Children's home run by Kent County Council in Ashford

Inspection report children’s home: SC439282 1 SC439282 Registered provider: Kent County Council

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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 short-break service is run by the local authority. It is registered to provide a respite service for families with children who have a physical and/or learning disability. The maximum number of children and young people who can stay at the home at any time is four.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: Outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: None

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children have positive experiences of moving into and staying at the home. Staff engage children in a range of activities and interact positively.  Care plans are thorough and informative. Staff are aware of any changes to Inspection report children’s home: SC439282 2 children’s care that occur between visits. This enables staff to provide a consistent approach to children’s complex care needs.  Other stakeholders value the service. Leaders and managers liaise closely with parents, carers and professionals.  Staff work closely with parents, schools and health services to share information and ensure that the children make progress and are kept safe.  Staff make sure that children make choices on a daily basis. Children’s meetings are effective in giving children opportunities to communicate their wishes.

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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 children’s guide and home complaints policy have not been updated since 2016 and do not reflect any recent changes.  Staff understand the risk that online use can pose to children, but policies regarding this have not been updated or signed by all staff.  Staff supervision does not occur consistently to timescale or recorded for staff to reflect on.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/03/2017 Full Outstanding 24/05/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 09/12/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness 22/07/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC439282 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

In order to meet the children’s views, wishes and feelings standard the registered person must ensure that staff— (7)(2)(c) keep the children’s guide and the home’s complaint procedure under review and seek children’s comments before revising either document. 12/03/2018

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard, the registered person must— (13)(2)(a) lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes set out in the home’s statement of purpose, particularly in relation to supervisions. 12/03/2018

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Recommendations

 Staff should be able recognise and address different types of abuse such as peer abuse and cyber bullying. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulation including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.16.) In particular, ensure that the internet policy is updated and is signed by all staff.  The registered person must ensure that recruitment, supervision and performance management of staff safeguards children and minimises risks to them. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulation including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1.) In particular, ensure that safeguarding is discussed as a specific agenda item.  It is good practice for a note of the content and/or outcomes of supervision sessions to be left and to ensure that both the person giving that supervision and staff member have a copy of the record. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulation including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.4)

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Recommendations

Inspection report children’s home: SC439282 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Short-break care of a good quality is provided for children and young people. Children, along with their families, benefit from the services offered. Children’s needs are assessed prior to beginning their stays at the children’s home to ensure that this is the right place for them. Staff consult with parents and professionals involved in the young person’s care, which ensures that they have all the information required to meet the children’s needs. The children stay for day care prior to starting overnight stays, in order to become familiar with their surroundings. A children’s guide is given to them prior to moving in; however, this guide has not been reviewed since 2016. Children develop trusted relationships with staff. A social worker said, ‘Parents report that their child gets really excited when he know he is going to the home.’ Parents are positive about the service. One parent said, ‘It is a home from home, and I can’t fault

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

them.’ Another parent said, ‘My child enjoys going and is happy to go.’ Positive interactions between staff and children were observed. Staff engage them in activities inside and outside of the home. Thorough and detailed care plans ensure that staff provide consistent care. The ‘About Me’ document is a colourful snapshot of the children’s needs, written in a positive and meaningful way, summarising the child’s likes, dislikes and information needed to care for them safely. Consequently, staff who are new to the children are confident to work with them. Children’s meetings are creative and thoughtful. Staff value their participation and evidence that they have acted on children’s requests. Photographs of activities and items for the home requested by children demonstrate that they are listened to. Children are encouraged to make choices on all aspects of their daily routine, where possible. For example, one child’s target was to make choices using eye pointing, and she has been

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

able to achieve this goal. Other children were seen to choose their favoured activities. Staff effectively promote the value of education. The home is well resourced with toys, books and an iPad. Young people are encouraged to learn and develop through play. Staff liaise with school colleagues to ensure consistent care and they attend all professionals’ meetings. Staff visit the young person at school to observe them and agree shared targets in order that new skills learned can be transferred across settings. Staff ensure that children’s attendance at school is not compromised while using the service. Staff accompany one young person a long distance to and from school to ensure that he can continue to attend. The children’s specific health and medical needs are a priority. Their health plans are clearly recorded and followed by staff. A health practice educator oversees staff training and monitors children’s complex health needs. Recent training in a child’s condition has

