Children's home run by Cornerways Children’s Services Limited in Reigate and Banstead

Inspection report children’s home: SC014848 1 SC014848 Registered provider: Cornerways Children’s Services 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

The home is one of two children’s homes owned and run by a private company that also operates a fostering agency and a school. It has accommodation for up to six children. The service also provides individual children with support from therapists. The manager was registered with Ofsted in December 2017.

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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

Date of last inspection: 20 February 2018

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC014848 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/02/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 07/03/2017 Full Good 19/10/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 24/02/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC014848 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a warm, homely environment and benefit from long, stable placements. Staff regularly consult them about the overall decor and furnishings and in turn the children respect their surroundings and keep them clean and tidy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff understand the underlying ethos and model of care. Meetings with the clinical psychologist help them to look at attachments and how their own styles of behaviour can impact the children. Staff use a therapeutic approach to build and maintain relationships. As a result, the children have good relationships with the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Before new children move in, the staff and managers consider all the information available to ensure that they can meet their needs, and that the impact on the children living in the home is not negative. The children also benefit from staff support when moving out. However, these plans are not captured in a structured way and therefore records do not reflect the good work being done.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager has high ambitions for the children. Care and support is personalised to meet their individual needs, with a real focus on education and independence. Because of this, all the children are doing well and have clear plans for the future.

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

Safeguarding the children is a priority. The registered manager is working hard to ensure that the staff receive relevant training and know and understand the policies and procedures. While this is still work in progress, the children spoken to during the inspection said that they felt safe.

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

The staff’s approach to behaviour management is effective. Mutually agreed incentives keep the children focused on their goals. Children also receive the emotional support they need to help regulate their behaviour. As a result, the staff do not need to use sanctions for negative behaviours.

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

Managers have clear expectations of the placing authorities in regard to risk assessments. Risk assessments are completed by social workers prior to the child moving in, ensuring that the staff know and understand their behaviours and any risks they may face. This, together with clear internal plans and strategies that guide staff practice, leads to incidents of risk-taking behaviour decreasing in number.

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

Leaders and managers take allegations made against staff seriously, and consult with the designated officer when necessary. Senior managers thoroughly investigate incidents and take appropriate action to address concerns or poor performance. As a result, children say that they know how to complain and feel listened to. Inspection report children’s home: SC014848 4

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An experienced registered manager leads the team. He is currently working towards the level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has been working hard to develop the staff and create a learning culture. Specific training and regular team meetings have largely focused on safeguarding and ensuring that the staff work consistently. Since the last inspection, where the home was judged to require improvement to be good, notable improvements have been made.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff recruitment follows good-practice guidance. This includes involving the children in the decision-making process. Feedback from them about how candidates interacted with them is listened to by the panel. On occasions, this has resulted in applicants being turned down.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is currently responsible for supervising and appraising the whole staff team. As a result, the frequency and quality of these meetings do not follow the organisation’s own policy. However, despite this, there doesn’t appear to have been any direct negative impact on the children. This is largely due to other mechanisms being used to review and monitor staff practice which allow for poor performance to be addressed when necessary.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Effective monitoring arrangements are in place. As a result, the registered manager has good oversight of the quality of care. Visits made by the independent visitor are effective and help to identify areas for improvement. Recommendations are used to help develop the service, and form part of the overall development plan.

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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: SC014848 5

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cornerways Children’s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Ashcombe Court, Woolsack Way, Godalming, Surrey GU7 1LQ

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Inspector

Amanda Harvey: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC014848 6 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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