Children's Home run by Idem Living Limited in Somerset

Inspection report children‟s home: SC489223 1 SC489223 Registered provider: Idem Living Ltd

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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 private provider. It is registered for two children but is occupied by one child.

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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 requires improvement to be 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: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children‟s home: SC489223 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/07/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good 23/05/2017 Full Inadequate 09/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 28/09/2016 Full Good Inspection report children‟s home: SC489223 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

13: The leadership and management standard The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children‟s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the structure of the team should be strengthened with the appointment of a deputy and all staff should be provided with additional training and clinical support to enable them to fully meet the needs of the child they are caring for. 22/06/2018

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children‟s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) and (2)(h)) 31/05/2018 Inspection report children‟s home: SC489223 4 In particular, this is in relation to the manager‟s oversight of complaint and physical restraint records. 32: Fitness of workers For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 32 (4)(a)(b)(5)(a)) 31/08/2018

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young person receives very personalised care and support. He has lived in the home for 18 months and the team members know him well and are dedicated to doing their best for him. They provide him with excellent emotional and psychological support and the young person knows he can turn to them for help.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The quality of relationships is excellent. The young person feels loved and trusts staff to act in his best interests. When difficulties arise, the team responds in a child-centred and robust way. Its practices reflect the home‟s statement of purpose, which states that young people will be helped to build positive relationships „through consistent honest, open and kind care‟.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help the young person to maintain several scrapbooks that detail his experiences and achievements, and cover topics such as holidays, gardening and well-being. The home has also created an electronic journal of the young person‟s journey since arriving at the home. Both of these pieces of work have been done with the young person and Inspection report children‟s home: SC489223 5 are valued by him. They symbolise the commitment of the staff to him.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well maintained and feels very much like a family home. The young person has a cat, which has recently had kittens The whole experience has been a very positive one, with the young person being supported to take great care of them. A recent redecoration programme has been carried out and the young person has been very involved in choosing colour schemes. The garden is a particularly attractive feature of the home. The young person has been supported to grow a wide range of fruit and vegetables and has gained pleasure, knowledge and skills from this process.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although there have been a number of changes in the staff team since the last inspection, these have been well managed and the young person has been able to maintain strong key relationships with the manager, responsible individual and core team members. The team has ensured that the young person is able to see members of his family regularly, welcoming them to the home and taking part in planned activities together.

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

The team provides a safe and nurturing home. The team members demonstrate a deep understanding of the young person‟s childhood experiences and how these continue to affect his current behaviour. They are compassionate and kind in their responses and have striven to secure external specialist help and support for the young person and themselves. At times, but not through their lack of effort, this has not always been good enough and senior managers have and will continue to escalate their concerns about this and advocate in the best interests of the young person in their care.

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

Since the last inspection there has been an improvement in how well staff understand and respond to safety concerns. Any child protection concerns are immediately shared. Detailed records are maintained and securely stored. Both the designated officer and social worker told the inspector that they have been very satisfied with how well the manager has communicated and worked effectively with them.

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

When the young person takes risks, the team responds in a thorough and caring way. Staff are diligent in their duties and the young person is kept appraised of what action they will take to help and protect him. They show in their actions that they do not want any harm to come to him. Afterwards, the young person is able to reflect on this and it has helped him to form strong attachments. During this inspection, the inspector discussed with the manager areas that could be explored to further assist the young person to manage his anxiety and develop ways to self-soothe. It is also important that staff have the opportunity to reflect on serious incidents and receive external support in addition to the support they receive within the home.

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

New staff are carefully recruited and all checks are carried out before they work with the young person. The young person says he thinks this is a „good home‟ and that staff help him to „feel safe‟. Inspection report children‟s home: SC489223 6

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The registered manager is a qualified social worker and an experienced residential homes manager. She has been managing the home since the last full inspection. She has addressed previous requirements and has introduced many improvements. She is the registered manager of this home and another home owned by the same company that also cares for one child. The manager feels supported in her role by the responsible individual who is very involved in the home and who is also an experienced social worker.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Currently the home does not have a deputy manager. This is an important area to address, to ensure that there are good deputising arrangements in place when the manager is fulfilling her responsibilities elsewhere. At the time of the inspection, interviews were scheduled to take place and there are also plans to initiate a senior residential worker role within the home. These staffing arrangements will strengthen the structure of the team, provide clearer lines of accountability and give staff opportunities to develop.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The provision of training is good. Induction is particularly robust, with new staff completing a wide range of training and up to ten shadow shifts. Because of the complex and changing needs of the young person, it was identified that some additional, focused training and clinical support should be provided to staff to enhance their skills and give them opportunities to reflect on their practice and how they can make further improvements to benefit the young person in their care. After some difficulties with a previous trainer, staff are making progress in achieving their level 3 diploma in residential childcare. One member of staff has exceeded the two-year timescale and during this inspection a revised timescale was agreed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager has made considerable improvements to the records in the home. A particular strength is the provision of child-friendly versions of many important records, including the placement and healthcare plan. The manager has oversight of all records and maintains them in a secure and organised way. The inspector identified two areas to improve. Complaint records should clearly state whether a complaint has been upheld or not and what action has been taken to address any shortfalls, including lessons learned. Records pertaining to physical restraint should not only be signed off by the manager, but also include comments about the incident and resulting practice and whether there is scope to make further improvements. The manager is in the process of redesigning the office, which doubles as a staff bedroom. Her intention is to transform it into a family- style study in which the young person will be welcome. This is a positive improvement

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

and one which reflects the inclusive ethos of the home. Inspection report children‟s home: SC489223 7

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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: SC489223 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Newlands, 1a Huyton Hey Road, Liverpool L36 5SE

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Inspector

Norma Welsby, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC489223 9 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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