Children's Home run by Castle Homes Limited in Bromley

Inspection report children’s home: SC419334 1 SC419334 Registered provider: Castle Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 20 to 21 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: 22 November 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: SC419334 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/11/2017 Full Good 28/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 26/10/2016 Full Good 17/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC419334 3

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Recommendations

 Staff should understand factors that affect children’s motivation to behave in a socially acceptable way. Staff should encourage an enthusiasm for positive behaviour through the use of positive behaviour strategies in line with the child’s relevant plans. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.13) In particular, the provider should review the effectiveness of behaviour management strategies that involve withholding monies from young people.  A child’s plans should form the basis of their care, and providers should use their judgement as to what is relevant in each case. In order to improve practice, the provider should ensure that the home’s placement plan clearly evidences how staff are providing support in order to help young people to make progress and develop to their full potential. These plans should take account of and give weight to the views of young people. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations

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Recommendations

including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.1)  Just as in a family home, children should be able to access all shared areas of their home unless there are specific reasons why this would not meet a child’s needs. Limits on privacy and access may only be put in place to safeguard each child in the home (regulation 21(c)(i)). Any decisions to limit a child’s access to any area of the home and any modifications to the environment of the home, must only be made where this is intended to safeguard the child’s welfare. All decisions should be informed by a rigorous assessment of that individual child’s needs, be properly recorded and be kept under regular review. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)  The registered person should support staff to be ambitious for every child in the home and to gain skills and experience that enable them to actively support each

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Recommendations

child to achieve their potential. To ensure that staff understand and can meet each child’s needs, in line with their responsibilities, the registered person themselves will need to have a high level of understanding of the needs of the children in their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.5) In particular, the provider should ensure that there is more in-depth knowledge in relation to meeting the needs of young people who may be diagnosed as being on the autistic spectrum.  Children must be consulted regularly on their views about the home’s care, to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided. Due consideration should be given to the child’s cognitive ability in the development and implementation of any consultation processes. Children should be able to see the results of their views being listened to and acted upon. (‘Guide to the

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Recommendations

Inspection report children’s home: SC419334 4 children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 22, paragraph 4.11)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people benefit from warm, nurturing care. One young person commented that, ‘Staff are lovely here.’ Another young person said, ‘This is the best home I have been in.’ Young people are consistently positive when speaking about the care that they receive in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the needs of young people well. They provide high levels of support to help young people to make progress. The staff team is resilient and works through times of challenge to enable young people to find their feet and to develop trust. This means that unplanned endings are rare and young people who have had multiple care placements are able to engage with support and to feel settled.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The provider is thoughtful about matching new admissions to the existing group. New admissions are well planned and the provider ensures that young people have the support necessary to meet their immediate needs in terms of their health, contact with their families and access to education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Transitions into education are carefully planned to ensure that young people have constructive routines and support from tutors in the event that there is a delay in accessing education. All young people are making good progress in education. This is a positive achievement because many of the young people were not meaningfully engaged in education before they came to live in the home. The provider has a dedicated education worker who liaises with local education providers and the virtual school to ensure that young people access suitable provision.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home’s care plans do not always reflect the quality of the practice in the home. They do not identify clear targets or identify the steps that young people need to take to make progress. They do not reflect the views of young people. This is primarily a recording issue, but practice would be improved with a clear plan in place to help focus interventions and better evidence success.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage young people to take responsibility for themselves as appropriate to their needs and understanding. They provide life skills programmes to teach young people how to become more independent.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is spacious, with ample room and resources to allow young people space and to encourage them to engage in constructive activities. The home is well maintained and presented to give a homely feel. Some communal areas, such as the kitchen, are routinely locked in the evening. This is not what would happen in a family home and this practice should be reviewed to ensure that this is absolutely necessary in terms of safety. Inspection report children’s home: SC419334 5

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

Staff prioritise the safety of young people. Young people are generally well behaved and cooperate with the boundaries and expectations of the home. When asked, young people felt that, on the whole, the rules were fair and what they would expect in a family home. One young person felt that his behaviour had improved because staff know him well and give him space when he needs it. He felt that it was helpful that staff did not continue to argue with him when he was angry.

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

Staff use positive strategies such as rewards and praise to encourage positive behaviour. The provider has a system of withholding monies from young people if they do not comply with requests or exhibit negative behaviours. However, this practice is not recorded as a sanction and is not regularly reviewed to evaluate that this is an effective strategy.

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

Staff take all reasonable steps to ensure that they know where young people are when they are not at home. Young people generally keep in touch and return on time. If they do not, staff follow agreed procedures to report them missing and are proactive in trying to ensure their safe return.

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

Young people know how to complain and feel able to raise concerns with staff and the manager of the home. The provider works effectively in partnership with the relevant safeguarding agencies in response to any child protection concerns or allegations. Such concerns are rare and all concerns since the previous inspection have been properly investigated and resolved.

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

The provider completes an individual risk assessment for each young person. Staff understand the areas of vulnerability for each young person and there are clear plans in place to manage risks. Interventions to reduce risk are proportionate and allow young people to take reasonable risks in order to learn to be independent.

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

Staffing levels are sufficient to provide close monitoring and high levels of support when this is needed. New staff are subject to rigorous checks to ensure that they are suitably experienced and of good character.

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

Staff regularly update their training in core areas of child protection such as risks relating to exploitation and radicalisation. All staff have undertaken fire awareness training and are qualified to administer first aid.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The current manager of the home was recently appointed and has submitted an application to register with Ofsted. She previously worked as the deputy manager of the home and holds a level 5 qualification in social care leadership and management. A senior residential staff member has been appointed to the deputy manager post and is suitably experienced for this role. This demonstrates that the provider has good Inspection report children’s home: SC419334 6 succession planning in place and means that the new management arrangements offer a consistent experience of care for young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows the service and the young people well. She is accessible and has good oversight of care practice. She demonstrates good knowledge in relation to safeguarding.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak positively about the new manager and the impact that she has made. They feel that she listens to them and offers excellent support. She has monthly supervision meetings with staff and regular team meetings. These are well recorded and evidence a clear focus on the needs of young people and staff’s well-being.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager of the home works effectively in partnership with the professional network to ensure that relevant plans remain focused on the needs of young people. She provides constructive feedback and advocates strongly for young people when this is necessary to enhance support for young people and to keep plans on track.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is a positive role model and ensures that high standards of care are maintained. She provides a good balance of support and direction to enable staff to be effective in their roles and to develop their practice. She manages a diverse team and promotes an inclusive culture within the home. This promotes diversity and discourages discriminatory practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Care is delivered in line with the home’s statement of purpose but recent admissions to the home require staff to undertake more in-depth, specialist training in order to better meet young people’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Young people are able to confidently express their views and to raise concerns. Effective systems are not yet in place to routinely capture the views of young people and consult with them on service development. It is important that young people are meaningfully involved in shaping the service and their care plans. Being able to influence the world around them through positive discussion is crucial to their learning and development and teaches them important skills for adult life. Success in this area also enhances their feelings of being valued, belonging and will improve their experience of care.

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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. Inspection report children’s home: SC419334 7 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

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Information about this inspection

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: SC419334 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Castle Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fifth Floor, 80 Hammersmith Road, London W14 8UD

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Inspector

Lee Kirwin: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC419334 9 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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