Setting

X10029.doc Version 1.40 Page 1 FOSTERING SERVICE

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Lead Inspector Stephen Graham Announced Inspection 19th February 2007 09:30 am The Commission for Social Care Inspection aims to:

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• Put the people who use social care first • Improve services and stamp out bad practice • Be an expert voice on social care • Practise what we preach in our own organisation

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Reader Information Document Purpose Inspection Report Author CSCI Audience General Public Further copies from 0870 240 7535 (telephone order line) Copyright This report is copyright Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) and may only be used in its entirety. Extracts may not be used or reproduced without the express permission of CSCI Internet address www.csci.org.uk

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Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 2 This is a report of an inspection to assess whether services are meeting the needs of people who use them. The legal basis for conducting inspections is the Care Standards Act 2000 and the relevant National Minimum Standards for this establishment are those for Fostering Services. They can be found at www.dh.gov.uk or obtained from The Stationery Office (TSO) PO Box 29, St Crispins, Duke Street, Norwich, NR3 1GN. Tel: 0870 600 5522. Online ordering: www.tso.co.uk/bookshop

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Every Child Matters, outlined the government’s vision for children’s services and formed the basis of the Children Act 2004. It provides a framework for inspection so that children’s services should be judged on their contribution to the outcomes considered essential to wellbeing in childhood and later life. Those outcomes are: • Being healthy • Staying safe • Enjoying and achieving • Making a contribution; and • Achieving economic wellbeing.

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In response, the Commission for Social Care Inspection has re-ordered the national minimum standards for children’s services under the five outcomes, for reporting purposes. A further section has been created under ‘Management’ to cover those issues that will potentially impact on all the outcomes above.

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Copies of Every Child Matters and The Children Act 2004 are available from The Stationery Office as above This report is a public document. Extracts may not be used or reproduced without the prior permission of the Commission for Social Care Inspection.

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Name of service

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service

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Name of service

Address Durham Fostering & Adoption Service Social Care & Health, Durham County Council Littleburn Business Centre, Langley Moor County Durham DH7 8ET Telephone number 0191 370 6100

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(if applicable)

Durham County Council (Children`s Services)

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manager (if applicable)

Type of registration Local Auth Fostering Service

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manager (if applicable)

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Conditions of registration:

Date of last inspection 23rd January 2006

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Brief Description of the Service:

Durham County Council Fostering Service is based at Langley Moor on the outskirts of Durham City. The authority covers a large geographical area and provides a range of services to children in the looked after system of which the fostering service is one. At the time of this inspection the service was supporting 174 fostering households, with 241 foster children in placement.

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Brief Description of the Service:

The service has established systems in place to recruit, train and assess prospective carers. The staff team have a range of skills and collectively many years of experience of work within fostering.

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Brief Description of the Service:

The service is committed to monitoring and evaluating it’s overall performance with the aim of identifying areas for improvement and achieving better outcomes for children/young people where possible.

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Brief Description of the Service:

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SUMMARY

This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection.

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SUMMARY

The inspector would like to thank the children, carers and staff at Durham Fostering for their welcome and the important part they played in the inspection. Information and evidence in this report was gathered by three inspectors over a 4 day period through:

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SUMMARY

• Talking individually with children, carers and staff. • Visiting foster carers’ homes. • Group discussions with staff and carers. • Talking with the managers of the service. • Reading children’s, carer’s and staff files. • Reading polices, procedures and records. • Children’s questionnaires. • Carer’s questionnaires. • Children’s social workers questionnaires.

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SUMMARY

Throughout the course of this visit the inspectors noted the commitment both from managers, staff and foster carers to maintain excellent standards, whilst still working to further improve the range and quality of service provided.

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SUMMARY

Inspectors found that the service has responded positively to the previous requirements set and recommendations made. The views of children, their carers and placing social workers received during the inspection further endorsed this.

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What the service does well:

Previous inspections had confirmed that the overall service provided by Durham Fostering to its’ carers and children placed with them was excellent. Positively, the views of children, carers and social workers gathered during this visit confirmed that overall the service continues to be provided to this standard.

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What the service does well:

The fostering service remains central to the Local Authority’s strategy for ‘Looked After’ services as part of the Multi-Agency Looked After Partnership (MALAP) and Children and Young People Strategic Partnership. It plays a key part within the Authority’s ‘Invest to Save’ strategy by providing a flexible and effective in-house fostering service.

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What the service does well:

During this inspection, a number of very positive comments were received from placing social workers, carers and children. One carer described the: “good levels of support” and the “good opportunities for training.”

