Children's home run by Medway Council in Medway

Inspection report children’s home: SC038070 1 SC038070 Registered provider: Medway Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is operated by a local authority. It provides residential care for up to eight young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. Currently, there are seven young people of both genders in residence.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 20 to 21 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

Date of last inspection: 14 February 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff have successfully created the feeling and atmosphere of a normal, busy family home, demonstrated by the warm and open relationships between the staff and young people. Inspection report children’s home: SC038070 2  Young people who move in are absorbed into the positive culture of the home. They develop a sense of belonging and worth and make progress in all areas.  What the young people think and feel about their care matters greatly to staff, and the culture of expression and contribution by the young people is embraced and nurtured.  The young people display a sense of pride, investment and ownership in their home and value the good-quality furnishings, fittings and facilities.  Leaders and managers constantly strive to push the limits to which the young people can achieve, accumulate positive memories and expand their experience of the world.

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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

 Leaders and managers need to establish robust and independent measures for ensuring that all those who may have regular contact with the young people meet vetting requirements. In particular, this refers to externally contracted workers.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/02/2017 Full Outstanding 12/07/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 07/03/2016 Full Good 21/08/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC038070 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety. The registered person may only— employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3). (Regulation 32 (2)(b)) 31/05/2018

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The positive and established culture of the home ensures that the young people who move in feel increasingly secure and develop a sense of belonging. The young people make progress in all the key areas, regardless of their starting points. Some young people move rapidly from being anxious and socially isolated to becoming full participants in all aspects of home life; others learn to manage chronic conditions with the patient and persistent support of staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Supporting young people, who have diverse needs, backgrounds and starting points, to live together as members of a purposeful group is a hallmark of this home. This is achieved by the maintenance of a cohesive staff group with a shared sense of purpose and commitment, together with a clear set of norms and values for the home. These include the ready, and welcomed, expression of the wishes and feelings of the young people in house meetings, key-working sessions and whenever the need arises. Respect and care for the physical environment of the home, the decor, the recreational equipment, as well as their bedrooms, is another value displayed by the young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff maintain a strong education and learning ethic. The young people are expected to engage fully in their education and are enrolled in mainstream schooling whenever possible. They are expected to make progress and achieve, and they do this with the encouragement and involvement of staff. Some young people arrive with histories of Inspection report children’s home: SC038070 4 chronic school avoidance and soon engage fully in their education and develop a real liking for school and extra-curricular activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The outward-looking approach of the staff team helps the young people to engage in community activities, develop their interests, explore their values and beliefs and develop a sense of their own identities. This is a very busy home, with the young people regularly participating in sport, church, musical and youth activities. These are interspersed with planned outings and activities in the community. Annual holidays are eagerly anticipated, and the young people are fully involved in the planning of these often ambitious journeys abroad.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When young people move in, this is seen as an opportunity by the staff to ensure that their routine health needs are being fully met and to ensure that they are receiving any necessary specialised care, such as orthodontic and counselling services. The young people are encouraged to take ownership of their healthcare and to be fully involved in all decisions relating to this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Placing social workers and independent reviewing officers spoke highly of this home. They said that good leadership, staffing stability, consistency in boundaries, the homely atmosphere and strong partnership working with external professionals are the key factors in the good progress that the young people make.

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

The young people feel safe and become safer because the staff team understands risk and cares about their progress and well-being.

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

Avoidable risks in the home are minimised by a consistent and meticulous practice of regular health and safety checks. Fire safety is maintained to a high standard through an imaginative and realistic approach to practice drills, as well as regular and thorough internal and external monitoring of systems and equipment.

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

The individual and specialised risks relating to each young person are clearly recorded and monitored. The reduction of these risks, wherever possible, is systematically addressed through targeted key-working, group activities and specialised care and is regularly reviewed. Staff are trained and knowledgeable about the specialised areas of risks such as exploitation, internet activity and extremism.

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

All the young people are encouraged and supported to take developmentally appropriate risks. These include challenging physical activities, as well those related to increasing independence through unsupervised shopping, use of public transport and free time. This means that the young people have meaningful opportunities to develop confidence, a sense of competence and learn how to keep themselves safe.

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

Incidents of young people going missing from the home are rare, and none has occurred during this inspection period. Even young people with established patterns of going missing from care have ceased this behaviour after moving in. A skilled, confident staff Inspection report children’s home: SC038070 5 team that is meaningfully engaged with the young people also results in a very low incidence and low level of restrictive physical intervention with the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

One significant example of a historical recruitment omission has become apparent. Additional recruitment checks were not conducted by the local authority at the time of an externally contracted auxiliary worker’s employment. Recent information demonstrates that this person, who no longer works at the home, may have posed a significant risk to the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The response of leaders and managers to this issue has been immediate and comprehensive. No other possible similar breaches to the safeguarding of the young people were identified. All reasonable steps to identify possible consequences for the well-being of the young people, as result of exposure to this person, have been taken but none found. However, given the possible harm to the progress, safety and well- being of the young people as a result of this failure, this shortfall tarnishes otherwise strong practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders’ and managers’ induction of new staff, and monitoring and supporting them during their probation period, are careful and attuned to their individual needs. Standards of supervision are high, and regular staff meetings are well attended and meaningful. There is a strong focus on providing consistent and high-quality care to the young people. Staff were observed during a meeting as being enthusiastic, committed and displaying good morale. Professional differences are aired in a healthy manner, within a shared sense of purpose and focus on the progress and well-being of the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are stimulated and developed by an approach to training that looks far beyond the matrix of mandatory modules and updates. Of note, there is a programme underway to train staff in counselling practice. This is aimed at enabling staff to meet the more specialised needs of the young people. A quiet room in the home has been set aside and tastefully and appropriately decorated to support this development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A wide spread of diversity across the staff group and the young people is a feature of this home, together with a celebration of differences and spirit of acceptance and inclusion. Staff know the young people very well and can talk about each one in a detailed manner and report on all aspects of their progress and development. There is, however, also a robust system in place that enables leaders and managers to readily monitor and report on this in a systematic and objective manner.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers display a very clear understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses and continually strive to improve and develop the service, as well as adapt the home to the changing needs of the young people who live there. Despite the high standards maintained, no areas of complacency are detectable, and ambition, enthusiasm and innovation to improve the experience of the young people remain prominent features of this home. Inspection report children’s home: SC038070 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: SC038070 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Medway Council, Gun Wharf, Dock Road, Chatham, Kent ME4 4TR

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Inspector:

John Pledger, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC038070 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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