Children's Home run by Homes 2 Inspire Limited in North Northamptonshire

Inspection report children’s home: 1256061 1 Registered provider: Homes2Inspire 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 privately owned children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to five children and young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 13 to 14 February 2018

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: This is the first inspection of the home since being re- registered under new ownership in May 2017.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: Not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 1256061 2

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Key findings from this inspection

This children’s home is outstanding because:

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Key findings from this inspection

 The passion and commitment of the leadership team stands out as exceptional. Together, the registered manager and his deputy ensure that the highest quality of inspirational and nurturing care is provided.  Young people are settled, happy and have built warm and enduring relationships with staff. Comments from young people include: ’I can tell that the staff actually care about the kids here. They know us well. If we are down they can tell and always spend time trying to help.’  Young people feel safe and are confident to talk to staff about any worries that they may have.  Young people who have complex and diverse individual needs make exceptional and sustained progress.  The team does not give up on young people when placements become strained. Staff work cohesively and proactively with external agencies to strengthen placement planning and improve outcomes for young people.  Comprehensive and effectively implemented risk management strategies keep

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Key findings from this inspection

young people safe.  Young people generally have a very positive attitude towards education. They know that this is important to their future lives. A young person spoke to the inspector confidently about his plans to attend university.  The work undertaken to prepare young people for living independently stands out as a strength. A young person who has successfully moved into a supported living arrangement contributed to this inspection, saying: ‘I could not have asked for anything better. I would not be where I am without them. They have helped me with everything.’

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Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s areas for development:

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

N/A Inspection report children’s home: 1256061 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Young people enjoy settled placements and are clearly confident in the care that they receive. The happy, sociable and relaxed atmosphere provides young people with a homely and very positive living environment. Comments from professionals include: ‘From the moment I first walked through the door, I could feel that the relaxed, but caring, nature of the home is instilled in the character of the staff and residents.’ Young people receive excellent support to settle when they first move into the home. As a result, they are relaxed and able to quickly take advantage of the broad services and support available to them. Every opportunity is taken to engage young people in group and individual care arrangements. Their views are routinely captured and are tangible within placement planning. As a result, they feel consulted with and valued. When placements become strained, staff work tirelessly with external partner agencies and families to refocus care

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

and safeguarding plans. A parent of a young person who has recently left the home spoke very positively about the way the team had tried to engage her son. A professional said: ‘I think they provided him with a period of stability, warmth and stimulation. While they were unable to get him to school, this was not through want of trying.’ Education is prioritised in the home. Most young people embrace their education and have aspirations for the future. One young person reflected in conversation that the care he has received underpins his ambition to attend university. One young person said: ‘Before I came here I missed out on three years of school. When I moved in here I went to school immediately.’ Exciting opportunities for new and preferred activities are facilitated. On the first day of the inspection, two boys greatly enjoyed a trip to the zoo and talked happily about a trip the previous day to a train museum. Young people value the individual memory books

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

produced for them by their key workers. This enables each young person to reminisce through pictures on the time spent at this home and the activities that they have shared. Staff are consistently enthusiastic and totally committed to promoting improved positive outcomes for the young people in their care. Parents and professionals consistently report an extremely positive view about young people’s experiences at this home. One parent said: ‘They never gave up on him. Even when he was at rock bottom and said he hated them, they stood by him and I can’t thank them enough.’ A young person, who has now returned to live at home and works full-time in the community, contributed the following to the inspection: ‘I learned so much from staff.’ He confirmed that he felt very well supported and referred to his care as ‘amazing’. Another young person said: ‘They have put me on the good road I am now on. They will not give up on any of us.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Young people are healthy and benefit from the emphasis placed on the promotion of good physical and emotional health. Healthy eating and physical exercise are encouraged. A group of staff and young people spoke excitedly about engaging together in a sponsored walk. The emphasis placed on good health means that young people will Inspection report children’s home: 1256061 4 develop improved self-awareness and will be more able to manage their own health in the future. Staff have an excellent understanding about generic mental health issues and also demonstrate a detailed understanding of individual needs. A mental health professional reported positively about the way that the team has supported the complex and challenging emotional health of a particular young person.

