Children's Home run by Kent County Council in Kent

Inspection report children’s home: SC403850 1 SC403850 Registered provider: Kent 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 is a local authority-managed short-beak service for children and young people. The home caters for up to six children and young people who have complex needs and/or learning disabilities and/or associated difficulties.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Requires improvement

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Key findings from this inspection

This children’s home requires improvement to be good because:

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Key findings from this inspection

 The service has not had a registered manager in place for more than 26 weeks, and therefore it is judged inadequate for leadership and management. This limits the judgement in overall experience to no higher than requires improvement. Inspection report children’s home: SC403850 2  Not all the staff receive regular supervision. They are not guaranteed regular, protected time to reflect on their practice and to give feedback on their opinions.  The location risk assessment has not drawn on external professional opinion.  Physical intervention has, on one occasion, involved a member of staff who was not sufficiently trained.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children experience positive introductions into the home. Staff listen to them and their families to ensure that they settle in well. Staff are able to meet children’s needs to a high standard.  Children make measurable progress supported by achievable targets. Their successes are celebrated by certificates and photographs that are displayed in communal areas.  A variety of communication methods are used to ensure that every child has a say in all aspects of the running of the home, from daily decisions to planning activities and menus.  Parents value the service. They meet with staff prior to their child’s stay to ensure that all necessary information regarding the child’s needs and any changes are shared.  The manager is a strong leader who continues to develop the service for the benefit of the children who stay at the home. The children are her main focus.  Safeguarding in the home is good with effective management systems in place

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Key findings from this inspection

to respond to any issues. Staff demonstrate knowledge of how to respond if they had any safeguarding concerns.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/03/2017 Full Requires improvement 20/12/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 09/03/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 27/10/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC403850 3

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Statutory requirements

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 all employees— receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33(4)(b)) 30/11/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard). (Regulation 46(1)) 30/11/2017

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improvement to be good

There has not been a registered manager in place since November 2015. Regulations state that if the home is without a registered manager for more than 26 weeks, the judgement for leadership and management will be inadequate. This also limits the judgement in other areas. In such situations, the judgement in this section of the report cannot exceed requires improvement. Children experience very positive moves into the home. The manager gathers all the necessary information regarding children’s needs to ensure that they will benefit from the service and mix well with the other children attending. Tea visits take place prior to an overnight stay to ensure that children are familiar with the staff and environment. This sensitive introduction to the home has helped to ensure that children’s stays are successful. Children are happy to attend and enjoy the activities offered in the home and in the community. Staff are committed to providing children with positive opportunities and

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improvement to be good

developing the range of experiences that they are able to access. For example, each activity is recorded, including children’s responses, to ensure that the success of the activity and any changes needed are evaluated. Each child’s specific interests are valued and provided wherever possible. Children are able to influence decision-making in the home. A range of communication aids are used, including photographs, use of faces showing different emotions, and talking mats. Staff support all the children to communicate with them. Children’s Inspection report children’s home: SC403850 4 requests are responded to; for example, popular food choices and requests for a takeaway were acted on. Theme nights are popular with both staff and children. These nights include celebrating a chosen country’s traditional music and traditions and learning about its geography and areas of interest. This has introduced different cultures

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improvement to be good

in a fun and meaningful way. Sensitivity to children’s individual food preferences and dietary needs are competently catered for with parents’ involvement welcomed. Any children with specific needs are sensitively supported to overcome these difficulties. Staff work with professionals, such as dieticians and diabetes nurses, to ensure that staff are trained to safely manage any health needs. Staff promote a healthy lifestyle, ensuring that children are active when staying at the home and encouraged to follow a varied diet. Parents value the service highly. All the parents who were spoken to were very positive about the home. One parent said, ‘He [her son] is happy to go there and it’s extremely helpful for me.’ Another parent said, ‘He is safe and well looked after. I trust them one hundred per cent.’ Children make good progress, which is assessed, recorded and reviewed when the children have consistently managed their agreed aims. Staff work with the children’s

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improvement to be good

schools to learn about strategies used and ensure that the child has a consistent approach. This reinforces goals that the child is working on and improves the success of managing any challenging behaviour. Parents comment that, as a result of staff’s intervention, their children are able to do more for themselves at home. For example, one parent said, ‘He [her son] is now able to sit at the table and do more self-care skills on his own.’ Children learn new skills and increase their independence. They show pride in what they have achieved.

