Children's home run by Channels and Choices Kent LLP in Dover

Inspection report children’s home: SC062931 1 SC062931 Registered provider: Channels and Choices Kent LLP Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is operated by a private organisation. It offers therapeutic residential care for young people.

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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: 22 February 2017

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

None. Inspection report children’s home: SC062931 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 registered manager leads the staff team with energy and commitment, modelling excellent practice in supporting the young people. He leads by example, building positive relationships with the young people to gain an in- depth understanding of their specific needs. This assists the staff in providing appropriate care and support.  The young people, who have complex needs and attachment difficulties, are making significant progress and, as a result, their life chances are improving. Through consistent, nurturing and therapeutic care, the young people are managing their emotions more appropriately and improving their behaviour.  The registered manager is continually striving to improve practice and introduce new initiatives based on research to promote positive outcomes for the young people.  With the support of a therapy team, the staff understand the emotional needs of the young people and continuously explore ways of supporting them to

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Key findings from this inspection

promote their safety, welfare and development. The young people benefit from thoughtful, focused and individualised support.  Daily, targeted, one-to-one sessions are having a positive impact on the young people’s development.

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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

 The staff use a bedroom door alarm to alert them when a young person’s door is opened at night. This practice has not been individually risk assessed to ensure that it is no more intrusive than necessary and that it does not impinge on the young person’s need for privacy.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/02/2017 Full Good 05/07/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 14/01/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 08/10/2015 Full Outstanding Inspection report children’s home: SC062931 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 may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child’s need for privacy. (Regulation 24(1)(d)) 24/11/2017

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The staff deliver effective, individualised care within a therapeutic, nurturing environment. From a safe and secure base and through strong, trusting relationships with staff, the young people are making significant progress. Their levels of self-esteem and their ability to manage their emotions have improved. Consequently, they are developing more appropriate behaviour and relationships with their peers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

All the young people have good attendance at school and are engaging with their education. The many certificates that they have achieved for their good work and behaviour evidence their progress. One young person received a trophy for the best sports person, and another is on the school council and is a sports prefect. Education is highly valued by the staff. They work effectively with the school staff to ensure that the young people have positive educational opportunities which meet their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The staff fully understand the young people’s health needs and support them to live a healthy lifestyle through healthy eating and exercise. The staff work effectively with the organisation’s clinical therapy team to provide specific support for the young people’s emotional and psychological health, which has a high priority. The therapy team delivers individual therapy and group work for the young people and support for the staff. Working from detailed emotional needs assessments, the staff provide the young people with appropriate support to advance their well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The staff value the young people’s views. Daily key work sessions and daily meetings give the young people opportunities to express themselves. The day-to-day close contact with the staff enables them to build positive relationships with the staff, who listen to them and respond to their wishes and opinions. The managers are strong advocates for the young people. They understand the young people’s frustrations and put forward Inspection report children’s home: SC062931 4 their views to placing authorities so that their wishes are taken into account when decisions are being made. Complaints from the young people are rare, but when they do occur they are thoroughly investigated and resolved.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The staff provide the young people with relevant support to help them to take more responsibility for themselves. They tailor this support to the young people’s specific needs and stage of development. Some of the young people are having unsupervised free time in the community, which the staff closely monitor. The staff are supporting others to learn to play on their own. Plans are in place for all the young people to move to foster placements or back to their families, demonstrating the important progress that they have made while living at the home. The staff work proactively with the young people’s families to promote and maintain positive relationships.

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

The staff are succeeding in providing a safe, nurturing environment where the young people settle. Extremely positive relationships are at the heart of all practice within the home. Through these warm and trusting relationships and close supervision, the young people develop a sense of safety knowing they can talk to the staff if they have any worries or concerns.

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

Detailed care plans include therapeutic overviews of the young people’s needs, with clear, specific strategies to guide the staff in promoting the young people’s development. These, and comprehensive risk assessments, demonstrate that the staff fully understand the individual needs of the young people. The risk assessments are up to date and provide clear information for the staff regarding protective interventions to keep the young people safe. The staff and the managers regularly review the care plans and the risk assessments to ensure that they remain relevant to the young people’s developing needs.