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

Effectively implemented child protection and safeguarding polices minimise risk and ensure young people’s safety and well-being. Staff spend one-to-one time talking to young people about safeguarding issues and protective behaviours, for example internet safety and anger management. As a result, young people have become safer over time. A parent said: ‘When he (a young person) first went there he was a timid, angry little boy. Now he has turned out to be a lovely young man.’ Young people have a strong sense of safety and security. High levels of support and effective supervision ensure that young people are protected. All young people are confident to speak to staff if they have a concern. Staff have an excellent understanding of the differing and complex vulnerabilities of each of the young people and are confident in implementing the detailed risk management plans. Clear and consistent boundaries are embedded within the culture of the home, which

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

adds to young people’s sense of security. Individual behaviour management strategies are well developed. Young people know what is expected of them and most present relatively few challenges. This is linked to the support provided and the strong relationships between staff and young people. While physical intervention is used at times to keep young people safe, this is used appropriately, with most holds lasting only seconds to redirect young people. There have been no incidents of young people being deemed as formally missing from the home since the home was re-registered in May 2017. This is linked to the stability of placements and the value young people place on their care. Staff remain vigilant regarding the potential for young people to go missing and have effective links with relevant police officers. Feedback comments from external agencies clarify a positive view of staff endeavours when one young person presented with a pattern of failing to

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

return to the home as expected. Staff knew where the young person was and worked tirelessly to secure his prompt return to the home and re-engagement in his placement. There have been three allegations made against staff, but each allegation has been responded to promptly and appropriately. Feedback from involved professionals and parents confirms that allegations have been managed appropriately.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leadership and management is highly efficient and is underpinned by passion, drive and commitment which stands out as exceptional. The registered manager is very experienced and is appropriately qualified. The management team does not accept second best and sets extremely high standards for the care provided. Staff welcome this and confidently link the ambitious care achieved to Inspection report children’s home: 1256061 5 the registered manager’s drive and style. This is clearly a very happy place to work, where the team members support and respect each other. Staff refer to this as their second home. The enthusiastic, self-motivation of the team is both delightful to see and is also quite unique. Referrals are thoroughly considered and needs are matched to the existing group. Staff and managers talk enthusiastically about the contribution a recently admitted young person has made to group living. This demonstrates that, with careful matching, young

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

people quickly settle and develop an identity in the home. The emphasis placed on the meeting of individual needs, supporting wishes and feelings and the promotion of tolerance and understanding of others is outstanding. As a result, young people learn how to share and to wait their turn. They enjoy each other’s company and have developed firm attachments with each other and with staff. The management team drives forward service development at every opportunity and readily responds to learning points as they arise. The quality of management oversight and monitoring is highly effective. The manager has a broad understanding of each young person’s individual needs and the progress that they are making. He quickly and persistently challenges external agencies when he feels additional care is required to meet specific needs. Staff development and support is prioritised. Endless opportunities are taken to develop

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

practice and to ensure that staff understand, and meet, their roles and responsilbities. The organisation operates an ever-evolving core training programme, with refresher courses provided as and when required. Additional training is accessed to support learning in relation to the needs of specific young people, for example attachment and loss, autistic spectrum disorder awareness, and the impact of trauma on young people. The manager follows up on all training, expecting staff to demonstrate and share their learning. Staff are challenged to spend time on private study, and to write reviews to evidence their learning. This means that staff are confident, knowledgeable and know how best to meet individual and group needs.

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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 Inspection report children’s home: 1256061 6 children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. Inspection report children’s home: 1256061 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Homes2Inspire Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Prospects House, 19 Elmfield Road, Bromley BR1 1LT

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Angela Muchatuta

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Inspector

Mary Timms, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1256061 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 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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