Children's home run by Exceptional Care Limited in Knowsley

Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 1 SC483070 Registered provider: Exceptional Care 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

This is a privately run children’s home that is registered for four young people who have emotional and behavioural difficulties. The home caters for three young people in the main part of the house and one young person in the basement annexe, which is designed to support young people who are preparing for independent living.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 22 to 23 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: 17 January 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 in all areas of their lives from the point when they first move into the home. This includes progress in education, health and Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 2 relationships. The support young people receive also means that they have reduced involvement in criminal behaviours and the frequency of episodes of missing from home is much reduced.  The young people are supported to maintain positive relationships with people who are important for them. The staff encourage regular safe contact for young people with their family and friends.  Young people are well supported to engage in education and, as a result, their education outcomes improve. One young person has been supported to apply successfully for a place at university.  The staff feel supported by their manager and each other. The team meets regularly at handovers and team meetings to share relevant information. Staff supervision is up

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Key findings from this inspection

to date and is reflective in nature.  Safer recruitment practices ensure that only suitably vetted members of staff care for young people.  Partnership working is a strength for the home. The registered manager and staff engage effectively with a range of professionals in order to meet the needs of young people and to ensure that they are safeguarded.  Safeguarding practice in the home is robust. Detailed risk assessments and risk management plans are in place and are followed, which helps reduce risks.

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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 approach to behaviour management in the home is not always clear. The home has implemented a non-restraint plan for one young person. However, this is contradictory in nature as it states that staff will use physical intervention as a last resort.  Not all sanctions are appropriately recorded. In addition, when rewards are not given in full, due to the behaviour of young people, this is not recorded. Furthermore, there is a reliance on calling for police assistance as a behaviour management strategy.  Recording systems in the home need to be strengthened. Some records and plans lack sufficient detail and do not demonstrate the young people’s journey or the progress they have made.  There is evidence to demonstrate that the views, wishes and feelings are ascertained regularly from young people through daily discussions, young people’s meetings and key-work sessions. However, the records and plans do not always reflect this level of

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Key findings from this inspection

consultation. Furthermore, records and plans are not signed by the young people to demonstrate that they have been consulted or have read and understood the plans in place for them.  The home’s training matrix does not demonstrate that all of the staff working in the home have completed the home’s mandatory training.  The home’s review of the location of the premises does not identify all of the known risks in the community. Furthermore, it does not include details of the consultation Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 3 held with other relevant safeguarding professionals. Therefore, the home cannot be confident that it is aware of all known risks in the community.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 21/09/2016 Full Outstanding 24/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 08/10/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 4

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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, the 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 prepare and implement a policy (‘the behaviour management policy’) which sets out how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home. The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it. (Regulation 35(1)(2)) 29/01/2018

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Recommendations

 Ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes fact, opinion and third party information. 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)  The registered person should have a workforce plan, which can fulfil the workforce-related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should detail the processes and agreed timescales for staff to achieve induction, probation and any core training (such as safeguarding, health and safety and mandatory qualifications.) The plan should be updated to include any new training and qualifications completed by staff while working at the

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Recommendations

home, and used to record the ongoing training and continuing professional development needs of staff – including the home’s manager. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)  Review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home at least once a year. The review should include the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and strategies for managing these. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1)  Ensure that staff encourage children to see the home’s records as ‘living Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 5 documents’ supporting them to view and contribute to the records in a way that reflects their voice on a regular basis. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 58, paragraph 11.19)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people make significant and sustained progress across all areas of their lives. This includes improved educational outcomes, improving health and increasingly positive relationships with others. There has also been a marked reduction in criminal behaviour and the number of times young people are reported as missing from home. This is primarily due to the high level of care, support and intervention they receive from the registered manager and staff in the children’s home. Professionals report that the young people are making progress since moving into the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All of the young people living in the home are engaged in education. The registered manager and staff liaise effectively with education professionals to ensure that the education needs of young people are being met. If necessary, they are prepared to challenge placing authorities to ensure that young people can access appropriate provision. Furthermore, the staff ensure that the young people have structured routines to support their regular attendance and engagement in education. The staff have aspirations for young people and are proud that one young person has been supported to successfully apply for a place at university. Consequently, young people are making progress in their education and education outcomes are improving.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff have a good understanding of the health needs of the young people. However, healthcare plans do not clearly set out the young people’s individual health needs and how they are being met. Health issues are addressed with young people during key-work sessions and staff encourage and support all of the young people to adopt a healthy lifestyle and to attend health and development appointments as and when necessary. Issues relating to substance misuse and emotional well-being are managed effectively and young people receive appropriate support in relation to these from specialist services.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Transition planning in the home is individualised and adapted to meet the needs of each young person. Since the last inspection, three young people have moved on to new placements and another three young people have moved into the home. One of the young people who has moved on returned to the care of his family. This demonstrates that the support and intervention he received while living in the home were good and have had a positive impact. Another young person moved to a semi-independent placement and continues to have contact with the registered manager and staff from this home. Unfortunately, the third young person’s placement was ended due to a significant increase in safeguarding issues for her. The home took appropriate action to ensure that the young person moved to a placement were she could be safeguarded more effectively. Robust assessment processes are completed prior to any young person