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

A whole-team approach to applying the therapeutic ethos, through exploring with therapists the meaning of the young people’s behaviour in the context of their past experiences, enables the staff to respond appropriately to the young people’s emotional needs. As a result of this understanding, the staff are able to de-escalate potentially difficult situations effectively. Through meaningful and positive relationships with the staff, the young people accept the support and direction that the staff offer. They are able to talk about their emotions rather than demonstrate their feelings through challenging behaviour. The support from the staff has resulted in a dramatic decrease in the necessity for physical intervention.

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

The staff use physical intervention only as a last resort. The registered manager is a qualified trainer for the home’s behaviour management model. He monitors each incident of physical restraint closely and undertakes in-depth debriefings with the staff involved to ensure that they are appropriately and safely intervening. Currently, the registered manager is working with the staff to develop a restorative approach to their application of consequences for young people’s inappropriate behaviour. Inspection report children’s home: SC062931 5 Incidents of the young people being missing are not frequent. The staff follow agreed procedures and protocols to safeguard them and to minimise the risk of harm. Discussion with the young person following such an event helps to raise the young person’s awareness of the risks that they face and how to keep themselves safe.

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

The staff receive comprehensive training in relation to all safeguarding matters, such as e-safety, sexual exploitation and radicalisation. The staff’s appreciation of the danger that the young people face increases their vigilance in identifying potential risks and protecting them. However, the staff recognise the importance of allowing the young people opportunities to take age-appropriate risks and gradually increase their independence.

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

The staff use a bedroom door alarm to alert them when a young person’s door is opened at night. This practice has not been individually risk assessed to ensure that it is no more intrusive than necessary and that it does not impinge on the young person’s need for privacy.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager provides the staff team with strong and effective management. He leads the staff team with drive and enthusiasm. All the staff are ambitious for the young people to achieve positive outcomes. The registered manager has been in post since 2014, and is suitably experienced and qualified for the role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager provides valuable support for the staff team, encouraging them to apply a therapeutic approach based on research-led attachment practice. They apply the ethos of the home and provide a family-like environment where young people receive consistent care and experience a stable base from which they can develop and fulfil their potential. A member of staff commented: ‘You couldn’t ask for a better manager. I can ring him at any time for advice and guidance.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Training for the staff team is comprehensive and includes relevant staff development to ensure that they are competent and confident in providing a nurturing and therapeutic approach to the young people’s care. In addition to training, a team of qualified therapists works closely with the staff in ‘therapeutic thinking time’ sessions to analyse the young people’s behaviour and emotions and formulate strategies of support appropriate to their specific attachment style. Consequently, the young people benefit from thoughtful, focused and individualised support. Supervision for the staff is integral to improving practice and embedding the ethos of the home. Regular, individual supervision sessions are reflective and centred on the needs of the young people and their safety.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is vigilant in monitoring the quality of care provided for the young people. Following his attentive review of the young people’s progress, records and staff practice, he promptly addresses shortfalls and takes appropriate action to promote positive outcomes. He is keen to introduce new initiatives to support the young people more effectively, such as the introduction of emotion coaching to help the young people Inspection report children’s home: SC062931 6 to become more aware of their emotions and how to manage their own feelings.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

He has also introduced a new system for therapeutic key working that prioritises the aspects of the young people’s development which require more intense support from the staff. The young people have daily one-to-one sessions, with key workers providing the staff with specific guidance on the content of the session to address prioritised issues. The registered manager and deputy manager monitor the detailed recordings of these sessions. They provide advice and guidance for the staff to follow up the support. This frequent and targeted input is having a positive effect on the young people’s development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Very detailed and evaluative quarterly internal monitoring reports focus on the young people’s progress, achievements and areas for further development. The development plan for the home has a sharp focus on the needs of the young people, demonstrating the registered manager’s commitment to ensuring that they continue to experience high standards of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager and the staff work positively and effectively with other agencies and professionals.

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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 difference 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: SC062931 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Channels and Choices Kent LLP

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Camburgh House, 27 New Dover Road, Canterbury, Kent CT1 3DN

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Martin Scholfield

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Inspector

Jan Hunnam, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC062931 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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