Children's home run by Cornerways Children’s Services Limited

Inspection report children’s home: SC013613 1 SC013613 Registered provider: Cornerways Children’s Services 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 one of two children’s homes owned and run by a private company that also operates a fostering agency and a school. The home has accommodation for up to five young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The service also provides support from therapists to individual young people.

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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: sustained effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people benefit from long-term stable placements in a caring and nurturing environment. Inspection report children’s home: SC013613 2  Young people have good relationships with the staff and have developed healthy attachments.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff focus on young people’s emotional well-being and ensure that they receive the right support.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The registered manager is a strong advocate for 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

 The quality of staff supervision is not consistent and does not always provide the staff with the opportunity to reflect on their practice.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Individual risk assessments do not include strategies to manage potentially harmful toiletries.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Some staff are not clear about who they should speak to regarding allegations externally.

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Key findings from this inspection

 New staff have not received in depth training in the model of care that underpins practice in the home.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 06/12/2016 Full Good 21/03/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 30/09/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC013613 3

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:

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Recommendations

 The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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Recommendations

In particular, leaders and managers should undertake training in reflective supervision and ensure that it is delivered consistently.

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Recommendations

 The registered person is responsible for ensuring that each child’s day to day health and well-being needs are met. Staff should work to make the children’s home an environment that supports children’s physical health. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 33, paragraph 7.3)

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Recommendations

In particular, staff should work towards developing a culture of no smoking in the home.

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Recommendations

 Staff should continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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Recommendations

In particular, review the organisation’s blanket policy of locking young people’s aerosols away in the staff office. Staff should assess the risks to young people on an individual basis.

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Recommendations

 The policy for protection of children from abuse or neglect should be available and explained to children and their families as well as to the staff, whatever their role. The registered person must make sure that all staff are familiar with this policy and act in accordance with it, in particular how to report a concern. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 44, paragraph 9.21)

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Recommendations

In particular, concerns should be reported to the designated officer.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11) Inspection report children’s home: SC013613 4 In particular, ensure that new staff receive therapeutic childcare training consistent with the approach and ethos described in the statement of purpose.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Decisions about new young people moving into the home are carefully considered and very child focused. This includes not accepting referrals if the manager feels that the staff team will not be able to meet the young person’s needs, or that the impact on the existing group would be detrimental to their welfare. Once agreed, and during the referral process, written communication takes place between the manager and the young person to build a rapport and help with a smooth transition. Compatibility risk assessments carried out by the manager at this point provide a detailed record of any potential risks and the strategies to reduce them. This practice has contributed to the overall long-term stability of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people receive individualised care and support from staff who are committed to meeting their long-term needs. The compassionate and nurturing approach from staff provides the young people with a strong sense of belonging. This support helps the young people to develop positive relationships with the others living there. The staff have also worked hard to build trusting relationships, and have developed good attachments with the young people. During the inspection, the young people appeared very relaxed in the company of staff and were engaging with them positively. As a result, the young people are settled, improve their behaviour and develop their social skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and managers have high aspirations for the young people, including education attainment. This involves working closely with schools and colleges to support and adapt plans to enable young people to access education, particularly in situations where young people find it difficult to attend on a regular basis. Teaching staff spoken to during the inspection said that, ‘the staff were very supportive’, and that they ‘try hard to encourage young people into school and always attend education meetings’. However, the staff and managers recognised that at times the education process had its limitations and did not always achieve the desired outcome. In situations when education arrangements were not satisfactory or had deteriorated, the manager advocated on behalf of the young people. This included challenging the wider network in an attempt to secure alternative arrangements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some young people move into the home with an established smoking habit. Staff work proactively with them to educate them about the risks and to help them stop. However, while this work is being done, young people are allowed to smoke a limited amount of cigarettes per day outside in the grounds. Managers are clear that the staff do not provide or purchase cigarettes for young people, but there is a risk that this practice may lead to young people believing that smoking is condoned. Leaders and managers are Inspection report children’s home: SC013613 5 fully aware of this, but consider it part of the longer-term risk management strategy to keep them safe.

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

Young people benefit from high levels of supervision from staff who are committed to keeping them safe. This includes staff working as a team to ensure that boundaries and routines are consistently applied. Regular key-work sessions are used to help the young people understand the expectations and consequences of their actions should they disobey the rules. Incidents of young people putting themselves at risk of harm through their behaviours are very low. Records viewed as part of the inspection show that there has been a reduction in young people engaging in risk-taking behaviour since moving in. This is largely due to the high levels of attention they receive.

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

Incidents of challenging behaviour are managed effectively. Skilful staff use a restorative approach to address the root cause. Meaningful conversations take place with the young people to help them understand the reason why they have behaved in a particular way, the impact of their behaviour and how they can repair the damage. At times, this may include seeking advice from the police about what action to take, if any. This tactic is a conscious decision taken by managers to not punish or criminalise the young people.

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

Combined documentation provides an overview of each young person’s needs. This includes individual risk assessments, care plans and behaviour management plans. Overseen by leaders and managers, these plans provide the staff with clear guidance about how to meet the identified needs and help the young people to achieve the desired outcomes. However, potentially harmful toiletries such as aerosols are automatically locked in a cupboard located in the staff office. While this practice eliminates the risk of the young people self-harming with these items, it does not consider their individual circumstances or prepare them to manage these everyday items safely in the future.

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

Safeguarding incidents are minimal, but well-trained staff know how to recognise and report concerns. A clear protocol details the steps for the staff to follow should concerns arise. However, not all staff are familiar with the role of the designated officer in relation to managing allegations against staff. This gap in knowledge could result in the staff not taking immediate advice and guidance should this situation occur.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home continues to be run by an experienced and qualified manager who is highly regarded by external colleagues, including the police and social workers. Her leadership style has created an environment where the staff are supported to develop both personally and professionally, and the children are looked after by caring and competent staff. During the inspection, it was very clear that the manager knows the young people extremely well and is actively involved in overseeing their day-to-day care, while carrying Inspection report children’s home: SC013613 6 out her other duties.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have addressed the staff shortages that have affected the team’s morale, on and off, during the past year. Steps taken include recruiting new staff and using regular temporary staff to provide consistency. They have also followed good practice guidance to fill vacancies, and as a result only staff with relevant experience and skills are employed to work at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Comprehensive induction and training programmes provide the staff with the underpinning knowledge required to deliver care consistent with the ethos of the home. This includes training all staff in therapeutic care, which is fundamental in how they work. However, some new staff have not been able to access the course within a timeframe that would be helpful to their practice. While this does not appear to have had a negative impact, the absence of more in depth training in this area could create a divide in the team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The supervision arrangements for the staff are variable. The format and quality of records differs between supervisors, and not all records evidence the opportunity for the staff to reflect on their practice. Equally, the impact of training is not scrutinised. However, staff spoken to during the inspection said that they felt supported and had regular conversations with their managers outside of meetings, to discuss their role and task. This included routinely discussing the therapeutic model of care used in everyday practice.

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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: SC013613 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cornerways Children’s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Ashcombe Court, Woolsack Way, Godalming, Surrey GU7 1LQ

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Inspector

Amanda Harvey, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC013613 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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