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What the service does well:

When asked: “Why do you choose to foster for this service?” carers gave many positive responses. One carer described how “on application we were very

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What the service does well:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 6 impressed with the people we met and it carried on from their.” Another carer simply stated: “It is a very good fostering service.” Another described the: “commitment to the young person in placement.” Carers were also asked: “What does the service do to help you care for children?” and again provided very positive responses. One carer described comprehensively the: “Full back- up from Fostering Manager – frequent visits, many courses on offer, monthly group meetings, newsletters, all queries answered, E.D.T. (Emergency Duty Team) available.” Another stated that: “I get very good support from my fostering officer and social workers.” A third highlighted how they had been helped with: “Everything we have asked for e.g. school changes, sorting out contact, training we have needed.”

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What the service does well:

Children and young people were happy to confirm that they felt safe and well cared for and that their views are listened to both by their carers and staff. Children also felt that their overall health and educational needs are well met.

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What the service does well:

Very positive descriptions were received from children explaining why they felt this was true. One young person simply stated: “because I get looked after.” Another described how they lived in a “safe environment” with “kind and caring people.” Another stated: “I feel safe and protected.” Whilst another said: “ My carers do the best they can to help me and care. I feel very at home.” With regard to health needs one young person stated: “I get plenty of fresh fruit and plenty of good healthy food.” Another young person confirmed that if they were unhappy: “I can talk to my carers or my social worker because I know they will listen and try to help me.” With regard to their education, one young person stated that: (my carer) “makes sure I have good attendance at school and makes sure my homework is done.” Another young person described how: “I get asked how school is going and if I need any help, I also

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What the service does well:

Overall the inspectors found that the service creates positive outcomes for children in meeting their health needs, keeping them safe, supporting their education, contact with family and friends and involvement in the community. Importantly, inspectors also found that children overall feel listened to by their carers, social workers and the fostering staff.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The service has continued to work to ensure excellent outcomes for children and to further improve the service by ensuring that previous requirements and recommendations made are fully implemented.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Carers and social workers placing children through the service were asked to comment on whether they felt that since the previous inspection the service was better, worse or not changed. Positively, of those responding, nearly all felt that the service was either unchanged or even better.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 7 As previously recommended, the service has looked to improve the advanced notice given to carers of forthcoming training events. Within group discussion carers described this positively as an area of improvement with the service, with details of forthcoming training provided to them in advance through the carers newsletter.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

During the inspection a selection of personnel files were examined. These, along with discussion with the manager of the service and staff from personnel confirmed that as previously recommended, when recruiting new staff members the service examines their previous records of employment thoroughly to ensure that where any gaps exist, the reasons for this are verified with the applicant and recorded.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Within group discussion, social workers placing children through the service highlighted the development of the ‘permanence’ fostering team and the use of dedicated staff to achieve this. They also provided very positive examples of good joint working with fostering staff to achieve good outcomes for children in foster care.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

With regard to initiatives by the service itself to introduce further improvements, the manager highlighted the development by the service of a ‘long term’ scheme for young people with complex needs and requiring significant support as they move toward greater personal independence. The manager also highlighted the overall success of foster care recruitment in the last 12 months and the benefits to the service of increased resources and placement choice for children and young people.

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What they could do better:

The views of children and carers interviewed or responding by questionnaire during the inspection did not highlight any major common areas in need of improvement. When asked: “What could the service do better?” most carers took the opportunity to further highlight what they felt the service already did well. One carer stated: “we are satisfied with what they do already.” Another responded “we have never had any problems so we don’t know.” Whilst a third stated: “ I don’t think the fostering service can do any better I think they all do a very good job.” However, some individual comments received regarding possible changes were made and these are included within the main report.

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What they could do better:

Social workers placing children with the service also responded very positively, only one area of improvement was suggested with “choice + availability of placements to support effective matching” highlighted by one social worker. No other suggestions for service improvement were received. Equally when young people were asked if there was “Anything else you would like to tell us?” The only responses received were “No” from a number of children and from one young person “No, everything is fine thanks!”

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What they could do better:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 8 The manager themselves demonstrated their ongoing plans to introduce further improvements to the service. Better communication with children with learning disabilities, developing children’s self-esteem, diversity training, recruitment of carers who are black or from a multi-ethnic background, workforce development through NVQ training and localised recruitment of carers were all highlighted.

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What they could do better:

The inspectors, also identified some areas where they felt further improvements could be made. These are in summary that;

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What they could do better:

To allow the service to better monitor and review the overall number of un- planned endings of placements, it is recommended that this information be gathered from individual ‘placement breakdown’ meetings as they occur.

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What they could do better:

To further confirm the accuracy of information received, the references presented to the fostering panel regarding foster care applicants should be signed by the referee themselves. The original notes of the discussions held with each referee should also be retained for reference within carers’ files.

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What they could do better:

To ensure that the care needs of children are met, the service should continue to work to ensure that care files contain all required information.

