Children's home run by Reflexion Care Group Limited in Shropshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC366093 1 SC366093 Registered provider: Reflexion Care Group Limited

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care for up to three children and young people who display a combination of emotional and behavioural difficulties, and who may have learning disabilities. The home is privately owned and forms part of a large social care organisation which offers an education service and therapeutic support.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is suitably experienced and is currently completing her level 5 diploma in leadership and management.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 7 November 2017

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Inspection report children’s home: SC366093 2 07/11/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good 30/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 07/11/2016 Full Outstanding 30/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC366093 3

p.2

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.

p.3

Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children and use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

p.3

Requirement Due date

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

p.3

Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to meet the needs of each child and enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6(1)(a)(b)(2)(c)) 31/08/2018

p.3

Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that helps children aspire to fulfil their potential and promotes their welfare.

p.3

Requirement Due date

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

p.3

Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(f)) 31/08/2018

p.3

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23(2)(c)) 31/08/2018

p.3

Recommendations

 Record information about the child in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report children’s home: SC366093 4

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and young people experience high levels of nurture. They grow in confidence as staff show high levels of respect for children and young people’s individuality.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and young people feel valued because the registered manager and staff consult with them about the running of the home and their individual placements. Children and young people know about, and can use, the home’s complaints procedures. They receive a detailed response when they raise concerns.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is furnished to a high standard, except for the kitchen. A succession of independent visitor reports have highlighted the poor state of repair in the kitchen, but these recommendations have still not been addressed. Otherwise, children and young people live in a homely and comfortable house. They enjoy the privacy of their own rooms, which are highly personalised.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A social worker appreciated the strong advocacy skills of staff and explained how this has enabled one child to understand the reasons for them being looked after. This has helped to rebuild a positive relationship between the social worker and the child.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Strong partnership working with the placing authorities and education services is a clear strength, and results in good educational outcomes for children and young people. Staff support, along with input from the home’s therapist, is integral to one child’s excellent school attendance and improved achievement. A young person’s recent exclusion from school has been well managed. Good partnership working means that the young person engages in an education programme at the home. The registered manager and the placing authority have worked effectively to secure a new education placement, therefore limiting the time that the young person will spend away from school.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people make very good progress in developing independence skills and taking responsibility for the decisions that they make. One young person appreciates the support that she has received from staff to address a history of poor school attendance. She now looks forward to her new college placement, which will allow her to follow her ambition to be a hairdresser and beautician. The young person manages her own free time, including family contact, and feels fully prepared for her imminent move to independent living.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and young people benefit from positive relationships with staff. They develop compassion for others and excellent social skills. Sensitive discussion and strong boundaries ensure that children and young people understand and accept the supervision and support that they receive from staff to keep them and others safe.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and young people enjoy good health. They eat balanced meals, are encouraged to exercise and enjoy a range of well-planned activities. Staff have sensitive and Inspection report children’s home: SC366093 5 informed insight into children and young people’s mental and emotional health. Good- quality, child-centred key working, combined with access to regular therapy, promotes children and young people’s well-being.

p.4

improvement to be good

Over recent months, there has been a significant increase in the use of physical interventions to manage one young person’s new and escalating behaviours. Some of these interventions include long holds and holds on the ground. While staff show high levels of commitment to supporting the young person’s behaviour, emotional well- being and safety, the analysis of patterns and trends has not been timely. However, a recent review of incidents, which has included input from a therapist and senior leaders, has led to a change in approach. This new approach is currently seeing a reduction in the use of physical intervention. It is essential that this analysis continues and also takes into consideration the impact that such incidents have on other children and young people living at the home.

p.5

improvement to be good

Medication procedures are not always robust, mainly due to complicated recording systems. For example, a consultant’s decision to reduce one young person’s medication is not clearly identified. The prescription label and the dosage recorded on the young person’s administration record do not match. In addition, the transfer of medication, when the young person goes on family contact, is recorded in the dosage section of the young person’s medication record. This is misleading, as the young person has not actually been administered the medication. While no children or young people take controlled medication, the central controlled-drugs book is loose-leaf and does not meet the requirement for a bound book.

p.5

improvement to be good

The above shortfalls are highlighted against a backdrop of a comprehensive and consistently implemented care planning and safeguarding framework. Staff are well- trained and have easy access to clear guidance on how to identify, respond to, report and record any safeguarding concerns.

p.5

improvement to be good

Staff have an in-depth understanding of the children’s and young people’s needs and use well-written risk assessments to promote children’s and young people’s safety inside and outside of the home.

p.5

improvement to be good

There are no concerns about children and young people going missing. On the one occasion when one young person was absent, staff implemented the young person’s protocol effectively, with good partnership working with the police. The young person was safely returned to the home within the hour.

p.5

improvement to be good

Structured, personalised responses from staff and regular use of reward charts help children and young people to learn from their experiences as they receive compassionate, proportionate and warm responses from staff. Inspection report children’s home: SC366093 6 Children and young people understand that the staff and the registered manager take everyone’s safety very seriously, as they listen to concerns and challenge any bullying behaviours.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The recently registered manager successfully leads her team. Her previous employment in the home has helped her to develop good relationships with staff, children and young people. The registered manager and staff have a clear understanding of the home’s statement of purpose and strive to work well with the other professionals involved with each child and young person. All staff have high aspirations for the children and young people living at the home.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The two statutory requirements from the last inspection are met. Recruitment is well managed and children and young people experience a good sense of permanence now that staffing has stabilised. Appropriate action has been taken to address staff performance and children and young people receive good support to develop their awareness of how to stay safe. The need for higher staffing ratios over the past two months has been managed using a core team of staff from other homes, who work alongside experienced staff. Children and young people are familiar with, and enjoy positive relationships with, these additional staff members. New staff receive a good foundation in caring for children and young people, due to a well-organised induction. Children and young people are looked after by well-trained staff. Records are factual, accurate and provide good guidance for staff practice. While staff practice is child centred, children and young people’s records sometimes contain

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

complex language and lack a style that can be understood by children and young people of all ages.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has a good understanding of her monitoring responsibilities. Independent monitoring reports are comprehensive and positive, and most recommendations are quickly addressed.

p.6

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 Inspection report children’s home: SC366093 7 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.

p.6

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: SC366093 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Reflexion Care Group Limited

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Reflexion Care Group Ltd, Black Birches, Hadnall, Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY4 3DH

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered manager: Lucy Manning Katie Pearce

p.8

Inspectors

Elaine Cray: social care inspector Dawn Bennett: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC366093 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.

p.8

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspectors

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

p.9