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

Safeguarding policies and procedures are clear and a booklet outlining staff’s responsibilities has recently been updated. Staff demonstrate a very good awareness of the practice and procedures in regards to whistle-blowing and allegations against staff. They are aware of the increased risks to the children, and are capable of keeping them safe. A training week, when the home is closed, enables all staff to train together effectively. This is well planned and ensures that staff share knowledge, expertise and develop skills as a team. Staff are trained in the safe use and delivery of physical interventions. Staff are able to defuse incidents calmly and skilfully before they occur, thus reducing the need for this practice. When physical interventions do occur, staff use communication aids to explain to children about why this method is used and record children’s views. Staff are trained in e-safety and child exploitation. Children’s use of the internet is

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

supervised and monitored, with safety measures in place to ensure that children do not access risky sites. An agreement is in place in relation to the expectations of parents and responsibilities of staff. Inspection report children’s home: SC403850 5 Children’s care plans include the management of complex health needs. Staff are competent and well trained to meet the children’s specialist health and safety issues. The practice educator and manager work closely to review any procedures following lessons learnt from the rare event that medication errors are made. This is effective in increasing the safety for all the children. A review of procedures and practices is underway at present, initiated by the manager. The security of the home is good. Monitoring devices and nightly checks are agreed with parents prior to their child staying. Fobs are used to restrict movement around the building and external doors are locked. Children who are mature and responsible enough

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

to move around the building safely are given their own fobs, which enable them to open some internal doors. This recognises their abilities and increases their sense of being valued. The recruitment and inductions of new staff are good. All relevant checks are made and a thorough interviewing process complements the induction process. Staff shadow more experienced staff until they and senior managers agree that they are ready to work directly with children. Children are, therefore, looked after by staff who are experienced and competent to care for them. Fire risk assessments and regular fire drills protect children in the event of a fire. Personal evacuation plans ensure that staff know and are able to follow children’s specific plans. More detail in regards to children’s responses would enhance the review and monitoring of the fire drills.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager has been seconded to this post since September 2016. Prior to this, two temporary managers were employed. The current manager remains the registered manager of another home in the organisation. She is a strong leader and has worked competently to develop the service. Her focus is on the best interests and needs of the children. She advocates robustly to ensure that the children’s welfare requirements are fulfilled and that all professionals are working together in the children‘s best interests. This has arrived at satisfactory management of the service, but without yet fulfilling the registration and legal accountability required. Team meetings are held on a weekly basis to ensure that staff are aware of the children who are staying that week and are familiar with any changes to their care plans. Supervision is of a high calibre and is effective when it takes place. However, this is not

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

always to stated timescales. A lack of regular supervision results in a failure to recognise the emotional impact of the work on staff; it also fails to allow staff a forum in which to discuss matters formally. Children’s care plans are excellent. The ‘About Me’ front sheet gives staff important information that they can access quickly. Staff consult the thorough care plan document before each shift. They are familiar with each child’s needs and modify and adapt information in response to the children’s evolving requirements. Staff speak positively about the manager. They report that she is approachable and available to support them. For example, the manager has stepped in during the night to Inspection report children’s home: SC403850 6 support staff to manage a challenging situation. This was effective in calming the situation and bolstering staff’s confidence. The on-call system works effectively to

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

support staff and protect children. There is a locality assessment for the home which identifies some of the risks that young people could be exposed to in their local community. However, managers have not consulted widely with other agencies or considered all available information relating to the locality as part of the assessment process. The multi-professional approach is effective. The manager works closely with all stakeholders and professionals responsible for the children’s care. She ensures that positive transitions are made, and that advice and consultations are given to other homes and residential special schools that the children move into. This partnership approach is mirrored in communications with social workers who appreciate the service. A social worker said, ‘The home works well with me and contributes well to reviews. I have been given regular feedback.’ Staff enjoy working at the home. They appreciate the opportunity to develop their

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

expertise. One member of staff is being trained to teach sign language, and two other staff are being trained to deliver moving and handling training. The manager encourages opportunities in the staff group; for example, a senior member of staff is undertaking her level 5 qualification in leadership and management in residential care. This approach increases the skills of senior managers and staff, which benefit the team and service.

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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: SC403850 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fairlawn, Kingsnorth Road, Ashford, Kent TN23 6LY

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Inspector

Suzy Lemmy, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC403850 8 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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