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What they could do better:

The service should continue to work to ensure that all children know how to make complaints when they are unhappy.

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What they could do better:

Please contact the provider for advice of actions taken in response to this inspection. The report of this inspection is available from enquiries@csci.gsi.gov.uk or by contacting your local CSCI office.

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What they could do better:

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CONTENTS

Statutory Requirements Identified During the Inspection

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CONTENTS

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The intended outcome for this Standard is:

• The fostering service promotes the health and development of children.(NMS 12)

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The Commission considers Standard 12 the key standard to be

inspected at least once during a 12 month period.

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JUDGEMENT – we looked at the outcome for Standard:

Quality in this outcome area is excellent. This judgement has been made from evidence gathered both during and before the visit to this service. Durham Fostering works to ensure that the health needs of children placed with their carers are effectively promoted and monitored.

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EVIDENCE:

The overall response received from young people was very positive regarding the support received from their carers and the service in meeting their health needs. Of the children and young people responding, all were able to report that they had received help in meeting their own health needs. Nearly all of those responding stated that they ‘always’ get support in meeting these needs, with no-one feeling that they did not receive help.

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EVIDENCE:

One young person stated this to be true: “because I go to horse riding lessons and dance classes.” Another described how: “We get healthy meals and don’t go to (a named fast food restaurant).” Another younger person stated: “we eat lots of fruit and veg.” Another confirmed that they ‘always’ receive support with their health needs and added: “if I want advice I will ask.” Another described positively the advice they received regarding their health and hygiene as follows: “They are always telling me to wash my face + brush my teeth and wash my hand before a meal + after a meal + after the toilet.”

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EVIDENCE:

The overall response from carers and from placing social workers was that the support provided was either ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ in a small number of cases at least ‘adequate.’ Only one ‘poor’ response was received and the carers themselves described how they saw it as their own responsibility to ensure that the children’s health needs continued to be met. One carer gave an indication of how they viewed this responsibility by stating “As a foster carer I make sure I take the child for health appointments and give him a healthy diet.” Carers also gave a number of good examples of the support received

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EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 11 from the service. One highlighted: “loads of information and training is there for the carer.” Another gave the view that: “The fostering service works well with health services.” Another described how: “the social worker visits regularly to make sure young person is healthy if any problems carer takes young person to doctors.” A placing social worker described how “Healthy lifestyles (are) promoted in partnership with (the) Looked After Nurse. YP’s attend girls group run by the Nurse.”

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EVIDENCE:

Positively, statistics provided by the service confirmed that nearly 90% of children had benefited from attending their statutory annual medical review.

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EVIDENCE:

Examination of children’s care files and discussion with carers themselves provided lots of evidence that carers receive a full description of the health needs of the children they care for, are supported in ensuring that children are registered with doctors and dentists and that appropriate consents for any medical treatment required are provided. Carers are also supported to access necessary training in health and first aid.

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EVIDENCE:

Positively, the manager highlighted the ‘strong links’ with health services and described how the looked after nurses ‘support carers and staff with advice and offer individual visits to children and young people to promote and monitor health care.’ The manager also confirmed how health information was routinely monitored by the service and how the ongoing training needs of carers in providing good health care standards continues to be considered, with further training developed in partnership with health professionals.

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EVIDENCE:

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The intended outcomes for these Standards are:

• Any persons carrying on or managing the service are suitable. (NMS 3) • The fostering service provides suitable foster carers.(NMS 6) • The service matches children to carers appropriately.(NMS 8) • The fostering service protects each child or young person from abuse and neglect.(NMS 9) • The people who work in or for the fostering service are suitable to work with children and young people.(NMS 15) • Fostering panels are organised efficiently and effectively.(NMS 30)

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The Commission considers Standards 3, 6, 8, 9, 15 and 30 the key

standards to be inspected at least once during a 12 month period.

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JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following Standard(s):

Quality in this outcome area is excellent. This judgement has been made from evidence gathered both during and before the visit to this service. The manager of the service is both suitable and competent to provide it. Young people are placed with carers who provide safe homes. Arrangements to match young people with carers are generally effective. The overall arrangements put in place by the service keep children safe. The fostering panel is well comprised and is making good decisions and recommendations to the agency decision maker.

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EVIDENCE:

The manager was able to confirm that those members of staff in the fostering service, (who are required to be CRB checked), every foster carer, and all adult members of the households of foster carers, have had their required checks completed.

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EVIDENCE:

Discussion with carers, staff and an examination of carer files provided good evidence that the service works to ensure that carers provide an environment to children which is free from hazards and routinely checked to ensure that it remains safe and suitable for the care of children. Health and safety checklists are in use and were available within carers’ files.

