Children's Home run by Essex County Council in Essex

Inspection report children‟s home: SC044975 1 SC044975 Registered provider: Essex County Council

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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, which is run by a local authority, provides a short-break service offering support to families to maintain the child within the family environment, to enable the family to continue caring for their child throughout their childhood.

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Information about this children’s home

The experienced registered manager has been in post since April 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: 28 September 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children‟s home: SC044975 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/09/2017 Full Good 24/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 18/05/2016 Full Good 06/01/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children‟s home: SC044975 3

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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.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may defer the relevant date if the individual—

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Requirement Due date

does not work, or has not worked, in a care role in a home for a prolonged period; or

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Requirement Due date

works, or has worked, in a care role in a home on a part-time basis. (Regulation 32 (4)(a)(b)(5)(a)(b) and (6)(a)(b)) 12/10/2018

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person 24/08/2018 Inspection report children‟s home: SC044975 4 to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, and the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(b)(i)(c)) Subject to paragraph (4) ad (5), the registered provider may not appoint the following as an independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered provider is a local authority, a person who is employed by that local authority in connection with the carrying on of the local authority‟s social services functions (as defined by section 1a of the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970(a)) relating to children. (Regulation 43 (3)(a)) 01/08/2018

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Recommendations

 Effective care planning and strong working relationships between the staff of the home and the placing authority are essential to the success of placements. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 56 paragraph 11.2) This is with particular reference to the one child who is looked after and does not have an up-to-date care plan from the Local Authority.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff demonstrate a detailed awareness and understanding of the children‟s complex needs. The plans for their care and support are clear. Staff consistently speak of wanting the best for the children. It is apparent that staff take time to form good relationships with children and to lead by example. A social worker for one of the children said, „They [the staff team] have been brilliant in their care of [the child].‟

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children benefit from carefully planned introductions and visits to the home. The managers and staff team give attention to detail for each child‟s transition plans. Consequently, the children‟s individual needs are well met and they soon settle for their overnight stays.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children grow in confidence because they are encouraged to take part in fun activities. These have included celebrating the royal wedding and the football World Cup 2018. The children make and build friendships in the home and in the community, which gives them a chance to try different experiences and develop new skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Well-structured routines and detailed care plans support the children to learn to manage their behaviours. The children communicate what they are feeling and thinking in a Inspection report children‟s home: SC044975 5 range of different ways. Children are supervised on a one-to-one basis. They build good relationships with their link workers. The staff have a good understanding of children‟s strengths and needs, and how to support their progress. The staff are vigilant and careful in their care of children. The staff continually reassess what children are doing in order to understand them better and help them further.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children come to stay in a home that is pleasantly decorated and furnished throughout that meets their complex needs. The staff have worked hard and show an ongoing commitment to add warmth and special touches to the decor. The outside gardens have an abundance of activities and play equipment to enhance the children‟s fun, learning and development.

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

The manager ensures that the health of the children is promoted positively. The staff have a good oversight of the children‟s healthcare needs, which supports their emotional well-being. Medication is stored safely. The medication management system helps to ensure that children receive their medication safely.

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

Staff de-escalate challenging behaviour successfully. Physical restraint is only used when necessary to protect the children or staff from harm. Sanctions are proportionate and fair. There have been no incidents of children going missing from care since the last inspection. All of the staff are trained in the use of restraint and conflict management. Incidents of restraint, and sanctions, are recorded; however, the debriefing sessions with the staff and the children have not been reviewed or recorded in full. This has no impact on the safety and well-being of the children who come to stay in the home.

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

The safety of children is promoted. Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding practice. They are fully aware of their responsibility to protect the children from abuse and they can confidently describe reporting procedures. The staff are fully aware of the roles of external agencies and report in confidence their organisation‟s whistle-blowing policy. This knowledge helps to ensure that any safeguarding concerns are reported and dealt with promptly. Safeguarding issues are promptly investigated, recorded and resolved in a timely manner. High staffing levels provide the children with constant supervision, care and support, which protects and keeps them safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager leads by example, putting the children first and having aspirations for them to achieve, enjoy life and make good progress. She ensures that the service operates within the statement of purpose and is aware of the service‟s strengths and weaknesses. This is achieved through active communication with the children, staff and professionals. As a result, the children continue to receive a very good standard of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has good insight into the children‟s strengths and vulnerabilities. She offers good support to the staff through her daily presence in the home. The manager leads a staff team that is both dedicated and very experienced in the field of caring for children Inspection report children‟s home: SC044975 6 with complex needs. The manager is accessible and approachable and, when necessary, offers practical support in the care of the children. Regular team meetings ensure that the children are discussed in detail and that they remain the focus of activities within the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Individual placement plans, care plans, risk assessments and health plans are of good quality. Documentation gives a clear and vivid description of the work undertaken towards meeting children‟s health, behavioural and care needs. Any potential risks are swiftly identified and plans are updated. However, one child‟s care plan has not been updated by the local authority. This does not impact on the quality of care given to this child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision is of a high standard. Training focuses on the individual personal development plans, and the roles of the staff and responsibilities with the children. This training ensures that the staff have the skills that they need to meet the individual needs of the children they care for. However, one member of staff has not completed their level 3 qualification in the required timescale.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Various independent visitors come to the home and produce monthly monitoring reports. The information contained in the reports gives a good overview of the home, the staff and the children who stay there. Some of the independent visitors are known to staff working at the home due to their role in the local authority. However, the provider has not addressed the conflicts of interest that have arisen as a result and the visitor‟s reports have not documented this conflict.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has met the two requirements and one recommendation raised at the last inspection to good effect.

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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: SC044975 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, Chelmsford CM1 1QH

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Inspector

Cathy Russell: social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC044975 8 achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children‟s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children‟s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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