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

moving into the home. This ensures that the home is a suitable placement to meet the Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 6 assessed needs of the young person. The young people are welcomed into the home and the registered manager and staff spend time talking to the young people when they arrive, providing them with detailed information relating to the home and the expectations of the placement. The registered manager and staff manage transitions into the home well and provide appropriate support to make transitions as smooth as possible.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff understand the importance of young people developing and maintaining relationships with people who are important to them. Staff liaise with professionals and family members to ensure that suitable contact arrangements are in place for young people and their family. Contact is safe and provides young people with the opportunity to spend quality time with their family. The young people are encouraged to invite family members to visit them in the home, where appropriate.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff regularly meet with the young people to discuss their individual needs. Key- work sessions regularly take place to address specific issues relating to each young person. These sessions allow the staff to provide young people with support, guidance and information to address their needs and to keep them safe. Furthermore, they provide the young people with the opportunity to express their views, wishes and feelings about the care provided and the plans in place for them. The young people also benefit from regular young people’s meetings where they can express their views, wishes and feelings in relation to the running of the home. The young people are asked to complete consultation forms to share their views on the home. One young person wrote, ‘I have come a very long way since being 13 and they are slowly teaching me and guiding me on how to keep safe while living a normal teenage life.’ However, some of

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

the records and plans could show more clearly the involvement and consultation that the young people have.

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

Safeguarding practice in the home is robust. The registered manager and staff have a clear understanding of the individual risks to the young people. Effective strategies are in place to reduce the risks young people face and in response to safeguarding incidents. Risk assessments and risk management plans outline the individual risks to the young people and the strategies in place to manage these. However, some of the risks to the young people are recorded in their individual risk assessments and others in their risk management plans. They would benefit from having one document outlining all of the risks and strategies rather than them being split between the two sets of records. This would provide a clearer outline of these to the reader. Consequently, the staff would be in a better position to safeguard the young people.

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

There has been a number of serious safeguarding incidents for young people living in the home. However, the home has responded appropriately to these. The registered manager and staff work effectively with other safeguarding professionals to ensure that they are working together to safeguard the young people. Safeguarding meetings take place with a range of professionals to share information and formulate a multi-agency Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 7 safeguarding plan with all safeguarding professionals having a role to play in safeguarding and supporting the home to keep the young people safe from harm. Consequently, the risks to the young people have reduced.

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

There has been a number of incidents when young people have returned home under the influence of substances. The staff have been alert to this and taken effective action to ensure that the young people have been safeguarded. Records demonstrate that staff have considered whether they should seek medical attention for the young people. They have provided the young people with food and drink and completed regular monitoring checks on the young person. Furthermore, key-work sessions take place with the young people to address their substance misuse and young people are always offered support from the substance misuse service. Consequently, young people have received the most appropriate support and advice to safeguard them when they have been under the influence of substances.

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

The number of incidents when young people are missing from home has reduced. This is due to the support and intervention provided to them in the home to address the risks that the young people face when they are missing from home. The home has effective links with missing-from-home coordinators and, in line with ‘statutory guidance on children who run away or go missing from home or care 2014’, they ensure that the young people receive an independent return home interview when they return from being missing. Furthermore, the registered manager and staff speak to the young people about why they have been missing and the risks they have faced when missing. Appropriate advice is given to the young people to raise their awareness of the risks of being missing. A social worker said, ‘The young person has a significant history of being missing from home. Since moving into this home, the number of times he has been

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

Behaviour management in the home needs to be strengthened. The home has implemented a non-restraint policy for one young person due to this being ineffective in managing his behaviour. However, his risk management plan states that, although there is a non-restraint policy in place, they will use physical intervention as a last resort. This is contradictory and unclear. Furthermore, part of the strategy for managing his behaviour is to rely on calling for police assistance. During the inspection, an incident of challenging behaviour occurred involving the young person who was immediately informed that the police would be called if he did not calm down. This does not demonstrate that the home has adequate behaviour management strategies in place to manage the young person’s behaviour. Furthermore, the records relating to the sanctions issued to young people by staff in relation to negative behaviour are not

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

clearly recorded and in some instances they had not been recorded at all. When incentives and rewards have not been given in full due to negative behaviour, the reason for withholding these has not been recorded. Consequently, approaches to behaviour management in the home are unclear for both the staff and young people.

