significant, considering the children’s complexities, historical challenges and needs. The child said: ‘I have made real progress in education, and I like the challenge that the work gives me.’ A professional reports: ‘The level and quality of staff is really impressive. They all know him inside out and they all work extremely well with him. No

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

other placement would be able to meet his needs so well.’ The child’s education is of paramount importance. Any difficulties that the child is experiencing are immediately identified and appropriate plans and strategies are successfully implemented. The success of these plans is accredited to effective partnership working and good to improving the child’s experience in their education provision. Despite the child’s troubled educational past, they have made good progress in all subject areas. Staff help the child to lead a healthy lifestyle and have produced ‘picture exchange communication’ systems to help the child with a routine for brushing his teeth. This system has had a positive impact on the child’s oral hygiene and the dentist has recognised this progress. One of the main aims of the home is to help children to understand and manage their emotional well-being and the child is well-supported and has engaged well with therapy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

This is helping both the child and the staff team to develop skills and strategies to manage and adapt complex behaviours. A therapist reports: ‘They are working extremely well with X, and they offer him consistency and predictable care. They are not disturbed about his history and they continue to build on the consistency of their care practices.’ Contact with family and friends is effectively promoted. The staff reflect on the child’s Inspection report children’s home: SC358349 4 needs and responses to contact and make alterations to arrangements to ensure that these times are a positive experience. This includes helping the child to secure good relationships. The child has said that contact brings: ‘Perfect mum and son time.’ A parent reports: ‘X is doing really well, he is happy about everything, and the staff are brilliant when it comes to contact.’ The child’s voice is clearly heard and their wishes and feelings are listened and

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

responded to. The staff and child have created a vibrant and visual timeline of the child’s wishes and feelings, hopes and aspirations. Staff use this to include the child in planning for his future. This striking piece of practice has been shared and is now being carried out with other children and young people. The child lives in a house that feels like a home. The environment is welcoming and the quality of the decoration and furnishings are of a high standard. When maintenance and decoration is needed, the child is included in these decisions, including the redesign of the kitchen. There is a basement area that the child uses as a games room. However, the lock to this room does not allow unrestricted exit from the room. One child talked about the home and says: ’It is proper homely and since I moved back it feels more like a home, and staff and me work together to make it feel homely.’

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

The child is safely looked after and he feels secure. The staff consistently follow appropriate strategies that maintain the child’s safety and well-being and this is reflected in the significant reduction of incidents in the home. In addition, the close supervision from the staff team means that this child no longer goes missing. The staff are in tune with the child’s needs and recognise risk factors. They receive pertinent training and guidance to ensure that they respond effectively. A parent reports: ‘There is nothing that they could be doing better. Our son feels secure and is well looked after.’ The effective management has significantly reduced negative behaviours. The child has been helped in a child focused way to understand their ‘autism’, which in turn is helping the child to self-regulate aspects of his behaviour. The child says: ‘I now understand part of my condition.’ The child has a thriving relationship with staff. Despite episodes of difficult and

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

challenging patterns of behaviours, the staff continue to creatively help and remain committed to the child. This has enabled the child to talk through any incidents and rebuild any damage to relationships. As a stable and secure staff team, staff are able to identify and respond to any changes in the child’s mood or behaviours and they implement appropriate strategies to respond and defuse, ensuring that the child’s safety is maintained. The child reports: ‘I got to know quite a lot before the old manager left and this helped.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has recently left the home. An interim manager has been appointed from within the provision with the appropriate skills and experience. The new manager is aware of the strengths and areas for development in the home. She has many creative ideas about how to maintain good progress and positive outcomes for the Inspection report children’s home: SC358349 5 child. The child says: ‘The new manager is really supportive. She is brilliant at her job, which is great as she has only been here for three months.’ The interim manager has clear oversight of staff practices and, together with the staff team, reflects on how to continue and strengthen the care for the child. In addition, the manager clearly supports the team to further enhance their skills and development. She is able to recognise strengths both individually and collectively, and utilises these to enhance the care delivered to the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is strong partnership working between the home, partner agencies and family members. The staff work effectively together with others to ensure that the child’s needs are fully met. One professional reports: ‘They are an inspiration as a team and X really, really likes the new manager and her distinctive style.’ Staff receive thorough supervision and this informs practice well. The team is committed to challenging each-others practice to ensure there is continued learning. Training is effective and appropriate to meet the needs of children placed. A member of staff says: ‘I have regular supervision, and this is the best job as it takes supervision seriously. The supervision is decent and useful.’ As a therapeutic placement, the staff receive regular guidance and supervision from the clinical team. This provides good oversight and direction to staff. The interim manager is extremely passionate about her role. She wants children in her care to experience a

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

positive childhood, while helping them manage the troubles from their past.

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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 children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. Inspection report children’s home: SC358349 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Time-Out Children’s Homes Ltd, Unit 2, Mill Fold, Ripponden, Sowerby Bridge HX6 4DH

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Inspector

Jennifer Fenlon, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC358349 7 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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