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EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 13 To ensure that children are cared for safely, full information is required from placing social workers to allow the fostering service to ‘match’ children successfully and inform carers of children’s ongoing care needs. When asked how they would rate the information they received about the child before they were placed, positive responses were received from over half of all carers, who described this as either ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ and with only one exception, the remainder were able to describe this as at least ‘adequate.’

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EVIDENCE:

With regard to the quality of information received, one carer described this as: “up to date and accurate.” Another highlighted the: “good information from the fostering officer and the youth offending team.” A third commented that: “I have been given information that was available before placement and this has been added to as further information became available.” As stated, only one carer rated the information received as ‘poor’, their description confirmed the circumstances of this as follows: “I received (the young person) on an emergency placement & I agreed to her staying even though I had very little info.”

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EVIDENCE:

Positively, carers provided a good indication of the planning and sharing of information taking place when children are moved to new placements. When asked “How good is the fostering service at supporting you in maintaining placements, so that children only move in a planned way?” carers mainly described this as either ‘good’ or ‘excellent,’ with all others confirming that it was at least ‘adequate.’ One carer confirmed positively that: “Being a short- term carer, a very careful watch is kept on placements so as to facilitate moving in a planned manner.” Another described how “The placements are always planned before moving a young person to another placement.”

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EVIDENCE:

Carers also responded very positively when asked “How good is the service at ensuring that you can meet the needs of the children and young people placed with you?” with three quarters of those responding describing this support as either ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ and all others confirming that this was at least ‘adequate.’ One carer described the support received as follows: “the fostering officer visits once a month for supervision and the social worker visits regularly to make sure the young person is well cared for.”

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EVIDENCE:

Examination of care files and direct discussions with carers themselves highlighted some very good examples of good quality information being provided leading to appropriate matches of children to carers. The service uses standard matching and risk assessment tools. Written placement agreements for children were seen to be completed in detail and to include necessary matching information. During group discussion carers described placement agreement meetings as occurring promptly.

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EVIDENCE:

Positive evidence of the quality of care provided through the good matching of children with carers was also received through the childrens’ own questionnaire responses. When asked the question: “Do you feel well cared for where you

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EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 14 live now?” nearly all the children were able to respond ‘always,’ with no ‘negative’ responses received. Very positive descriptions were received from children explaining why they felt this was true. One stated: “I am in a secure place with friends and family.” Another said: “I feel safe and respected.” A third young person said this was true as their carer: “gives us times to come in. We have nice food and clothes.”

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EVIDENCE:

The manager highlighted the gathering of as much information as possible at the point of referral as being of positive benefit in working to ensure good matching and placement stability. They also confirmed that where possible, children are offered the opportunity of a period of introduction to a prospective foster placement. The number of emergency placements arranged by the service was proportionately low in comparison with those that were planned. Statistically, the service does not currently monitor the overall number of un- planned endings of placements, however it was confirmed that individual ‘placement breakdown’ meetings do occur to review the reasons why any un- planned endings of placements have occurred.

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EVIDENCE:

During group discussion, placing social workers acknowledged that although some limitations around placement choice could occur, ‘resource network meetings’ would be arranged promptly with the involvement of senior managers to ensure good joint working to find the best placements available for children. Placing social workers also spoke very positively regarding the stability of placements and the pro-active approach of carers in maintaining this through good joint working and early contact if problems arose.

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EVIDENCE:

To ensure that children and young children are protected from abuse and neglect, it is necessary to provide carers with training in both recognising and responding to any such events as they occur. Examination of the current carer training programme for the service confirmed that child protection training is provided to carers as a core skill and is regularly scheduled into the ongoing training programme.

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EVIDENCE:

Safe care agreements and risk assessments were in place within those carer files examined. The service has an appropriate system in place to collect and monitor any allegations of abuse received. There was good evidence of this being closely monitored by the manager of the service.

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EVIDENCE:

From the questionnaire responses received and children interviewed, one concern regarding bullying (at school) was received. This concern was fed back to the manager for their review with the young person, their carers and supporting social work staff. All other children were happy to confirm that they were not being bullied. The manager confirmed that the service continues to look at additional ways in which all carers can be further supported and trained to provide better help to any child that may be subjected to bullying.

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EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 15 The service is staffed by experienced and well-qualified social workers. Those interviewed were positive regarding access to ongoing training, and the direct support and supervision provided to them by their managers. During the inspection a selection of personnel files were examined. These, along with discussion with the manager of the service and staff from personnel confirmed that as previously recommended, when recruiting new staff members, the service examines their previous records of employment thoroughly to ensure that where any gaps exist, the reasons for this are verified with the applicant and recorded. Files also contained good evidence that required checks on staff had been completed and were being routinely updated.

