Children's home run by The Partnership of Care Limited in Stockport

Inspection report children’s home: SC068664 1 SC068664 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Children’s Services

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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 children’s home is privately owned. The home provides care and accommodation for up to five children or 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: 21 February 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: declined in effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Key findings from this inspection

 The staff are caring, and are committed to improving the daily experiences and outcomes for the young people.  The staff have established positive relationships that support their work with the young people.  The staff work with the young people to help them understand risk and keep Inspection report children’s home: SC068664 2 themselves safe.  The young people make progress, reducing risk-taking behaviour, attending and attaining in education and training, and becoming more emotionally resilient.  Clear monitoring systems support the consistent good level of care being delivered to the young people.

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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

 Any sanction given must be recorded and must meet the requirements of the children’s home regulations.  The effectiveness of financial sanctions needs to be reviewed, taking into account the young people’s history, understanding and care needs.  The young people must be provided with a home that is decorated, furnished and equipped to a high standard throughout.  The staff must receive practice-related formal supervision.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/02/2017 Interim Declined in effectiveness 21/09/2016 Full Outstanding 15/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 26/10/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC068664 3

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered persons 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 persons must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who— understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children; and use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— ensure that the premises used for the purpose of the home are designed and furnished so as to— meet the needs of each child; and enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6(2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the house is decorated to a high standard throughout, making sure that the bathroom grouting and sealant are in good condition. Ensure that information for the young people is suitably stored and accessible. 28/01/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes— the name of the child; details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure; the date, time and location of the use of the measure; a description of the measure and its duration; details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure; 15/12/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC068664 4 the name of the person who used the measure (the user) and of any other person present when the measure was used; the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure. (Regulation 35(3)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the recording includes the details of the sanction given and review the effectiveness and understanding of the child in using such a measure.

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Recommendations

 A record of supervision should be kept for staff, including the manager. The record should provide evidence that supervision is being delivered in line with regulation 33(4)(b). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.3). In particular, the supervision record must detail discussions in relation to reflective practice.

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Recommendations

 Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4). In particular, review the written risk assessment format to ensure that the staff and the young people can easily understand the information recorded.

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Recommendations

 Regulation 19(2) details sanctions that are prohibited in behaviour management. Any sanction used to address poor behaviour should be restorative in nature, to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them and the wider community. In some cases, it will be important for children to make reparation in some form to anyone hurt by their behaviour and the staff in the home should be skilled to support the child to understand this and carry it out. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.39). In particular, all monetary sanctions should be reviewed, taking into account the circumstances, the young person’s understanding and the need to be proportionate to their past experiences. Wherever possible, a restorative approach should be used.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people receive individualised care which, over time, they respond to well. They build strong, trusting relationships with the staff who consistently care for them, Inspection report children’s home: SC068664 5 within a safe environment. A young person said: ‘I get on with all the staff.’ The staff demonstrate a good awareness of each young person’s specific care and support needs. This enables the young people to engage more positively, listen to the advice given, and have more constructive daily life experiences. The young people respond to this, and make progress. The young people’s progress varies, depending on their starting points. Their success is evident in their more positive behaviour, improved emotional resilience, good school attendance, and reduced risk-taking behaviour.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people receive routine health checks, and access professionals to support their emotional well-being. They take part in planning menus that provide a balanced diet. In addition, by following medical advice and adhering to strict procedures for taking medication, young people have improved health outcomes, which result in long-term health and well-being benefits.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is given a high priority, with the staff helping the young people to understand its importance. The young people have a personal education plan that includes targets. This enhances their opportunities to make progress, and to access further education and employment as young adults.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A young person explained that it is routine for her to give her views and opinions, and to make choices that affect her daily life. The young person knows the complaints procedure and named particular staff whom she would go to with any concerns. The young people’s views about their care and future plans are gained prior to, or when they attend, their statutory reviews. This makes certain that the views of the young people are listened to through regular consultations with them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people have started their journey to learning independence skills. Staff support them to learn how to bake, make simple snacks and keep their bedrooms clean and tidy. This ensures that the young people gain a good level of life skills appropriate to their age, which will assist them as young adults.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff are committed to work with each young person’s family. The manager continues to work with the local authority to discuss and agree contact arrangements and plans, advocating for the young people. The staff work to rebuild and maintain relationships, and to support and facilitate visits. This provides the young people with a strong sense of identity, and a support network which ensures that they keep in touch with those who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people live in a suitable environment. A young person said: ‘I have a nice bedroom.’ However, the standard of decoration in most rooms is not of a high standard. The main bathroom is showing signs of wear and tear, with sealants and grouting discoloured. Notice boards are on display in one lounge; this does not uphold and embrace creating a family atmosphere throughout the home.