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

The home has a review of its location in place. However, this does not include all known risks in the community. There have been incidents relating to child sexual exploitation for some young people and they are not included in the review. There are also some Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 8 issues relating to antisocial behaviour from young people from this home and other children’s homes in the area. Although the registered manager is in regular communication with the other children’s homes to reduce the antisocial behaviour and risks to the young people, this information is not included in the review. Furthermore, the review does not include information in relation to consultation with other safeguarding professionals in the area. Consequently, the home cannot be confident that the review includes information relating to all the risks in the community. Therefore, the young people may not be fully safeguarded in the community.

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

The health and safety practices in the home ensure that young people’s safety and well- being are paramount. Staff carry out regular health and safety checks, including fire drills, to ensure that the premises are safe and young people are able to respond in an emergency. Fire drills are always undertaken when a new young person moves into the home. The good health and safety practices ensure that young people are safeguarded in the home.

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

Staff recruitment practice is safe and ensures that only the most appropriate staff work in the home. This ensures that young people are safeguarded from unsuitable staff working in their home. Recruitment checks demonstrate that the leaders and managers have explored gaps in information provided in the application process to ensure that they have a full and accurate account of staff backgrounds and work histories.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a new registered manager in post in the home. She is suitably experienced and is working towards gaining a suitable qualification in leadership and management. She is an enthusiastic, motivated and committed manager who has high aspirations for the young people. She supports the staff team well to provide a good quality of care to the young people. A member of staff said, ‘The management of the home is very supportive and proactive.’ This support helps the staff team to provide a good quality of care to the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are some shortfalls in the records, plans and assessments in the home. These do not clearly detail the young people’s experiences and progress, their journey through care or their current needs and how they are being met. Furthermore, the records and plans do not include details of consultation with the young people. Consequently, this could affect the care provided to the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Training records in the home do not demonstrate that the staff have been provided with regular opportunities to promote their continuous professional development. Training records indicate that some staff have not completed the home’s mandatory training. This does not demonstrate that all of the staff are fully equipped with the relevant knowledge, skills and understanding to meet the needs of young people and to keep them safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has sufficient experienced and qualified staff to promote the young people’s safety and well-being and ensure that their individual needs are met. The newer, less Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 9 qualified and experienced staff are supported to provide a good quality of care to the young people. The staff have their individual strengths and the team is of mixed age, experience and gender. Rotas are planned to ensure that staff teams consist of suitably experienced and less experienced staff, of mixed gender and with their individual strengths. Staff morale is good and they work well together. They are motivated and enthusiastic and clearly want what is best for the young people. A member of staff said, ‘The team dynamics are good and we have got loads of strengths. It is difficult at the moment due to some of the behaviours of a young person, which can be unmanageable. However, staff feel supported to manage this. We all have regular supervision and

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

training opportunities and reflect back as a team on incidents. As a team, we are fantastic.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

All staff are up to date with their professional supervision and they see this as a form of support. Supervision records demonstrate that sessions are reflective in nature. Supervision is of good quality that supports and challenges practice in order to improve the care given to young people. Action plans are completed from supervision sessions, which supports the continuous professional development of staff. This is further supported by reflective team meetings with young people being central to the discussions and agreed actions. The registered manager and staff discuss each young person’s current situation and share good practice examples and ideas during team meetings to ensure a consistent approach to caring for young people in the home. Consequently, the staff feel supported, which has a positive impact on their practice and on the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring and review systems in the home are effective and support the leaders and managers in identifying the home’s strengths and weaknesses. They take prompt and effective action to address any shortfalls identified through the review and monitoring systems.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has a development plan in place that outlines the home’s strengths. However, it does not clearly outline the home’s areas for development. Furthermore, the home does not have a workforce development plan in place in line with the quality standards for children’s homes. Consequently, the home does not have a clear record of the management and staffing structure, the processes and agreed timescales for staff to achieve induction, probation and any core training, details of the process for managing poor performance or the process and timescales for supervision of practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home’s statement of purpose has recently been updated to reflect the changes in staffing. A copy of the updated statement of purpose has been provided to Ofsted in line with regulation. The statement of purpose clearly outlines the home’s ethos, aims and objectives. Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 10

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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, 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: SC483070 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Exceptional Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 147 Moss Delph Lane, Aughton, Ormskirk, Lancashire L39 5BH

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Inspector(s)

Lisa Mulcahy, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC483070 12 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(s)

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Inspector(s)

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Inspector(s)

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