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EVIDENCE:

Although no meetings of any of the three fostering panels coincided with this inspection, examination of foster carers’ files provided good evidence of the quality of initial carer assessments and subsequent annual reviews undertaken by the fostering service and presented to the fostering panel. Examination of previous panel minutes and carer files also provided good evidence of the individual scrutiny of these assessments undertaken by panel members during their meetings.

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EVIDENCE:

Staff at the service spoke very positively regarding the overall quality and robustness of the fostering panels. They also highlighted their involvement in a recently organised ‘panel day,’ attended jointly by fostering staff and panel members and spoke positively of this additional opportunity to meet and talk directly with panel members.

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EVIDENCE:

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The intended outcomes for these Standards are:

• The fostering service values diversity.(NMS 7) • The fostering service promotes educational achievement.(NMS 13) • When foster care is provided as a short-term break for a child, the arrangements recognise that the parents remain the main carers for the child.(NMS 31)

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The Commission considers Standards 7, 13, and 31 the key standards

to be inspected at least once during a 12 month period.

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JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s):

Quality in this outcome area is excellent. This judgement has been made from evidence gathered both during and before the visit to this service. Durham Fostering through its foster carers works to provide placements, which value diversity and promote equality. Children placed with the agency’s carers are provided with good support, which actively promotes their educational achievement. Where short-term breaks are provided arrangements ensure that the parents of children are recognised as remaining the main carers for the child.

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EVIDENCE:

The service works to provide carers that value issues of equality and diversity in the provision of care to children placed with them. Positively, when carers were asked: “How well does the fostering service address issues of equality and diversity such as culture, ethnicity and disability?” nearly all carers who responded described this as either ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ or at least ‘adequate.’ One carer stated positively how “such issues are frequently addressed through training.” Another described the service as: “heavily committed to addressing these issues.”

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EVIDENCE:

Placing social workers responding were also positive regarding this aspect of the service, describing it as ‘good’ or at least ‘adequate.’ However, one described how they felt that a “lack of choice in placement affects this area.”

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EVIDENCE:

The service does have a small number of carers and also children placed who are of non-white British and other backgrounds. The manager highlighted how

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EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 17 Durham Fostering actively promotes the recruitment of carers from black and ethnic minority communities and is working to develop more placement choice and training in partnership with other local authorities, through the local ‘Sahara Project’ initiative. The manager also highlighted how two fostering staff had recently attended a ‘Training the Trainers’ course relating to black and ethnic minority issues and that diversity training for fostering panel members is likely to be provided over the coming year.

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EVIDENCE:

Most carers were positive with regard to access to activities in the community for young people and the ‘good’ support received from the service with this. One carer gave their opinion that the: “fostering service try and help to get young people interested in activities.” Another carer highlighted how the service: “suggests playgroups, sure start activities etc.” Positively, some carers highlighted the provision of ‘Max Cards’ by the service to allow children ‘free access’ to some leisure activities. One placing social worker described how the child they had placed “recently joined the local cadets and is enjoying this.”

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EVIDENCE:

With regards to how the fostering service and carers promote educational attainment, children and young people were asked directly about the level of support they received. Positively nearly all of those who responded stated that they ‘always’ or ‘usually’ get the help and support they need. None of the responses received indicated that they did not receive support. One young person described very positively how: “I’m always getting encouraged by my foster parents + my mam.” Two young people highlighted how their carer: “always makes sure we go to school.” Other young people stated that they get “help when needed” and how carers “help with homework.”

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EVIDENCE:

Carers and children’s social workers were also positive about the support and advice provided by the service with regards to the education of children placed. Nearly all of those responding described this as ‘good’ or ‘excellent.’ One carer highlighted how: “The service has helped me get (the young person) into college.” Another carer highlighted how: “working with the (educational) Access Service has helped.” Another carer described how “We have spent a long time sorting out his school and we have been supported fully by everyone that has come into contact with our foster child.” Another carer in referring to the Access Service, described it as ‘excellent.’

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EVIDENCE:

Care files examined during the inspection along with discussion with children, young people and their carers also provided positive evidence of the good educational support being provided to children. The agency works in partnership with a number of agencies to provide structured support to young people who are not in school. The manager described how individual foster carers themselves had been actively engaged in a ‘multi-agency’ review of the personal education plans (PEPS) for young people, undertaken as they reach key stages in their education. The aim of the review being to ensure that individual PEPS are fully and properly implemented.

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EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 18 The service maintains management information systems to collate and evaluate information regarding the educational achievements of children and young people. Positively, statistics provided by the service confirmed that of those children leaving the care of the fostering service over the last 12 months over 80% have been awarded at least one GCSE or GNVQ, with over 10% having achieved 5 GCSEs.