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

increased staff’s confidence. Staff raised concerns about an increase in seizure activity, which resulted in a review of the child’s assessed needs and additional resources provided. Measurable targets help children to learn new skills. Children learn self-care skills, which Inspection report children’s home: SC439282 5 they transfer to the home environment. A parent said, ‘He has learned to do things, which he can do at home too, like making his bed.’ Another child has learned to sort his laundry and put his clothes in the dryer. Children take more responsibility for themselves and increase their sense of pride. Staff mark these achievements by awarding certificates to celebrate their success. Children usually have positive transitions from the home. On one occasion, despite staff knowing the young person well, the placement became unsuitable for him and his welfare and that of the other young people. Leaders and managers worked with his

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

parents and professionals involved in his care to ensure that he was placed in more suitable alternative accommodation.

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

Safeguarding practice is professional, related policies are clear, robust and research based. Countering child exploitation is part of the safeguarding training. Managers attended training specific to child sexual exploitation and shared this information with the staff members to enhance their knowledge. Staff demonstrate good knowledge of safeguarding issues and their responsibilities in regards to whistle-blowing. Supervision processes enable staff to raise concerns; however, records do not demonstrate that safeguarding issues are routinely discussed. Risk assessments inform staff about how to reduce risks. They are updated following any new information becoming known. Care plans are reviewed regularly with parents and updated when changes occur. Team meeting are held weekly and children are discussed in detail before and after their stays to ensure that all information is shared. Staff are well equipped to work with all the children that attend the service.

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

Children’s placement plans include management of complex health and safety issues. Such an example is a child who has open access to a children’s ward. An agreed health plan is in place to ensure that emergency medical care can be provided by health professionals who know how to meet his needs. Children’s emotional well-being is of prime importance to staff. Physical interventions are rare due to staff’s ability to manage challenging behaviour. Only low-level measures are used, such as guiding. Staff use de-escalation techniques effectively and record the use of these prior to a physical intervention being needed. Managers analyse the measure used and reflect on the incident with staff and children. Staff supervise children to ensure that they use electronic devices safely. Children are not able to access wi-fi while they are here. Staff are trained in e-safety; however, the internet policy has not been updated or signed by all staff. While this shortfall does not

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

pose a risk to children, it is good practice for this document to be reviewed regularly to ensure that any changes are incorporated into the policy. Location risk assessments are detailed and include a description of the home and the nearby area, potential risks in the neighbourhood and what steps can be taken to reduce them. Managers and senior team leaders ensure that monitoring of health and safety checks is thorough, including the use of fire drills and personal evacuation plans specific to each child. Fire safety is prioritised by the organisation. Inspection report children’s home: SC439282 6

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager left the service in August 2017. The senior team leader undertook the role of acting manager prior to the new manager starting at the home. The current manager has been promoted from a sister home and has the necessary experience and qualifications to fulfil this role. He has enrolled on the level 5 diploma in Leadership for Health and Social Care and has applied for registration with Ofsted. The manager undertook a two-week handover with the acting manager prior to her maternity leave. Staff report that the transition was managed well by the acting manager, who remained a consistent leader. One member of staff said, ‘There was a smooth change of management.’ All staff receive sensitive and thorough supervision that allows time for detailed discussions about the children. However, supervision is not always to stated timescales as recorded in the statement of purpose and supervision policy. Not all supervisions that

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

take place are recorded; this means that staff and supervisees are not able to reflect on what was discussed. A lack of regular supervision fails to recognise the importance of staff having a formal forum where they can have uninterrupted discussions with senior staff and managers. Staff speak positively about the support that they receive from leaders and managers. One staff member said, ‘The manager has brought in some new ideas which are effective.’ New staff have a good induction into the home and they shadow shifts until they are ready and confident to work directly with children. Team meetings are effective, as research material is shared and attached to the minutes to ensure that a learning culture prevails to the benefit of all staff. Good professional relationships between the home and partner agencies are effective. External professionals value the service highly. One social worker said, ‘The manager has

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

made good links and is visiting our staff team to introduce himself, communication is 100%.’ Leaders and managers work closely with colleagues. They feel able to challenge local authority care plans if they feel that the plans are not in the child’s best interest.

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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 Inspection report children’s home: SC439282 7 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: SC439282 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fairlawn, Kingsnorth Road, Ashford, Kent TN23 6LY

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Inspector

Suzy Lemmy, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC439282 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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