Children's Home run by The Amicus Community (Arundel) Ltd in West Sussex

Inspection report children’s home: SC449155 1 SC449155 Registered provider: The Amicus Community Arundel 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

The home is registered to care for up to four young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is a recognised provider of therapeutic care. Young people living at the home may attend the organisation’s school.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 14 to 15 November 2017

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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: 9 February 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Sustained effectiveness

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people make good progress while living at the home. Inspection report children’s home: SC449155 2  Staff work well to facilitate and promote contact between young people and their families and friends.  Young people have good educational attendance and each is making progress.  Staff support young people to address their physical and emotional health care needs.  Young people are involved in a wide variety of community-based activities which enable them to develop friendships outside of the home.  Staff provide practical advice and guidance to young people to support them in developing skills to take age-appropriate risks.  Leaders and managers advocate on behalf of young people to help them to gain access to entitled services.  Staff are knowledgeable, skilled, caring and nurturing and enjoy very good relationships with young people.  Managers form robust, effective relationships with external stakeholders and

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Key findings from this inspection

this has a positive impact on the plans and care delivered.

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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

 ‘Missing from care’ plans are not detailed or specific, they do not include all of the relevant information to promote a cohesive and consistent approach to locate the young person.  Records of physical intervention do not detail all of the required information. They do not specify who restrained a child or for how long, or which method was used.  The statement of purpose does not detail information regarding the staff who work in the home.  Risk assessments contain extensive detail without clear conclusion: it is difficult to ascertain what is required to minimise and manage risk.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 18/07/2016 Full Good 01/02/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 06/10/2015 Full Outstanding Inspection report children’s home: SC449155 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

12: The protection of children standard In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff— assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking in to account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. (Regulation 12 (2)(a)(i)) 01/03/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile a statement of purpose which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1. In particular, specify details of the experience and qualifications of staff, including arrangements for the professional supervision of staff, including staff that provide education or health care. (Regulation 16(1) and Schedule 1.20) 01/03/2018

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Recommendations

 Records of restraint must be kept and should enable the registered person and staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint to identify effective practice and respond promptly where any issues or trends of concern emerge. The review should provide the opportunity for amending practice to ensure it meets the needs of each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59)  Where there is a possibility that a child will run away or go missing from a children’s home placement their placement plan should include a strategy to minimise this risk. If the child is looked-after their care plan should include such a strategy. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.24)

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Inspection judgements

Inspection report children’s home: SC449155 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people make good progress; they learn positive strategies to manage and explore their feelings, emotions and anxieties. They each fully engage in taking responsibility for their individual care and participating in activities in the home. Staff are developing targets, and plans that will make it easier to identify the progress that young people make. Staff are knowledgeable and caring in their approach with young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage and support young people to develop hobbies and interests outside of the home. Young people have flourished through these activities and have formed new friendships and relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are in full-time education and each has a personalised education plan. They attend school or college and have set goals to achieve there. Effective communication by staff with education providers has a positive impact on young people’s engagement in education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff hold regular, meaningful, one-to-one sessions with young people which afford them opportunities to explore issues which are important to them. The sessions provide essential personal education about risk, how to keep safe, and help them to explore how to maintain positive friendships and relationships. They also offer young people an opportunity for good quality one-to-one time with a member of staff, going to a café or just chatting about achievements and challenges. Skilled, knowledgeable staff are able to talk openly and honestly with young people, assisting them in identifying and labelling their feelings, emotions and what may be causing them distress and anxiety.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people develop independence skills relevant for their life after the home. They plan, shop and prepare meals, complete and manage their laundry, and assist in the home with basic household chores. A young person now travels independently using public transport. Young people are learning how to access the community independently.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff regularly gain young people’s views by completing reviews and talking with them about their feelings. The daily house meetings and one-to-one support provided create opportunities for young people to talk with staff. Young people are involved, and make choices about, the home, including its decor, activities and menus.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people address their physical and emotional health needs with support and encouragement from staff. They engage in regular therapy sessions that assist them to explore previous trauma and develop positive strategies and ways to manage their feelings and emotions. Staff encourage young people to lead healthy lifestyles through a balanced diet and regular exercise and activity.

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

Inspection report children’s home: SC449155 5 There is a good safeguarding culture in the home; staff have a sound knowledge and understanding of the risks that young people face and what is required to manage and minimise them. Young people reported that they each have a trusted adult whom they can speak to and confide in. One young person said that a member of staff was ‘the parent role model [they] never had’.

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

Staff respond robustly to concerns and make referrals to external safeguarding professionals when required. Staff review concerns and develop and improve practice from findings. They have implemented and altered practice following serious case reviews, informing local authorities of changes implemented in practice. There are effective relationships between managers and the Local Safeguarding Children Board. There have been no complaints in the home but young people are informed how to make a complaint. Staff are also knowledgeable regarding their responsibilities in managing complaints.