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

The young people say they feel safe in their home, and report that there is no bullying. Inspection report children’s home: SC068664 6 A reduction in risk-taking behaviour has occurred for most young people. This behaviour includes risks such as going missing from the home. The reduction has been achieved due to the actions of the staff and their close working partnerships with other professionals. Partnership working involves the continual review of the care and support strategies by all the agencies involved. Therefore, effective safeguarding measures help to protect young people. A missing-from-care police officer said: ‘The staff are proactive and follow the procedures when the young people go missing. They do all they can.’ However, the format of the risk assessment has a complex format that does not assist in the quick retrieval of the pertinent key factors, which require time to study them. This

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

may prevent new staff being able to check promptly for the identified risks and the strategies required to safeguard the young people.

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

The young people respond well to the praise and the consistently delivered care routines and boundaries. The staff support the young people to learn how to manage their own behaviour better, such as giving themselves space and the time to calm down. The staff team uses de-escalation techniques to defuse difficult situations. This approach is successful in most instances. Only two physical interventions have occurred since the last inspection in September 2016. The use of praise and reward is having a positive effect, and supports young people’s progress to maintain positive behaviour. Overall, behaviour management strategies work well. However, the sanctions records do not detail all the information required by the regulations. The deficits include the lead-up to the event, the duration of the sanction, and the financial amount of any sanction and the total to be paid. In all instances, there has not been effective reviewing of the use of

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

financial sanctions, taking into account the young people’s history, the emotional turmoil they are experiencing and their level of understanding. A young person said: ‘I don’t think sanctions are always fair.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has been in post at the home since 2013. She has 17 years’ experience of working with children and young people, and holds the required qualifications for the position.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager demonstrates a strong awareness of the service’s strengths and weaknesses. She ensures that the home works in accordance with the statement of purpose, and implements the development plan to support continual progression. The young people benefit from the established, experienced, and diverse staff team that the manager maintains. The staff are caring and committed, and demonstrate that their focus is the young people in their care. They recognise the importance of providing consistent care to young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Good communication enables the staff team to receive support, through supervision, team meetings and daily handovers. However, not all supervision records demonstrate that staff reflect on their practice in line with requirements of the regulations. Therefore, supervision does not maximise the opportunities to improve staff practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The majority of the staff team hold the level 3 diploma in caring for children and young Inspection report children’s home: SC068664 7 people. In addition, they undertake mandatory training, which includes behaviour management, first aid, child protection and health and safety, along with other essential training. This equips staff with suitable skills and knowledge to support and care for the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is positive partnership working with professionals. All report that the staff communicate with them well, informing them of the progress of the young people, as well as when any serious matter occurs. This collaborative working helps to provide good care to the young people, and addresses any shortfalls swiftly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Action has been taken to implement the two requirements and the two recommendations made at the last inspection. Ofsted has been notified of serious incidents in line with the requirement of the regulations. The staff team has worked with education providers to support the young people to find appropriate education placements and/or training. The young people have accessed return home interviews after episodes of going missing, and have received support and encouragement to attend all health check-ups.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is thorough internal and external monthly monitoring of the service. The monitoring system identifies deficits and makes recommendations to ensure that there are improvements to the care, support and service. A number of auditing processes and checks take place, in areas that include health and safety and the young people’s case files. This makes certain that the service identifies shortfalls and omissions, and that they are rectified promptly.

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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: SC068664 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Children’s Services

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lansdowne House, 85 Buxton Road, Stockport, Cheshire SK2 6LR

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Inspector

Debbie Foster, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC068664 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 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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