Sense, The National Deafblind And Rubella Association

Inspection report for residential holiday scheme for disabled children: Sense Sense Sense, The National Deafblind and Rubella Association

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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disabled children

This residential scheme for disabled children is part of a charitable trust. The scheme provides residential activity holidays throughout the year. Young people may have learning disabilities, physical disabilities and/or sensory needs.

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disabled children

The registered manager was registered in May 2018.

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disabled children

Inspection dates: 30 July to 31 July 2018

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Overall experience 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 residential holiday scheme for disabled children provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of previous inspection: 31 July 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 for residential holiday scheme for disabled children: Sense

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Key findings from this inspection

This residential holiday scheme for disabled children is good because:

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people enjoy their holiday and try new experiences and develop social skills in a safe and supportive environment.  Young people benefit from a purpose-built facility, staffed by professionally trained instructors.  Young people enjoy close and supportive levels of supervision, at a minimum level of one to one.  Staff work in partnership with parents and schools to provide effective behavioural support and guidance.  Staff benefit from good levels of training and many possess the skills to meet the complex communication needs of young people, such as being able to use sign language.

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Key findings from this inspection

The areas for development for the residential holiday scheme for disabled children:

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Key findings from this inspection

 Managers do not formally monitor the holiday scheme as required.

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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, the Residential Holiday Schemes for Disabled Children (England) Regulations 2013 and the national minimum standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

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Statutory requirements

The registered person must establish and maintain a system for─

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Statutory requirements

monitoring the matters set out in Schedule 6 at least once in every 12 month period.

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Statutory requirements

Where the registered person conducts a review for the purposes of paragraph (1), the registered person must provide—

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Statutory requirements

a report in respect of that review to HMCI.

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Statutory requirements

(Regulation 30 (1)(a)(2)(a)) 31/12/18 Inspection report for residential holiday scheme for disabled children: Sense

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people enjoy their holiday. They experience new and exciting activities, such as paddle boarding, while being supported by a dedicated staff team. For many young people, the holiday is the highlight of their year. One young person enjoyed his 10th holiday with the organisation during the week. Staff cajole and encourage young people to broaden their experiences. This results in young people having big smiles and raised self-esteem. One young person commented that the holiday is ‘amazing’ and a parent noted that, ‘It’s great. He (son) absolutely loves it (the holiday scheme) and so looks forward to it.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff communicate well with young people. Staff use sign language and their own keen observational skills to communicate with young people and allow them to settle quickly into the placement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Planning for the holiday is good. The activity centre provides an allocated instructor for the week who offers consistency and an understanding of the young people’s group dynamic. Staff send out daily planners in advance of the holiday to parents to ensure that their children are properly equipped and prepared.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people enjoy a purpose-built facility, which offers a number of activities adapted to meet their complex needs. The activity centre provides a contained area for young people to socialise with each other without interference from others using the centre. The activity centre works in partnership with staff to ensure that activities are accessible to all those attending the holiday. Activity centre staff are able to change the activity plans, dependent on changing weather conditions and the wishes and feelings of young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Despite the short length of the holiday, young people make good progress and learn new social and emotional skills. In addition, the holiday provides an invaluable source of respite for families. Staff use their good understanding of young people and their own initiatives to create impromptu activities such as scavenger hunts or preparing the evening meal to create a good group dynamic. Staff achieve a good balance between providing young people with activities and time for them to relax.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All involved roundly celebrate the achievements and progress of young people. Each evening, staff consider a ‘wow!’ moment for each young person. Young people receive holiday diaries and journals that carefully record these moments with the addition of other mementos such as sand or other items linked to the activities that the young people participated in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

If required, young people enjoy regular phone contact with parents. Staff take photos of activities and, if requested, will send these to parents throughout the week. These measures assist in lessening the anxieties that young people and their parents may have. Inspection report for residential holiday scheme for disabled children: Sense Staff dispense medication safely and ensure that emergency medication is available during activities to treat young people who may require immediate assistance. Young people enjoy an individualised eating plan and nutritious meals at the activity centre. Staff support young people by monitoring their food intake and emphasising the importance of limiting their consumption of sugary snacks and caffeinated drinks.

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

Staff understand safeguarding procedures and are clear about what to do if concerns arise.

