Children's Home run by Doncaster Children‟s Services Trust Limited in Doncaster

Inspection report children‟s home: 1258627 1 Registered provider: Doncaster Children‟s Services Trust 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

A children‟s trust operates this home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four children and young people. The manager has been registered since July 2017.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 13 to 14 November 2018

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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: 29 January 2018

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/01/2018 Full Good Inspection report children‟s home: 1258627 2

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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

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

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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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 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

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, 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)(iii)(iv)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)) 15/12/2018

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Recommendations

 Any sanctions used to address poor behaviour should be restorative in nature, to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them and the wider community. In some cases, it will be important for children to make reparation in some form to anyone hurt by their behaviour and the staff in the home should be skilled to support the child to understand this and carry it out. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations Inspection report children‟s home: 1258627 3 including the quality standards‟, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and young people are at the heart of practice in this home. The care they receive is helping them to make sustained and measurable progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The warm rapport between the children and young people and the staff enables children and young people to share their concerns and dilemmas and make positive changes in their lives. The children and young people experience a sense of belonging in the home. One young person said, „We are a family.‟

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children and young people develop a greater understanding of their feelings through high-quality direct work sessions. Their self-esteem is bolstered by the way in which these sessions are recorded, with comments such as, „We were really worried about you, we are always around to support you and we love you like family.‟

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff continuously promote the importance of education and establish close working relationships with education providers. As a result, the attendance and achievement for all the children and young people are good.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff support each child and young person to develop their identity. The staff have received training around gender identity and are incorporating this understanding into their practice. This helps the children and young people to feel accepted and secure.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some children and young people return to the care of family members due to the direct work staff carry out with the families. For others who cannot return home, they benefit from improved relationships with family members. This leads to better emotional well- being for children and young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children and young people live in a large and comfortable home. It is well maintained and homely. Children‟s and young people‟s rooms are furnished to a good standard and provide them with a secure and private space that they have personalised.

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

The safeguarding practice of the staff greatly enhances the protection of the children and young people. Their risks are understood well and are clearly documented. The staff are proactive in following the children‟s and young people‟s plans to reduce the risk.

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

The children and young people feel protected and safe in this home. Due to their strong relationships with the staff, the children and young people can identify trusted adults from the staff team whom they specifically trust. The children and young people readily Inspection report children‟s home: 1258627 4 confide in the staff, which often leads to children and young people making safer choices and the staff being able to take preventative action.

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

Some children and young people continue to go missing from the home, but due to persistent support from the staff, the frequency of these episodes is diminishing. When children or young people go missing, the staff respond swiftly and follow the missing- from-home procedures correctly.

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

Children and young people are supported to take age-appropriate risks, where appropriate, to develop their independence. For example, one child is allowed to cycle to the shops providing she wears a safety helmet and carries a phone.

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

The staff promote positive behaviour through the provision of firm behavioural expectations and the use of sanctions, consequences and incentives. The children and young people respond to these well, and incidents of challenging behaviour are decreasing. However, the staff do not often adopt a restorative approach which would help the children and young people to take more responsibility for their actions.

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

The staff need to use physical intervention at times to prevent the children and young people from harming themselves or others. However, these incidents are not recorded in line with the regulations. Important details are missing which restrict the ability of the manager, independent visitor and the regulator from evaluating the safety of the restraint effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led effectively by a very experienced manager. Several of the staff are relatively inexperienced and are yet to obtain a relevant professional qualification. However, the manager provides the staff with strong leadership which enables them to develop sound care practice. The manager ensures that all the staff who need to do so are undertaking the appropriate professional qualifications.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are good systems in place to monitor the progress of children and young people in relation to their goals. The manager works in close partnership with social workers, education providers, health professionals and families to ensure that any challenges are dealt with collaboratively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The children and young people are helped to understand their plans, histories and experiences through well-written case records. The format that is used is child centred and easy to read. The children and young people contribute to their plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Care practice is monitored and improved through regular consultation with the children and young people, their families and the professionals involved in their lives. A professional said that the manager and the staff are, „particularly good at seeing things from the child‟s point of view‟. Inspection report children‟s home: 1258627 5 The staff feel well supported by the manager. They receive consistent supervision which both supports and challenges their practice. Regular team meetings are used to help the staff to develop their knowledge around issues such as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities and sexually harmful behaviour. This enables the staff to support the children and young people more effectively.

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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: 1258627 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Doncaster Children‟s Services Trust Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Colonnades House, Duke Street, Doncaster DN1 1ER

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Inspector

Janet Black, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: 1258627 7 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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