Children's Home run by Anderida Adolescent Care Ltd in East Sussex

Inspection report children’s home: SC028536 1 SC028536 Registered provider: Anderida Adolescent Care

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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 setting is registered to accommodate up to two young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. Therapeutic counselling is provided. It is owned by a private company.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 15 and 16 February 2018

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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: SC028536 2

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Key findings from this inspection

 This well-managed home prioritises the safety and well-being of the young people.  Staff engage young people in education and support them in obtaining their preferred courses or employment opportunities.  Robust action is taken when young people go missing from the home. Staff take a proactive approach to ensuring young people’s safe return.  Therapeutic intervention is effective in helping young people to make progress in all areas of their lives.  A stable staff team builds positive, trusting relationships with the young people.  The manager and staff advocate strongly for young people. They support positive moves for young people when they move on from 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

 Staff agree rules and expectations about mobile phone and internet use. However, a formal written agreement is not in place to refer to and be reviewed.  Staff do not proactively seek the outcome of external safeguarding investigations.  Restraint records are not always completed by someone independent of the person who was involved in the restraint.  Initial assessments do not specifically include the impact on the young person who is already living in the home.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 13/07/2016 Full Good 22/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 17/12/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC028536 3

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Recommendations

 Children’s reasonable preferences in relation to day-to-day arrangements should be met with consideration given to safeguarding, particularly in relation to the use of technology. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 17, paragraph 3.21) In particular, in relation to completing a written agreement with children so that they know staff will keep them safe in regards to appropriate online and/or mobile phone use.  Staff should support children to understand how to ask for help in order to stay safe and that the home is an environment which supports this. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.10) In particular, children should be informed of the outcome of any disclosures made.  The registered person should ensure that all incidents of control, discipline and restraint are subject to systems of regular scrutiny to ensure that the use is fair.

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Recommendations

(‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.36) In particular, in relation to restraints where the registered person is involved, these should be reviewed and discussed by someone not involved in the restraint and that records evidence this.  When considering new placements, the registered manager should fully consider the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children and evidence their judgement, supporting compatibility with existing residents. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff prepare the young people effectively for when they move in. The use of a personalised children’s guide and staff photographs help them to recognise the staff when they arrive. Each young person is encouraged to personalise their bedroom, which encourages them to help feel they belong. Thorough initial assessments inform care plans, which equip the staff with the knowledge to care for young people. However, the impact specifically on the young person already living in the home is not evidenced. Early planning in respect of potential difficulties is missed. Staff prioritise the educational needs of the young people. They work closely with teachers, college tutors and the local authority to ensure that young people access education. Where education plans need changing, staff work with the young person and placing authority to ensure that new plans are made as quickly as possible. Where a Inspection report children’s home: SC028536 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

young person does not attend school full time, an individualised timetable is devised. A strength of the home is the use of therapeutic ways of working, which enable young people to understand how their behaviours affect them. Staff’s therapeutic interventions aid young people to make positive changes and good progress. Therapists and staff work with the young people’s families to ensure that they have the skills to care for the young people. Young people are consequently able to work towards their goal to return home. Staff interactions are effective in helping young people make positive changes in their lives. Young people who have previously been at risk of misusing illegal substances have had intensive input, including reflective and educative key-work sessions. As a result, one young person has significantly reduced his use of illegal substances. Staff encourage young people to work towards independence and complete pathway

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

plans and learn new skills. One young person is able to budget, shop and cook for herself without support from staff. She proudly spoke about gaining paid employment following work experience. Staff work closely with local authorities to find appropriate placements to ensure that young people are successful in moving on. Staff challenge the local authority if they feel that the plans made are not in the young person’s best interest. They ensure that external professionals, such as advocates, are available to young people.

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

Safeguarding and the welfare of young people is central to staff’s everyday thinking about the care that they provide. Staff follow clear safeguarding policies and procedures. An incident involving a young person was responded to swiftly and lessons learned, resulted in more surveillance in the home. The registered person ensures that this surveillance device is regularly reviewed to ensure that it remains necessary and effective. The staff responded to an historic disclosure by immediately reporting this to professionals. The local authority investigated this issue. However, staff have not obtained the outcome of the investigation to inform the young person. Missing from home episodes have significantly reduced. One young person who went missing regularly from previous placements does not go missing from the home. When this young person went missing from his local area, staff did their utmost to locate him.

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

They travelled to the area daily, encouraging him to return and liaising with the family and local police. This approach demonstrates to young people that they are cared for and are important. An ethos of restorative justice and appropriate consequences help young people to manage their behaviours. Sanctions are appropriate to the behaviour, and young people learn to take responsibility for their actions. Staff clearly understand safe internet use policies. They provide the young people with education about risks in the cyber world. Measures such as using software to restrict access to risky sites and time-limited wi-fi access are agreed with the young people. However, these safety measures are not included in the children’s guide, and there is no Inspection report children’s home: SC028536 5 written agreement in place to formalise the rules and responsibilities for the young people. This does not ensure that young people understand the consequences of

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

misuse. Staff reinforce rules and boundaries which young people generally adhere to. Staff discuss young people’s behaviour at team and group therapy meetings, and the strategies agreed inform behaviour plans and risk assessments. Restraint log entries are signed by the manager. However, he also signs restraints records when he has been involved in the restraint and gains the views of the young person. External analysis and evaluation of such incidents is, therefore, not evident. Young people do not have the opportunity to discuss restraints with someone who is impartial. Consequently, staff cannot gain insight from the young person’s experience to inform future interventions. The manager has established an effective partnership working with the local community police officer. The police officer responds positively to requests to meet with young people and gives them guidance in regards to the law and their safety. This has been

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

effective in deterring one young person from breaking property in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has been newly registered with Ofsted. He is supported by the deputy manager who is undertaking the level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare. They work effectively to manage the home and support the staff team. Stringent recruitment processes are in place to safeguard young people from unsuitable adults caring for them. All checks on prospective employees are undertaken before they commence work. Newly employed staff undertake training and shadowing opportunities prior to working with the young people. The home is well resourced and has a stable and skilled team of care staff. Recent staff absences have not impacted on the running of the home. Staff who are familiar to the young people work in the home, ensuring consistency of care for the young people. The majority of staff have an appropriate qualification. Those who do not are currently enrolled or completing the course.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Management oversight of care plans ensures that these accurately reflect the needs of the young people and are reviewed to reflect any changes. Care plans clearly identify the goals that young people are working towards, and provide staff with detailed guidelines on how to support the young people to achieve these. A point reward system and ‘star of the week’ is effective in motivating the young people. Leaders and managers maintain positive working relationships with stakeholders. A social worker reported, ‘This is an excellent service delivery, excellent communication and excellent outcome for my client.’ Parents report good communication between them and the staff. This helps them to remain involved in their children’s lives. A young person who previously lived in the home wrote a note stating, ‘You have helped me achieve what I wanted, keeping me in has helped me and I know that now.’ Supervisions are reflective and help to identify areas of professional development. The

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Inspection report children’s home: SC028536 6 young people’s safety and their individual needs feature prominently in staff supervision records and team meetings. The manager prioritises the professional development of the team in order to build a strong, cohesive team. A member of staff said, ‘I love working here, it’s the favourite home I’ve worked in.’ The manager is committed to developing the service by learning through monitoring processes and sharing information with sister homes within the organisation. The independent visitor feedback is valued by the manager. The manager acts on recommendations and actions immediately. He is committed to providing the highest standard of care for the young people.

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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: SC028536 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Anderida Adolescent Care

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 6a Neville Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN22 8HR

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Inspector:

Suzy Lemmy, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC028536 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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