Children's home run by London Borough of Waltham Forest in Waltham Forest

Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 1 SC036735 Registered provider: London Borough of Waltham Forest

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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 provides residential short breaks and day care provision for children who have a disability.

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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: none

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/08/2017 Full Good 21/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 10/08/2016 Full Good 22/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 2

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Recommendations

 Ensure the registered person undertakes a review that focuses on the quality of the care provided by the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children. Reviews should be underpinned by the Quality Standards as described in regulations 5 to 14. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.2) In particular, ensuring that this review is informed by feedback from children, families and professionals who use the service.  Ensure the registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice. They must ensure that recruitment, supervision and performance management of staff safeguards children and minimises potential risks to them. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1) In particular, ensuring that all the information set out in

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Recommendations

Schedule 2 is available on staff personnel files.  Ensure that all children’s case records (regulation 36) are kept up to date and stored securely while they remain in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3) Specifically, update risk assessments, ensure that individual fire evacuation plans are on children’s files, and medical consents updated.  Ensure that those with a leadership and/or management role should be visible and accessible to staff and able to deliver their leadership and/or management responsibilities. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.7) In particular, to ensure that there are clear lines of accountability within shift planning and that all staff understand their responsibility during shifts.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive good-quality care and support that ensures that their individual needs are met. Children make good progress. Staff enable them to make choices and become more independent. One teacher said, ‘Staff are great at helping and enabling children, rather than doing things for them.’ A key strength of this home is the positive and collaborative relationships shared between staff, children, parents and other professionals. Children have regular six- monthly reviews and staff attend the children’s Person Centred Review meetings in school. Communication books between school, home and the short breaks service ensure that important information is regularly shared. Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 3 Despite their complex needs, children make good progress, and this is noted by their parents, their schools and staff. For example, sleeping patterns improve, children learn to be more independent and have opportunities that they would not necessarily have at

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

home. Children’s views are sought through residents’ meetings and through six-monthly reviews about their care. Staff use the Picture Exchange Communication System to ensure that children are given choices about what they want to do at the centre, what they want to eat and which activities they would like to do. Although children’s feedback is sought about day-to-day issues, there is less evidence of feedback informing the quality of care and developing and improving the service. The home offers good personalised care for children. Staff know the children’s likes and dislikes and help them to make the best use of the centre when they attend. Individual shift plans offer an allocated person to work with a child, depending on their level of need.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy themselves at the centre. They share good relationships with staff, receive good care and enjoy healthy meals. They are encouraged to relax and enjoy the facilities, for example the music room, the adventure playground or the sensory room. Children and families receive a good induction to the service. A careful process of planning and gradual introductions builds up to overnight stays. This process helps children feel safe and settled before they stay and makes placements more likely to succeed. When children need to stay in an emergency, they are appropriately admitted and supported by staff who know them well.

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

Children benefit from forethought and planning to ensure their safety and protection. Shift plans are completed for every shift, identifying needs, vulnerabilities, likes and dislikes. Risk assessments are comprehensive with strategies to reduce risks; however, some assessments have not been updated within agreed timescales. There have been no incidents of children going missing since the last full inspection in August 2017. Procedures have been tightened to ensure that children are kept as safe as possible. Staff complete assessments of children’s vulnerability if they should go missing and clear procedures are in place for staff to follow for each individual child. Staff receive safeguarding training and are aware of the heightened vulnerability of the children receiving a service. Children are helped to be as independent as they can be, which helps to reduce their vulnerability. Where children require close personal care or

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

specialised healthcare, safe care plans identify needs and identify where staff training is required. Some children’s medical consent forms require updating to ensure that they remain valid. Staff receive appropriate training in restraint and de-escalation techniques. This helps them prevent behaviours that are unwanted or which place others at risk. The home operates on a positive behaviour approach model, so sanctions and restraints are minimal. Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 4 Personal emergency evacuation plans are completed for all children who stay overnight at the centre. Officers from the local fire service have seen and signed off these evacuation plans; however, copies are not yet on all the children’s files. This must be a priority, particularly for children who use wheelchairs. The home is operated by a local authority and holds most staff records centrally. The staff files were inconsistent with recruitment information, although all the information

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

was present. There should be a clear record of the required employment information in one place to ensure that the appropriate recruitment checks have taken place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager became registered in 2015 but had previously worked at the home since 2013. He has the experience and skills required to manage the service and is currently completing the level 5 diploma in leadership and management. He knows the children well and is passionate about providing a good service and making it fun for them during their stay. The local authority that runs this home has created a partnership project jointly with education and housing. Its vision is to develop two purpose-built homes, one for short breaks and the other for longer-term placements. The newly created centre will offer a range of health, education and social services for children who have disabilities. The registered manager has improved the service since the last inspection in August 2017. Measures have been put in place to respond to levels of staff sickness and three new staff have started, thus relieving the pressures on the workforce. Staff say that they

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

feel supported and receive supervision, appraisal and have access to good-quality training. Monitoring of the service is effective. An independent visitor visits the home monthly and writes a report, informed by children, families and professionals. These reports have improved in quality and comment on the home’s capacity to safeguard children and ensure their welfare. The registered manager undertakes a regular review of the quality of care provided and writes a report which is submitted to the regulator. This report shows that the registered manager has a good understanding of the strengths and areas for improvement within the service; however, it does not yet consider feedback from children, families and professionals. The registered manager has updated the home’s statement of purpose and function to include the new vision for the service. A shift planning template is currently being used by shift leaders on every shift. This is a helpful tool in planning the shift and ensuring

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

responsibility; however, there is some inconsistency in its use. The leaders and managers must ensure lines of accountability, so that all staff and shift leaders understand their responsibility and that the template is used consistently. Leaders and managers build effective relationships with parents, carers, children and professionals. There is a clear review process which encourages parent/carer feedback and there is open discussion about how services can be improved or changed to meet individual needs. Children’s differences are celebrated, and clear plans are recorded to Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 5 ensure that their individual needs can be met.

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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: SC036735 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Waltham Forest Adult Learning Service, Queens Road Learning Centre, 97 Queens Road, London E17 8QR

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Anthony Lyseight-Goslin

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Inspector

Christine Kennet, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC036735 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 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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