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Inspection report children’s home: 1183136 1 Registered provider: Nottinghamshire YMCA

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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 home is operated by a local charity and provides care and accommodation for up to two young people who have 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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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: 23 January 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff and managers work very closely and proactively with a range of agencies and services. This provides young people with the support that they need to make progress in all areas of their lives. Inspection report children’s home: 1183136 2  From their starting points, young people begin to engage with education and start to see the value of learning.  Young people receive support from staff to engage in the local community and to form peer relationships.  Staff meet young people’s cultural and religious needs well. Staff provide the practical and emotional resources necessary to meet such needs.  Staff ensure that young people’s holistic health needs are known and met. They proactively seek the support and input from child and adolescent mental health services, as well as meeting young people’s routine health needs.

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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

 There is a need for managers to ensure that all staff have an up-to-date first aid qualification and that refresher training is provided in a timely and planned manner for this.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/01/2017 Full Good 25/07/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 08/03/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1183136 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

Ensure that at all times, at least one person on duty at the home has a suitable first aid qualification. (Regulation 31(2)(a)) 30/11/2017

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, only one placement has been made. The young person was only in the placement for a short period of time and is no longer living in this home. It was not possible for the young person to visit the home before moving in. Staff provided them with a copy of the Young Person’s Guide on arrival. They worked hard to enable the young person to settle into the home .

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The ending of the placement was not planned. The move from the home was necessary due to the actual and potential risks posed by the young person to others. Staff tried their very best to support this young person during the placement. The young person made progress in relation to their education, having not engaged in formal education for some time. Staff and managers used a range of educational materials to support the young person. The placing authority praised the staff for the educational support that they provided. The young person engaged well in education during the day. The young person also attended places of interest with staff, as part of their education plan.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff considered the cultural and religious needs of this young person. They worked proactively with local refugee councils and religious establishments. They provided prayer mats, halal food and information on local groups for the young person. This reflects a staff team who are committed to ensuring that the individual and specific needs of young people are met. It also shows that the staff promote a sense of belonging and engagement for young people moving to live in this home from other areas. Inspection report children’s home: 1183136 4 Staff work very closely with a range of healthcare providers. The staff ensure that both routine and more complex health needs are known and met. This is particularly evident in relation to their working relationship with the local child and adolescent mental health services. Close partnership working led to clear assessments being undertaken of the young person’s needs in a timely manner. It assisted managers in assessing how well

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

the placement was able to meet the young person’s needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young person was fully supported to take part in a range of social activities and events in the local community. This included trips to local places of interest and gym membership.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young person was able to keep in contact with family members. Family members felt able to express their wishes and feelings. They knew how to make a complaint and who to contact for support. Staff regularly sought and acted on their wishes and feelings. The young person was able to discuss and share information about their past with staff. The manager provided the placing authority with a detailed chronology at the end of the placement. The team manager from the placing authority stated that this was very helpful to them in planning for the young person’s future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The placing social worker said: ‘The staff were nurturing, honest and open in their communication with the young person and me. They were fundamentally child-focused in their practice.’ The social worker also felt that the staff were able to help the placing authority to understand the young person better. The social worker felt that this was due to the level of insight that the staff demonstrated about the young person and their very complex needs.

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

Staff demonstrate a detailed awareness and understanding of their role in supporting the young person to keep safe. They follow agreed protocols for missing from care incidents. Records reflect the actions taken by staff, in the event of the young person being absent or missing from care. Following missing from care incidents, young people have return interviews completed with them. This enables managers to consider any triggers or known reasons for the young person going missing.

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

Risk assessments reflect current and changing needs. Staff review and update them on a regular basis. They work with young people to help them understand their plans and assessments. Staff feel able to raise any concerns that they have with managers about potential risks posed by young people. One member of staff stated how positively they felt about management support. Staff feel able to raise any concerns about lone working. This recently led to an increase to the staffing ratios. This shows that managers are responsive to the needs of both young people and staff. Inspection report children’s home: 1183136 5 Behaviour management plans clearly set out potential triggers for concerning or risky behaviours. There has been no use of physical restraint for some considerable time. This reflects a confident and competent staff team. They use de-escalation techniques and strategies to positive effect.

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

Staff recruitment is robust and prevents unsuitable adults from working with vulnerable young people. Improvements have been made to the recruitment and reference checking procedures. This provides for better consideration of any gaps in employment history and ensures the telephone verification of references.

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

Managers promote young people’s welfare and prevent radicalisation and extremism. The manager recently referred a potential concern about a young person to the relevant government agency for advice. This is positive and reflects the commitment to ensuring not only the welfare and safety of young people looked after, but also of the wider community.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is run by a very experienced and suitably qualified registered manager. A new manager recently came into post. This manager has submitted an application to be registered with Ofsted. The registered manager continues to provide support and has direct management oversight of the home, pending the new manager being approved. The new manager has a wealth of relevant experience in working in this type of setting. She is well regarded by staff members and involved agencies.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers demonstrate a real commitment to improving the outcomes for young people. Despite the most recent placement ending, the young person received good support and care from staff. The young person made positive progress in a short period of time. A key strength relates to how well managers and staff work with a range of agencies. They use their excellent networking skills to secure support for young people locally.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel very well supported and valued. They receive regular supervision and training. One member of staff has not completed the required refresher training in first aid. They have worked some shifts as a lone worker. There is a need to ensure that all staff maintain the mandatory training and that managers have clear plans in place to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has a detailed statement of purpose in place. It reflects the aims and objectives of the service. It is understood by placing authorities and involved agencies. Young people understand what services they will receive and their entitlements. Staff meet regularly with them to elicit their wishes, feelings and views. The manager responds in a timely manner to any requests or comments made.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The diverse needs of the young person who recently lived in this home were very well considered and met. Staff demonstrate a commendable commitment to knowing and meeting needs. Development plans reflect a real commitment to ensuring that young people receive good-quality care and support. Inspection report children’s home: 1183136 6 When considering new placements, managers also consider their location risk assessment. This is in order to ensure that matching is robust and that staff can meet a young person’s needs, not only in the home but within the wider community.

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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: 1183136 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Nottinghamshire YMCA

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 4 Shakespeare Street, Nottingham NG1 4FG

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Inspector

Tracy Murty, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1183136 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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