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EVIDENCE:

Arrangements to provide ‘short breaks’ for children and families were reviewed with the service manager who confirmed that appropriate policies and procedures with regard to these arrangements continue to be maintained. Individual arrangements are monitored to ensure that parents are properly recognised and supported in their role as main carers to their children. Where placements are commissioned through Independent Fostering Agencies, the service uses established procedures to ensure that the quality of care provided is properly assessed and monitored.

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EVIDENCE:

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The intended outcomes for these Standards are:

• The fostering service promotes contact arrangements for the child or young person. (NMS 10) • The fostering service promotes consultation.(NMS 11)

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The Commission considers Standards 10 and 11 the key standards to

be inspected at least once during a 12 month period.

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JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s):

Quality in this outcome area is excellent. This judgement has been made from evidence gathered both during and before the visit to this service. Durham Fostering actively promotes and supports contact between children and their families and friends where this is appropriate. Arrangements are in place to seek children’s views about their lives and the care they receive.

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EVIDENCE:

The overall response of carers when asked about the quality of children’s networks with family and friends was ‘good’ with some describing this as ‘excellent.’ Care files examined contained clear recording and good evidence of the work done by carers to support appropriate contact between children, young people and their families. All carers receive training in dealing with contact issues during their preparation group training. Interviews with carers and children during home visits also provided positive examples of contact being supported and promoted. During group discussion, carers gave a number of positive examples of prompt responses from the service and placing social workers where any concerns around contact arrangements had arisen.

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EVIDENCE:

Positively, through their questionnaire responses and through direct discussion with inspectors, all of the young people responding were able to confirm that they did know who to speak to if they were unhappy or had a personal problem. Unfortunately, some of the same young people were unsure when asked ‘Do you know how to make a complaint?’ Their details were provided to the manager for clarification with those young people.

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EVIDENCE:

During group discussion young people confirmed that they been provided with a children’s guide to the service. The manager of the service highlighted how

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EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 20 the current guide had been developed through direct consultation with children and young people, however, some older young people and some individual carers still felt that the presentation of the guide and some of the consultation material in use was more appropriate for younger rather than older children. These views were fed back to the manager for their information and review. Carers and children also highlighted access to advocacy services and the ‘independent visitor scheme’ supported by the service.

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EVIDENCE:

The overall response from children and young people when asked: “Does your social worker listen to you and take notice of your opinions?” was very positive. Nearly all described this as being always or usually true. One young person said of their social worker that: “When I want to talk to her she always comes round to talk.” Another young person described the support from their social worker as follows: “When I see my grandad she (my social worker) asks where we want to go.” Another young person simply stated: “Yes, he tries his best.”

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EVIDENCE:

With regard to overall consultation, young people gave a number of very positive examples. With regard to carers asking their opinions young people responded very positively, with nearly all stating that this ‘always’ happens. One young person stated: “If I’ve got a problem they listen to me!” Another stated that: “I ask them something and they listen and give me an answer.” A third described the relationship with their carers as follows: “we are very open with each other.” Another described how their carers: “always listen and notice my opinions.”

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EVIDENCE:

When carers and placing social workers were asked: ‘How would you rate the fostering service at involving the children and young people that you care for in decisions about their day to day lives?’ Nearly all who responded described this as either ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ or at least ‘adequate.’ One carer said of the child placed with them that: “he is always asked what he thinks.” Another described how “everything has been explained to (the) child and re-inforced by social worker.” Carers and social workers were also positive about how the service involves children in how it (the service) is run with the vast majority described this as at least ‘adequate’ with others describing it as ‘good’ or ‘excellent.’ One carer described how “workshops have been set up to hear the views of children.” Whilst another stated that: “(children’s) involvement is always encouraged.”

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EVIDENCE:

Group discussion took place with children and young people attending one of the established consultation groups for the service. During this they provided a number of positive examples of the direct work undertaken by staff to support them in providing their opinions to their own care reviews and also in gathering their overall views on the quality of support they receive from the service. A number of young people ‘wrote down’ their views and requested specifically that the inspector receive these for use in the report. These comments included: “My carers have helped me boost my confidence and

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EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 21 helped me get my life back on track.” “I am happy with my carer, she deserves an award, she’s helped me through a lot.” “My carer helped me get into school and does everything she can to help me with coursework, problems and anything I want to talk about.” “She (my carer) brought out the good in me and made me smile again. I have so much respect for her. She’s always there when I need her.”

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EVIDENCE:

The manager of the fostering service also highlighted the ongoing work to further develop consultation strategies with the continuing aim of the service to further improve consultation with young people. They confirmed that in the past twelve months the service has achieved ‘Investing in Children’ membership in recognition of their active involvement of children and young people in consultation. They also highlighted ongoing plans to further involve all young people in direct consultation through an ‘arts strategy’ currently being developed through the locally established ‘multi-agency looked after partnership.’

