Children's home run by Keys Childcare Limited in Belfast

Inspection report children’s home: SC400219 1 SC400219 Registered provider: Keys Care 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 a number owned and managed by a private organisation. The home currently works with female young people who may have experienced trauma through physical, emotional, sexual abuse or neglect and who may have been involved in child sexual exploitation. It is registered to care for five young people. The registered manager has managed the home since August 2012.

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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: good

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Good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: SC400219 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/08/2017 Full Good 23/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 30/11/2016 Full Good 24/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC400219 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

16: Statement of purpose The registered person must— (a) keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and (b) notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16(3)) 18/05/2018

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Recommendations

 Ensure that, in line with their individual health plans and the ethos of the home, children are offered advice, support and guidance on health and well-being. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.18) In particular, closer monitoring of young people’s diets when they are on an independence plan, so that staff can provide appropriate advice and guidance on cooking healthy meals.  Ensure that staff are able to recognise and address different types of abuse such as peer abuse and bullying in day-to-day relationships in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.16) In particular, that records of incidents of concern are recorded in a central log to enable staff to closely monitor them, so that they can escalate concerns if required.  Records of restraint must be kept and should enable the registered person and

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Recommendations

staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint to identify effective practice and respond promptly where any issues or trends of concern emerge. The review should provide the opportunity for amending practice to ensure that it meets the needs of each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59) In particular, that debriefs with staff are undertaken individually and by a Inspection report children’s home: SC400219 4 manager not involved in the incident, so that they can be assured of the accuracy of the recording and allow staff the opportunity to express any concerns about the management of the incident.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people benefit from the care that is provided to them by a stable staff team. Staff understand the young people very well, appreciating the implications of the young people’s earlier life experiences on their current behaviour and presentation. One young person commented, ‘Most of the staff are great. I will really miss them when I leave here, but I do plan to keep in contact with them.’ Young people enjoy the time that they spend with staff and some very positive relationships exist between them. Young people engage in activities with staff, who work hard to ensure that young people are able to pursue their individual interests such as attending a Caribbean dance group. Young people also get involved in voluntary work. Consequently, improvements in young people’s confidence and self-esteem are evident. All young people attend the on-site education provision. They attend regularly and accept this as part of their daily routine. Improvements in their education attainment are

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

evident. They are preparing to sit national examinations and are timetabling revision time into their daily planners, so that they can maximise their educational potential. Young people make good progress in developing their independence skills. They are learning to budget and do their own cooking, and benefit from a separate kitchen in the home to prepare their own meals. However, records indicate poor menu planning and an unhealthy diet for some young people catering for themselves, with insufficient guidance from staff on how to improve this. Staff ensure that they address young people’s physical and emotional health needs. All young people meet with the organisation’s therapist on a regular basis, who is also available for staff consultation. A consistent approach by staff is helping young people to learn how to manage their behaviour and, as a result, their challenging behaviours are reducing.

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

Young people feel safe living in the home. Young people have been targeted by youths in the local community, but staff have taken swift action to address this. Regular meetings between the registered manager and the local police, along with the installation of CCTV outside of the property, have successfully alleviated the problem. Staff manage risk well. Good-quality risk assessments show an understanding of the concerns for each young person and the strategies staff need to use to reduce risk. Good staffing levels assist with this process. A sound understanding of child sexual exploitation means that staff are alert to behaviours of concern and this enables them to Inspection report children’s home: SC400219 5 talk confidently about these issues with young people. Although young people go missing from the home on occasion, incidents significantly decrease following young people’s admission to the home. If young people do go

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

missing from home, staff respond swiftly due to the vulnerability of those in their care. Staff are pro-active and work extremely hard to try to locate the missing young person. This may involve travelling a considerable distance to the area where they believe the young person to be. Staff maintain a detailed chronology and they liaise well with other safeguarding bodies. Staff successfully de-escalate the majority of behavioural incidents. Physical interventions are only needed on rare occasions to keep individuals safe. Debriefs with young people and staff are evident following an incident. However, staff debriefs are undertaken by staff involved in the incident and with all the staff involved at the same time. Consequently, this does not afford staff the opportunity to express any concerns about the handling of the incident by their colleagues. Young people get along with each other the majority of the time and staff support them

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

to value each other’s opinions. However, young people sometimes struggle with the dynamics of group living. Incidents do occur between them that require staff assistance. Staff intervene when required and complete restorative work successfully. However, staff do not keep a separate chronological log of incidents. This would help to identify any patterns or trends in relation to these.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager knows the staff and young people extremely well. She has a management qualification and chooses to lead by example, which staff appreciate. She is passionate about achieving the best outcomes for young people and will advocate strongly for them. Staff receive regular supportive supervision and an annual performance appraisal. The manager also prioritises training and development opportunities for staff. This helps to motivate staff, who demonstrate a commitment to working in the home. The majority of staff have the minimum level 3 qualification, ensuring that young people receive support from suitably qualified staff. The home operates in accordance with its statement of purpose. However, although this has been revised since the last inspection, a copy was not sent to Ofsted. In addition, it does not contain details about the operation of the CCTV, or correct staffing details.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works well with other professionals involved with young people. They speak positively about her enthusiasm and commitment. Social workers say that staff keep them up to date with any developments and they always feel welcome when they visit the home. The manager is aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. She is keen to drive forward improvements. Action has been taken to meet the five recommendations resulting from the last full inspection of the home. Inspection report children’s home: SC400219 6

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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: SC400219 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Laganwood House, Newforge Lane, Belfast BT9 5NW

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Melanie Kavanagh

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Inspector

Mandy Williams, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC400219 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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