Children's Home run by Calcot Services for Children Limited in Hampshire

Inspection report children’s home: 1250902 1 Registered provider: Calcot Services For Children Limited

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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 registered for up to four young people and is owned and managed by a private organisation. The home caters for young people who have a range of learning disabilities.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 7 December 2017

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1250902 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/12/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 30/08/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1250902 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Young people make outstanding progress, facilitated by strong and supportive relationships with staff. Despite arriving in the home facing considerable challenges, young people develop a very strong sense of themselves and improve their self-esteem. This was confirmed by one parent, who commented, ‘I love the home. It bends over backwards for my daughter and myself. I walk away feeling so reassured.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

One young person arrived in the home as the subject of a court order that restricted her liberty, and she presented as selectively mute. She is now attending education full time, preparing her own meals and developing her language skills. Her social worker summarised this progress as ‘exceptional, and a sign of the dedication of staff’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Young people benefit from excellent, structured routines and daily planners for activities. Young people care for the home’s pets, they enjoy supporting a local football club and they benefit from a range of autism-friendly activities in the local area. The staff carefully record photographs and memories in scrapbooks. Young people take great pride in these books.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Young people engage extremely well in education. One young person recently returned to education after a two-year absence. Her attainment in education is central to her all- round progress and confidence building. One teacher commented, ‘Staff are excellent, always there. We enjoy 360-degree communication.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Management of behaviour is highly effective. Staff understand the importance of providing consistent care in order to reduce anxiety in young people. Recently, one staff member used the Picture Exchange Communication System to guide a young person in appropriate toileting. He is now able to manage this by himself.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The development of independence skills is a major strength of the home and the activities are underpinned by current research. Staff use colour-coded tasks to allow young people to learn tasks such as drying dishes. Staff and young people warmly celebrate the awarding of formal qualifications in areas such as basic cookery.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff strive to support contact with birth families. This sometimes involves transporting young people long distances to support and maintain vital relationships. This contact remains of enormous value and importance to young people.

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

Young people are kept safe in their home. They form close and trusting relationships with staff and illustrate this by permitting staff access to social media passwords and mobile phones. This promotes a climate of openness and transparency in the home. Inspection report children’s home: 1250902 4 Risk assessments are of exceptionally high quality and offer a comprehensive overview of the young person concerned. Assessments chart the outstanding progress made by young people in the home and include their individual triggers and key behavioural indicators. Assessments allow staff to think through behaviours and consider possible causes, such as excessive use of social media.

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

Staff use assessments to underpin inventive and creative interventions. One young person was exposing himself to risk by excessively seeking police attention. Staff sourced a training programme with police cadets. After attending this training, the incidents no longer occurred.

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

Staff advocate extremely effectively on behalf of young people. Recently this involved successfully sourcing educational provision for one young person. This further promotes trusting relationships with staff.

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

Young people enjoy an extensive range of specialist interventions offered by the home. One young person engaged very well with a programme of art therapy. This allowed him to express his feelings more effectively and supported a dramatic reduction in anger outbursts.

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

Staff have developed a relationship with the local child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). The allocated CAMHS worker attends ‘advice surgeries’ in the home, at which staff discuss the progress of young people. Following one recent session, staff focused on the negative impact of a particular video game for one person and successfully exchanged this for a less violent version.

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

Multi-agency work is outstanding and supports rigorous planning to safeguard young people. Recently this involved staff working with a placing authority to obtain a court order limiting access to social media for a young person at high risk. Staff carefully explained their rationale to the young person concerned. This order will support the young person through their move into adult services.

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

Case records show a marked reduction in missing from care episodes. When missing incidents occur, staff use individualised risk assessments to search known ‘hot spots’, such as local train stations, and contact friends and associates. This ensures the prompt safeguarding of young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager formally resigned her position in April 2018. The interim manager has applied for registration with Ofsted and the application is currently undergoing statutory checks. The former registered manager is presently supporting and inducting the interim manager, and she is remaining with the company in a more senior position. There is no impact on the care of young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The interim manager has extensive experience of working with young people who have learning difficulties. He brings exciting new ideas and initiatives and is due to complete Inspection report children’s home: 1250902 5 his management qualification in July 2018. His deputy manager is due to complete his management qualification in July 2019.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Despite the home only opening in February 2017, managers have made significant progress towards establishing a strong, stable staff team, committed to the care of young people. Managers are highly focused on service improvements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is strong evidence of management oversight on case files. Each behavioural incident is subject to in-depth analysis. This considers a number of triggers and identifies learning to avoid repetition.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team is highly motivated and exceptionally committed. Staff benefit from good levels of supervision and training. Staff spoke enthusiastically about recent training on the risks of child sexual exploitation and its link to care practice. Staff are inventive and are encouraged to seek new materials to work with young people. They recently accessed the learning resources of a national charity to lead a key-work session with young people on sexuality.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers make excellent use of group supervision. These sessions allow staff to exchange ideas as a group and ‘unpick’ behavioural incidents from beginning to end. Subsequent updating of risk assessments and behavioural management techniques promotes a culture of service improvement.

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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: 1250902 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Calcot Services For Children Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 8 Brewery Court, Theale, Reading, Berkshire RG7 5AJ

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Inspector(s)

Barnaby Dowell, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1250902 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)

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