Children's home run by Pebbles Care Limited in Leeds

Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 1 SC379274 Registered provider: Pebbles Care Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four children or young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. It is operated by a private organisation.

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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: improved effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 2

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Key findings from this inspection

 Transitions are very well managed. Young people are supported effectively to move in and out of the home.  Young people have developed positive bonds with a committed staff team.  Young people’s educational outcomes have significantly improved.  Healthcare needs are well planned and prioritised, which has resulted in improved overall health.  Staff promote a wide range of social opportunities, which have enhanced the emotional health and social development of young people.  Staff celebrate diversity and actively encourage young people to develop and retain their own identity and understand their culture and heritage.  Young people have reduced risk-taking behaviour while living at the home. They have become increasingly safe.  The staff team has accessed enhanced levels of training, which has provided it with the skills and knowledge to meet the needs of young people in its care.  Staff report that they are well supported and experience good leadership in the

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Key findings from this inspection

home.  There is an effective plan in place to ensure that the home is competently managed while awaiting the new manager to start her role.  Young people and placing authorities have provided positive feedback about the home.

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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

 One young person was subject to a behaviour contract linked with family contact. This was driven by the placing authority but is not a permissible sanction.  Sanctions have not been the subject of debriefings with staff and young people.  Some care-planning documentation was not held securely at the home.  The quality of care review does not demonstrate how feedback is used to improve and evolve the service.  Some minor typing errors in record-keeping practices were identified. Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 16/11/2016 Full Good 15/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 15/12/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 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 following measures may not be used to discipline any child— any restriction, other than one imposed by a court or in accordance with regulation 22 (contact and access to communications), on— a child’s contact with parents, relatives or friends. (Regulation 19(2)(c)(i)) 18/03/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (‘the authorised person’)— has spoken to the user about the measure; and has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. Within five days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35(3)(b)(i)(ii) and (c)) 18/03/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child which— include the information and documents listed in schedule 3 in relation to each child. (Regulation 36(1)(a)) 18/03/2018

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45(5)) 31/08/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce related requirements of regulation 16 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should be updated to include any new training and qualifications completed by staff while working at the 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)  Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff at the home work hard to build strong and positive relationships with young people. They have developed structured but nurturing routines to help young people build a sense of stability and security in their home. Young people are provided with a guide to the home and are aware of their rights and entitlements. Regular meetings take place where young people are encouraged to provide their views on their day-to-day care arrangements. There is evidence that those views are taken seriously and responded to appropriately, which enhances relationships between young people and staff. One social worker said: ‘I have done direct work with [Name] she is very happy with the staff, she feels she can really talk to them.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people have made excellent progress in their education. One young person has a history of non-attendance of education, but is now enrolled in and attends local provision. Another young person’s attendance and attainment have improved considerably since moving into the home. Young people have positive aspirations, and the staff team provides ongoing encouragement and support. This will assist young people to achieve economic well-being in the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Healthcare planning is excellent. Young people are registered with local services and attend check-ups and specialist appointments to address their healthcare needs. Young people are encouraged to eat a balanced diet and lead an active lifestyle, all of which contributes to helping them achieve enhanced health outcomes. Staff have supported one young person to improve his sleep routine. This has had a positive impact on his emotional well-being. Another young person has lost weight, which has improved both her physical health and self-esteem. This is good progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All young people are encouraged and supported to access positive, structured activities and explore their interests and talents. Young people are accessing the local gym, trampoline parks, ice-skating and swimming activities. This enhances their emotional Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 6 well-being and social development. One young person said: ‘They take me places all the time, they take me to see my sister. I go out for meals.’ When possible, young people are encouraged to cook and undertake basic household tasks to promote their independence in an age-appropriate way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are supported to have contact with their families and people who are important to them in accordance with the placing authority’s plans. On one occasion, one young person’s contact arrangements were linked to a behavioural contract implemented by the placing authority social worker. This is an unacceptable method of improving behaviour and while contact has ceased for safeguarding reasons, leaders and staff must challenge the placing authority if a similar request is made in the future. A requirement is made to address this matter.

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

Young people feel safe at the home. They have comprehensive risk management plans that identify all known risks to their safety. The plans provide staff with detailed actions to take to respond to risk and minimise the impact on the safety of young people. There have been occasions when staff have physically intervened during incidents of challenging behaviour to ensure that young people are kept safe in the home. The actions of staff were proportionate and the standard of record-keeping is high. The manager has debriefed both staff and young people and has evaluated the incident to ensure that any learning from incidents is embedded into future practice.

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

When young people have been missing from home, staff have been proactive in searching for them and reporting the incidents to all appropriate agencies. Independent return interviews are carried out and the manager evaluates the outcomes to prevent recurrence. On occasions, the records of missing incidents lack clarity. For instance, the times that action had been taken are not always clear. A best-practice recommendation is made to enhance this area of practice.

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

Staff take appropriate action to reduce any potential risks to young people. They carry out direct key-work sessions and seek support from external services when necessary. When risks are identified, immediate action is taken to safeguard the young person. Young people are encouraged to take responsibility for their own actions and to reflect on their behaviour. There is an emphasis on positive encouragement and reward for good behaviour in the home. When sanctions are given to address behaviour, they are restorative in nature. Leaders have not routinely scrutinised the records made of sanctions or spoken with both staff and young people afterwards. This is a missed opportunity to ensure that any trends are noted and that young people are treated fairly. A requirement is made to address this shortfall.

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

There have been three allegations made about the conduct of staff members. On all occasions, the manager has taken appropriate action to safeguard young people. She has notified all external agencies required and has fully supported any investigations into the conduct of staff and the young person concerned. All allegations were found to be unsubstantiated. The physical environment in the home is well maintained and staff Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 7 follow appropriate health and safety and fire safety procedures to minimise hazards in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, the home has been managed by a permanent, suitably qualified and experienced registered manager. Two weeks prior to the inspection she left her position following her contractual notice period. In the interim, the home is being managed by a competent and experienced deputy manager who benefited from a detailed and thorough handover process prior to starting the role. She is being very well supported by another manager and the responsible individual in the organisation. The deputy manager already has a good relationship with both the staff team and the young people who live at the home. She is currently working towards the required level 5 leadership qualification and will continue to support a newly appointed manager who will commence her role in March 2018.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff report that the home is well managed. Records demonstrate that the team has regular supervision, training and team meetings, which enables its practice to develop continually and assists it in meeting the needs of the young people in its care. Most of the staff have achieved the level 3 diploma in residential childcare or are currently working towards this. A workforce development plan is used to ensure that leaders have oversight of training requirements. This has not always been kept fully up to date and a best-practice recommendation is made to enhance this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and staff are effective in ensuring that the service prioritises the needs of the young people and meets the aims and objectives outlined in the statement of purpose. Leaders have made good use of internal and external monitoring systems and are constantly developing the service. They have not explicitly demonstrated how the service evolves based on the feedback gathered from young people and other stakeholders in the quality of care review. A requirement is made to address this matter.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff regularly evaluate the progress of young people. Effective care planning ensures that young people are making good progress across their development and against their individual goals. Placing authorities have provided highly complimentary feedback about the service. A social worker said: ‘[Name] has made amazing progress. I am delighted with the placement.’ Another social worker said: ‘He made lots of positive progress there, especially in terms of his independence skills. He also began to attend education again after a long gap and they encouraged him to pursue his interests.’ Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 8

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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: SC379274 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pebbles Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Rouse House, 2 Wyther Lane, Kirkstall, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS5 3BT

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Inspector

Nicola Thomas, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC379274 10 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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