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

Risk assessments are good. They allow young people to try new and challenging activities such as sailing in a safe and managed environment. In advance of the holiday, staff gather key information and ensure that the correct safety policies are in place. Assessments consider the impact of a new environment, new social relationships and new activity experiences on young people. They provide staff with key information such as the need to watch others completing an activity before taking part or to remember to remove hearing aids before a water-based activity. Staff take the time to read these individualised assessments before the holiday begins to ensure that they are familiar with young people’s complex needs.

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

Young people benefit from high staffing levels, which provide a minimum of one-to- one supervision during the day. Supporting young people with their intimate care is limited to staff who have established a close relationship with the young person concerned. This supports the dignity of young people. High staffing levels allow young people to choose to miss an activity if they feel tired and require a rest. Close staff supervision allows young people to feel safe. One young person commented, ‘Everyone is nice to each other here.’

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

Close staff supervision ensures that young people do not go missing. In the unlikely event that this may happen, staff are very familiar with the relevant policies and procedures.

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

Staff work in partnership with parents and schools. Parents and schools contribute to the development of behavioural management plans. This ensures consistency and reduces the risk of confusion for young people. Additional work with parents includes supporting them in managing the cost of the holiday such as the use of ‘direct payments’ from the government.

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

Behavioural management is effective. Staff understand the behavioural and development goals for each young person. These are reviewed by the staff team each day and include discussing young people’s progress. In addition, staff recognise that in some cases young people’s challenging behaviours are a means for them to express an emotion. Staff provide young people with consistent boundaries, which help to support good levels of behaviour. Young people respond well, and there are no incidents of staff having to use physical intervention on the holiday scheme. When young people misbehave, staff respond appropriately and support young people to Inspection report for residential holiday scheme for disabled children: Sense apologise where appropriate.

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

Staff receive a comprehensive training programme. The impact of this is clearly evident in staff’s caring practice. Staff benefit from a comprehensive induction weekend and meet at the centre prior to the arrival of young people, to further prepare for the holiday. Staff undertake intimate procedures with young people, such as gastro tube feeding, with confidence and compassion. Furthermore, staff understand the complex conditions that some young people have via training and from their own research.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The previous registered manager left the organisation in October 2017. The new manager was registered with Ofsted in May 2018. She is highly experienced and has worked for the organisation since 1999. The registered manager gained the required management qualification in January 2018. Two ‘leaders’ who work in close conjunction with the registered manager share the overall management responsibility.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Close communication and efficient working practices allow the organisation to operate a large number of holiday schemes across the country, many at the same time. Managers consistently seek new means of developing and improving the service. Feedback forms are completed by parents at the end of each holiday. This helps managers to evaluate the quality of the activity centres and the young person group dynamic. Managers incorporate such feedback into planning for the following year’s holiday.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Despite a comprehensive development plan, managers have not formally monitored the holiday scheme or forwarded a copy of any such review to Ofsted as required. This shortfall limited the preparation for this inspection and impacts on Ofsted’s ability to regulate the service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team is diverse and richly talented. Staff volunteer their time and come from a number of disciplines ranging from nursing to accountancy. All share a fierce commitment and passion towards ensuring the best possible holiday for young people. Managers seek to match the skills of staff to young people. For example, they allocate more experienced staff to holidays where the needs of young people and their behaviours are more challenging.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Good leadership results in strong staff morale. Over 80% of the staff team has previously volunteered with the organisation. Staff reported that they receive consistent and informative management support. This includes regular ‘check in’ conversations during the day and managers checking on their general welfare. This results in a positive team dynamic and good levels of communication.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An efficient allocations process matches the activity centre with the likes and dislikes of young people. Where possible, young people attend with school friends and share a bedroom, further supporting them to settle in quickly. Inspection report for residential holiday scheme for disabled children: Sense Managers oversee a strong safeguarding culture. Recruitment processes are safe and well managed. Managers coordinate the development and implementation of all safeguarding policies and systems efficiently.

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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 the 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 residential holiday scheme for disabled children 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 Residential Holiday Schemes for Disabled Children (England) Regulations 2013 and the national minimum standards. Inspection report for residential holiday scheme for disabled children: Sense

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Residential holiday scheme for disabled children details

Registered provider: Sense, The National Deafblind and Rubella Association

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Residential holiday scheme for disabled children details

Registered provider address: 101 Pentonville Road, London N1 9LG Responsible individual: Mr Richard Kramer Registered manager: Mrs Ruth Bennett-Anderson

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Residential holiday scheme for disabled children details

Email address: ruth.bennett-anderson@sense.org.uk

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Inspector

Barnaby Dowell, social care inspector Inspection report for residential holiday scheme for disabled children: Sense to 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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