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

Risk assessments explore known areas of risk and are lengthy and detailed. They are difficult to interpret and do not clearly identify strategies to minimise risk. Senior leaders have identified that risk assessments need to be reviewed and streamlined to be effective and easily understood and applied by staff.

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

Episodes of young people going missing from the home are well managed with a coordinated approach to finding young people. Staff request return to care interviews from placing authorities and seek to explore with young people the cause and reason for each episode. ‘Missing from care’ plans are available and provide basic information about each young person. They do not provide additional information that is specific to each individual, for example known risk factors, behaviours, unsupervised time, associates and other relevant information to support others in searching for a young person.

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

Staff are clear and consistent about expected behaviours and boundaries in the home. They are proactive in their approach and they intervene in and defuse and de-escalate situations well. Staff are trained in the home’s preferred method of behaviour management. Staff use physical intervention in situations of significant risk; they also use a variety of de-escalation strategies as alternatives. Plans detail agreed approaches for each young person, including calming techniques. Records are detailed but are not consistently clear or easily interpreted. They do not clearly state for how long a hold is used and by whom. This has an impact on the manager’s ability to evaluate, monitor and identify patterns and trends of behaviour.

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

Staff have given sanctions and consequences, many of which are reparative in their nature. Young people are rewarded for their positive behaviour and achievements. They are given a wide variety of rewards, including money, trips and other chosen rewards. Staff are reviewing the current reward system to develop one which motivates each young person.

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

Medication is stored securely in the home. Staff have reviewed the home’s medication policy and procedure. This has improved staff knowledge and understanding about this Inspection report children’s home: SC449155 6 area and has reduced medication errors. Young people are assessed to determine whether they should self-administer medication. If the outcome is positive, there are systems in place to ensure that it is securely stored in a young person’s bedroom.

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

The environment is well maintained, managed and presented. Staff have focused on improving the presentation of the home, and this is apparent in all areas.

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

Safer recruitment processes are followed, and thorough records demonstrate that all necessary information is gathered pre-employment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A day-to-day manager, supported by senior managers in the organisation, manages the home effectively. The registered manager has regular contact with the home, young people and staff. The organisation’s development plan states that its aim is to work towards the day-to-day manager becoming the registered manager for the home; this will be a better fit for the role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The day-to-day manager is new in post, following a handover period from the previous manager. There have also been changes in the on-call system for the home, with one person now designated to support the home, whereas previously a manager was responsible for the two homes in the organisation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have good knowledge and insight about the home’s strengths and weaknesses. They have addressed many of the requirements and recommendations set at the previous inspection. The home’s development plan details weaknesses and the planned actions to address and improve these areas. Leaders and managers regularly review and update the plan. The plan is well informed by the independent visits to the home, which provide an additional layer of scrutiny and challenge.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have good, detailed knowledge of each young person in their care. They collectively review each young person’s needs, strengths, risks and challenges, through the daily reporting and review system. Leaders and managers advocate on behalf of those in their care, and they appropriately challenge others to ensure that young people gain access to services to which they are entitled. They work well with others, providing regular communication, information and updates about young people’s achievements and challenges. For example, managers sourced specialist support for a young person during a period of crisis, using an effective multi-disciplinary approach to care planning and support. The collective approach had a positive impact, and the young person was well supported through this difficult period while in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are well supported by leaders and managers in the home. The regular reflective team meetings provide ample opportunities to review and reflect on practice. Staff access regular and effective supervision, although there are minor gaps in the records of these. Staff also access regular clinical supervision; these are not currently logged consistently but managers intend to do so to evidence all the support that staff Inspection report children’s home: SC449155 7 receive. Staff practice is appraised at least annually, and senior managers are currently reviewing this process to make it more efficient.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The team has recently experienced staff turnover. Leaders have addressed this through a continual recruitment drive. They have recruited new staff, and the home will soon be fully staffed. There is regular use of known bank staff to supplement rotas. These staff access the same support and training as other staff. Staff access a wide variety of online and face-to-face training as part of their induction. They also shadow experienced staff for periods of time, which enables them to gain knowledge and insight while initially forming relationships with young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home’s statement of purpose is very lengthy and detailed, and the senior leaders plan to review this. It does not currently include information and details about the staff who work in the home. The ethos, as described in the statement of purpose, is evident in the home. New staff complete a one-week induction which focuses on the approach and ethos of the home and helps them to quickly integrate into its ways of working.

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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: SC449155 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Amicus Community Arundel Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Amicus Community, PO Box 79, Arundel BN18 9XA

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Inspector(s)

Amanda Maxwell, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC449155 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector(s)

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Inspector(s)

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Inspector(s)

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