Children's Home run by Surrey County Council in Surrey

Inspection report children‟s home: SC068827 1 SC068827 Registered provider: Surrey 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

The home is operated by a local authority. It provides care and accommodation for up to five children. The provider states in the home‟s statement of purpose that children placed here will often have experienced serious trauma, breakdown in family relationships, disruption in their lives and multiple placement breakdowns.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager at the home since 30 July 2018. A new manager was appointed in August 2018 and is not yet registered with Ofsted.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children‟s home: SC068827 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/03/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 04/10/2017 Full Good 04/01/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 01/06/2016 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children‟s home: SC068827 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

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child‟s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. (Regulation 12(2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that plans and risk assessments clearly identify children‟s needs and the measures staff need to implement to protect children and advance their development. 31/12/2018

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person‟s report to—

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months. (Regulation 45(1)) 31/12/2018

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Recommendations

 A record of supervision should be kept for staff, including the manager. The record should provide evidence that supervision is being delivered in line with regulation 33(4)(b). („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 61, paragraph 13.3) Inspection report children‟s home: SC068827 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children, who have complex needs, experience individualised care within a stable and safe environment. Over time, they settle and benefit from warm and trusting relationships with staff. One child who has lived at the home for a considerable period and is moving on to more independent accommodation commented that he „has loved living here‟ and there is nothing he could think of that would have improved his experience.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers and staff understand children‟s health needs and encourage children to lead a healthy lifestyle. With the help of a mental health professional, staff understand children‟s emotional needs and how their past experiences affect their behaviour. This informs their practice and their support for individual children. Meaningful relationships enable children to respond to the support the staff offer and helps them manage their emotions more appropriately.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some children are struggling to attend their education placements. Staff are sensitive and encouraging in their support to help children re-engage with their education and fulfil their potential.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support for children who are moving from the home to more independent accommodation is effective. Staff help prepare children to take more responsibility for themselves and develop their daily living skills. Well-considered plans for staff from the home to continue to support a child when they have moved helps the child adjust to the change.

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

The staff know children well and are aware of the risks associated with each child‟s behaviour. They implement supportive and protective measures. However, the quality of care plans and risk assessments is variable. The new manager has identified this as an area for improvement. These documents are in the process of being reviewed and amended to ensure that they clearly identify children‟s needs and the measures staff need to implement consistently to protect children and advance their development.

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

Staff use key-work sessions effectively to help children understand how to keep themselves safe. They recognise that children need to take appropriate risks as they develop decision-making skills and develop their independence.

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

Through warm and trusting relationships, staff encourage positive behaviour. Sanctions and physical intervention are used infrequently. Staff are increasingly using a restorative approach to resolve any issues and help children take responsibility for their actions.

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

There have been some incidents of children leaving the home without permission. Staff apply agreed procedures following such incidents. The manager responds proactively Inspection report children‟s home: SC068827 5 and appropriately. Meetings with children‟s social workers and a review of such incidents with staff ensure that action is taken to protect children and manage the risks associated with their behaviour.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has recently been appointed and is not yet registered with Ofsted. She is a qualified social worker with relevant experience. She has a strong commitment to improving outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The management team and the staff have a good understanding of children‟s individual needs. The support they provide helps children settle at the home and make progress. Relationships between the staff and the children are warm and positive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers provide the staff team with professional, constructive support. Staff receive regular supervision to reflect and improve on their practice. However, some of these supervision sessions have not been recorded.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Effective partnership working is embedded in practice. Specialist support from the child and adolescent mental health services for children in care provides valuable support for the staff in dealing with the children‟s complex emotional needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

With a focus on continuous improvement, the new manager is currently developing a plan to ensure that staff provide children with positive experiences across all aspects of their care. Monthly reports from an external visitor contribute to the manager‟s monitoring of the home. Since the last inspection, two of these independent person‟s reports have not been sent to Ofsted. The manager has also not completed a review of the quality of care provided for children within the required time.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is using her recent relevant experience as a social worker to challenge the practice of other professionals and the decisions and plans for children when these are not considered to be in the child‟s best interests.

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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 Inspection report children‟s home: SC068827 6 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: SC068827 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Quadrant Court, 35 Guildford Road, Woking, Surrey GU22 7QQ

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Inspector

Jan Hunnam, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC068827 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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