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EVIDENCE:

The manager also highlighted improvements in foster carer training aimed at encouraging ‘total respect’ through a better understanding of children’s own perspectives. They also confirmed that all carer training is designed to ensure that ‘listening to children’ is always promoted as a core theme of any training event.

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EVIDENCE:

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The intended outcomes for these Standards are:

• The fostering service prepares young people for adulthood.(NMS 14) • The fostering service pays carers an allowance and agreed expenses as specified.(NMS 29)

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JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s):

Quality in this outcome area is good. This judgement has been made from evidence gathered both during and before the visit to this service. Durham Fostering ensures that appropriate and prompt payments are made to carers in accordance with its policies and procedures.

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EVIDENCE:

Policies and procedures in respect of fostering allowances and payments to carers are in place. This information is made available to carers and staff through the foster carers’ handbook. Carers raised no concerns regarding their receipt of the necessary fostering allowances and the prompt payment of them by the agency.

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EVIDENCE:

A ‘payment for skills’ banding system is operated by the service and is used to further reward the commitment to training and development of skills and experience of foster carers in their work with children and young people. The manager spoke positively of the benefits of this scheme and highlighted how it had been used to further promote the service and assist recruitment.

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EVIDENCE:

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The intended outcomes for these Standards are:

• There is a clear statement of the aims and objectives of the fostering service and the fostering service ensures that they meet those aims and objectives.(NMS 1) • The fostering service is managed by those with the appropriate skills and experience. (NMS 2) • The fostering service is monitored and controlled as specified. (NMS 4) • The fostering service is managed effectively and efficiently.(NMS 5) • Staff are organised and managed effectively.(NMS 16) • The fostering service has an adequate number of sufficiently experienced and qualified staff.(NMS 17) • The fostering service is a fair and competent employer.(NMS 18) • There is a good quality training programme. (NMS 19) • All staff are properly accountable and supported.(NMS 20) • The fostering service has a clear strategy for working with and supporting carers.(NMS 21) • Foster carers are provided with supervision and support.(NMS 22) • Foster carers are appropriately trained.(NMS 23)

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The intended outcomes for these Standards are:

• Case records for children are comprehensive.(NMS 24) • The administrative records are maintained as required.(NMS 25) • The premises used as offices by the fostering service are suitable for the purpose.(NMS 26) • The fostering service is financially viable. (NMS 27) • The fostering service has robust financial processes. (NMS 28) • Local Authority fostering services recognise the contribution made by family and friends as carers.(NMS 32)

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The Commission considers Standards 17, 21, 24 and 32 the key

standards to be inspected at least once during a 12 month period.

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JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s):

Quality in this outcome area is excellent. This judgement has been made from evidence gathered both during and before the visit to this service. Durham Fostering is an effectively managed service. Its team of social work practitioners provide good quality supervision and support to its carers. Management systems and records in use at the service are generally robust.

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JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s):

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EVIDENCE:

The service has appropriate policies and procedures in place for the recruitment and assessment of carers. Files examined provided good evidence of the quality of the assessments undertaken with potential carers and the good panel processes in place to review these. Files also contained clear notices of approval. The quality of written reports of referee interviews presented to panel were good, however, with the examples examined it was noted that these were not signed in confirmation by the referees themselves. It was recommended that these should be signed on each occasion by referees, with original notes maintained on file to provide further confirmation of the accuracy of references.

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EVIDENCE:

When asked to describe ‘how well the fostering service supports you in caring for the children you look after’ carers were very positive in their questionnaire responses. Most described the support received as ‘good’ with others describing it as ‘excellent’ or at least ‘adequate.’ One carer stated that: “I have had opportunities to ask for help if I felt I was likely to need it.” Another described how “I get good support through attending training and support groups and excellent support from my Fostering Officer.” Other comments received included: “Good support with advice and information (about) other services” and “(I) know where to contact (my) fostering officer when needed.”

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EVIDENCE:

Carers benefit from access to regular support group meetings. These are held around the county at different venues and times to help improve carer access to them. Support groups regularly include guest speakers from a variety of external agencies as well as more informal training opportunities. All foster carers spoken were able to confirm that they were provided with a handbook by the service giving clear information regarding access to training and additional support, including respite care and ‘out of hours’ support.

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EVIDENCE:

Examination of records of supervision within carer files and discussion with carers during a number of home visits confirmed that they receive regular support visits from their own social workers. An agreed format for recording formal supervision visits is in use and examples examined provided good evidence of the quality of supervision provided.

