Children's home run by Nottingham City Council in Nottingham

Inspection report children’s home: SC424351 1 SC424351 Registered provider: Nottingham City Council

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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 home is operated by the local authority. The home provides medium- to long-term care for two children and/or young people who are unable to live with their parents/carers.

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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 outstanding

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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: none Inspection report children’s home: SC424351 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/05/2017 Full Good 09/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 05/10/2016 Full Good 08/12/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC424351 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

This home is successful in caring for young people who require medium- and long-term placements. Young people benefit from the stability provided. They receive care and support from a highly skilled staff team. Well-balanced daily routines promote growth, development and social interaction.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work hard to develop trusting and positive relationships with young people. Young people develop strong attachments to staff. Some young people have been clear that they do not want to live in a children’s home. Regardless of this, staff persevere in forming positive relationships. They are patient and resilient in gaining the trust of young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a thorough understanding of the health, emotional, social and psychological needs of all the young people. This means that they are successful in supporting young people to make progress and develop. Social workers and mental health professionals commend staff on their knowledge and insight.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All young people have education placements. Staff and managers are ambitious for young people. They encourage them to fulfil their potential. Some young people are unsure about their career choices. In these cases, staff ensure that young people are supported to consider a range of options.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, this home has supported young people to move to semi- independence. This has been in response to situations where young people have expressed a need for increased independence. Staff have ensured that there is effective preparation for young people to live more independently, improving the long-term life chances of young people.

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How well young people are helped and protected: good

Safeguarding arrangements continue to be very good. Safeguarding practice is rigorously audited through internal and external monitoring. This ensures that safeguarding standards are high.

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How well young people are helped and protected: good

Since the last inspection, young people have gone missing and have had unauthorised absences from the home. Experienced staff are effective in managing these situations. They are tenacious in locating young people, maintaining contact and encouraging them to return to the home. When young people return to the home, they always have an independent return home interview. This means that staff capture essential information about why young people leave the home, where they go and any possible risks.

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How well young people are helped and protected: good

Behaviour management is a strength of this home. There have been no physical interventions since the last inspection. Staff are skilled at de-escalating incidents and Inspection report children’s home: SC424351 4 diverting young people from negative behaviours. All staff have up-to-date physical intervention training.

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How well young people are helped and protected: good

Partnership working with the police and safeguarding agencies is effective. Staff work well with other agencies and with parents to protect young people from the risk of harm. There has been one allegation made against staff since the last inspection. Managers acted quickly. They followed safeguarding guidance and demonstrated robust safeguarding practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager for this home provides excellent leadership. She demonstrates in-depth knowledge and skills in residential childcare. She is highly accomplished in managing small children’s homes. She successfully manages two children’s homes. These homes have consistently received Ofsted judgements of good since 2015.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has a clear understanding of young people’s plans, needs and progress. She has rigorous systems in place to track the progress that young people make. This means that she is able to demonstrate how the home is having a positive impact on young people’s long-term outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Partnership arrangements with parents and professionals are very positive. Social care professionals report that they have high levels of satisfaction with the quality of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The management team uses a range of monitoring systems to promote continual improvement. Rigorous external quality assurance inspections inform the development and improvement of service provision. Extensive internal monitoring identifies areas of strength and areas for improvement. Combined, these monitoring systems are very effective in continually driving up standards.

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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 Inspection report children’s home: SC424351 5 to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. Inspection report children’s home: SC424351 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Nottingham City Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Loxley House, Station Street, Nottingham, Nottingham NG2 3NG

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Inspector(s)

Amanda Ellis, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC424351 7 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(s)

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Inspector(s)

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Inspector(s)

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: http://www.gov.uk/ofsted

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