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EVIDENCE:

Evidence of the good communication between supervising social workers and placing social workers was provided through separate discussions with representatives of each group. Carers were equally positive regarding the joint working undertaken to ensure that the needs of children are met. In discussion, one carer described how they felt “part of a professional team.”

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EVIDENCE:

The skills of carers in caring for the children placed with them are subject to annual review. It was noted that review reports contained good evidence of

p.25

EVIDENCE:

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 25 the views of children regarding the quality of care that they receive from their carers. Placing social workers also confirmed that their views were sought by the service. In separate discussion, the Independent Review Officer provided good evidence of the procedures used to ensure that annual reviews are regularly held and are also thorough in considering the effectiveness of carers and the service in ensuring good outcomes for children.

p.25

EVIDENCE:

During direct discussion, carers demonstrated a high level of enthusiasm with regard to their participation in training events. Further evidence of the commitment of carers to training was available through the numbers participating in National Vocational Qualification Training (NVQ). Information provided by the service confirmed that over one hundred carers approved by the service have either completed or are currently in the process of completing this training or its equivalent. Discussion with the foster service training co- ordinator also provided very positive examples of how the service facilitates a comprehensive training programme for carers and monitors the overall effectiveness of this.

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EVIDENCE:

During case tracking a number of children’s files were examined. The quality of the information held within and overall presentation of information was generally good. However, some individual examples of Looked after Children (LAC) documentation containing limited detail or requiring update were highlighted to the manager for their review.

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EVIDENCE:

Appropriate policies and procedures are in place to assess, encourage and support the care of children and young people by family members and friends. Placing social workers spoke very positively of the ‘initial viability assessments’ undertaken by fostering staff and the good communication and joint working that resulted from these. In discussion family and friends carers spoke very positively of the practical support they had received from the service including access to training and involvement in carer support groups.

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EVIDENCE:

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SCORING OF OUTCOMES

This page summarises the assessment of the extent to which the National Minimum Standards for Fostering Services have been met and uses the following scale.

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SCORING OF OUTCOMES

4 Standard Exceeded (Commendable) 3 Standard Met (No Shortfalls) 2 Standard Almost Met (Minor Shortfalls) 1 Standard Not Met (Major Shortfalls) “X” in the standard met box denotes standard not assessed on this occasion “N/A” in the standard met box denotes standard not applicable

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SCORING OF OUTCOMES

BEING HEALTHY ACHIEVING ECONOMIC Standard No Score WELLBEING 12 3 Standard No Score 14 X STAYING SAFE 29 3 Standard No Score 3 3 MANAGEMENT 6 4 Standard No Score 8 4 1 X 9 4 2 X 15 3 4 X 30 4 5 X 16 X ENJOYING AND ACHIEVING 17 3 Standard No Score 18 X 7 3 19 X 13 4 20 X 31 3 21 4 22 X MAKING A POSITIVE 23 X CONTRIBUTION 24 3 Standard No Score 25 X 10 3 26 X 11 4 27 X 28 X 32 4

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SCORING OF OUTCOMES

Durham Local Authority Fostering Service DS0000043795.V296479.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 27 Are there any outstanding requirements from the last inspection? No

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STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS

This section sets out the actions, which must be taken so that the registered person/s meets the Care Standards Act 2000, Fostering Services Regulations 2002 and the National Minimum Standards. The Registered Provider(s) must comply with the given timescales.

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STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS

No. Standard Regulation Requirement Timescale for action

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RECOMMENDATIONS

These recommendations relate to National Minimum Standards and are seen as good practice for the Registered Provider/s to consider carrying out.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

No. Refer to Standard Good Practice Recommendations

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RECOMMENDATIONS

1. FS17 The typed references regarding foster care applicants presented to the fostering panel to consider should be signed on each occasion. The original notes of the discussions held with each referee should also be retained for reference within carers’ files. 2. FS24 To ensure that the care needs of children are met, their care files must contain all required information.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

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Commission for Social Care Inspection Commission for Social Care Inspection

Darlington Area Office Darlington Area Office No. 1 Hopetown Studios No. 1 Hopetown Studios Brinkburn Road Brinkburn Road Darlington Darlington DL3 6DS DL3 6DS

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Commission for Social Care Inspection Commission for Social Care Inspection

National Enquiry Line: 0845 015 0120 National Enquiry Line: 0845 015 0120 Email: enquiries@csci.gsi.gov.uk Email: enquiries@csci.gsi.gov.uk Web: www.csci.org.uk Web: www.csci.org.uk © This report is copyright Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) and may only be used in its entirety. Extracts may not be used or reproduced without the express permission of CSCI © This report is copyright Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) and may only be used in its entirety. Extracts may not be used or reproduced without the express permission of CSCI

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Commission for Social Care Inspection Commission for Social Care Inspection

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