Children's Home run by My Choice Children’s Homes Limited in West Sussex

Inspection report children‟s home: 1024574 1 SC364812 Registered provider: My Choice Children‟s Homes Ltd

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The service can accommodate two children. It is owned by a private company and is one of nine homes. The company has a registered school that children can access. The home was last inspected in October 2017. The manager has been in post since July 2018 and was registered the week prior to this inspection.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 19 to 20 November 2018

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

Good

How well children and young people are helped and protected Good

p.1

Good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers Good

p.1

Good

The children‟s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

Good

Date of last inspection: 18 October 2017

p.1

Good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

Good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children‟s home: 1024574 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/10/2017 Full Good 14/12/2016 Full Good 10/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 05/08/2015 Full Good Inspection report children‟s home: 1024574 3

p.2

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.

p.3

Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if— (e) there is any other serious incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40(4)(e)) 31/12/2018

p.3

Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children‟s home that— (a) helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and (b) promotes their welfare. (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered to— (e) ensure that the home‟s workforce provides continuity of care for each child. (Regulation 13(1)(2)(e)) This refers to having a full a complete staff team to lessen the use of staff from another of the organisation‟s homes. 31/01/2019

p.3

Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that— (e) the effectiveness of the home‟s child protection policies is monitored regularly. (Regulation 12(2)(e)) In particular, this relates to ensuring that reflective work and changes made as a result of safeguarding and complaint investigations are suitably recorded by the home‟s manager and senior leaders, where appropriate. 31/01/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: 1024574 4 The registered person must complete in relation to the children‟s home a statement of purpose (“the statement of purpose”) which covers the matters listed in schedule 1. The registered person must— (a) keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and (b) notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the

p.3

Requirement Due date

revised statement of purpose within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16(3)(a)(b)) 31/01/2019

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff achieve a nurturing and caring atmosphere in which children feel safe and comfortable with the adults who care for them. The children quickly begin to build warm and trusting relationships with the staff, giving children a sense of safety and stability. The staff team has a very good level of knowledge about each child. Staff understand the impact that the previous life experiences of the children have had, the reasons for patterns of behaviours, and the effect on each child‟s ability to maintain healthy relationships. Staff know which events and situations might trigger children‟s difficult feelings, enabling staff to develop strategies to minimise untoward incidents. The children soon begin to make progress across many areas of their lives once they have settled into the home and have formed trusting relationships with the staff. For some this has happened quickly, and for others it has happened more slowly. Care plans

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

capture the children‟s progress very well. Education is seen as a priority. The staff team works closely with educational establishments, and other professionals, to ensure that children have a positive education experience. High levels of support are given so that children can successfully engage in education, especially those who have been out of education for a significant period. The children have a voice in the running of the home. They are confident about making their views heard. The children are supported to express their wishes and feelings about all areas of their lives, including the next steps as they get older. They are supported to be as independent as their age and ability allow. Children‟s physical and emotional health is closely monitored, and this ensures that their specific needs are identified and met. A range of professionals provide children with support and therapeutic help. Specific health needs, such as self-harming, are managed

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

well, with a multi-professional team of specialists working together to ensure consistency Inspection report children‟s home: 1024574 5 of care and response. Medication administration is safe and well managed. A clear protocol for staff in managing medication errors is readily available in the home and is sufficiently detailed in the home‟s medication policy. Children receive a healthy diet and get the opportunity to experience different foods. The staff team facilitates arrangements for children to spend time with friends and family members, so that these important relationships can be maintained. Restrictions in relation to this contact are adhered to.

p.4

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

The home provides a safe place where children feel secure and well looked after. The staff work hard to understand children‟s individual worries and risks and how staff can minimise these. By developing trusting and nurturing relationships with the children, staff can identify new risks and manage potential and actual risks in a timely way. The close working relationships the staff have with external agencies, such as the police, also add to the effective management of risk. Risks such as children going missing and anti- social behaviour rose significantly for a period after the last inspection. During this time, the staff developed joint working strategies with the local police. More recently, there have been no incidents of children going missing or anti-social behaviour. This is due to appropriate placement moves and the admission of the current children for whom risks of going missing and anti-social behaviour are much less.

p.5

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

The policies, procedures and practices that are implemented by the staff help to protect children from harm and abuse. The staff team has a good knowledge and understanding of the particular risks associated with the location of the home and those of each child. Individual, up-to-date risk assessments describe any known vulnerabilities for children, and set out what action should be taken to lessen these risks. Appropriate strategies to reduce risks are developed through multi-professional input and decision-making. For example, excellent communication with placing authorities, local hospitals and medical professionals from placing and host authorities ensure that complex self-harm behaviours are managed well and in the best interest of the child. Children feel comfortable about speaking with staff if they feel worried or upset. The staff spend time listening to the children and take every opportunity to engage with

p.5

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

them. As a result, children happily join in with activities such as art, cooking, shopping with the staff and planning their day. The staff receive child protection training, which includes training on the risk of child exploitation and e-safety. The staff have a good level of knowledge and understanding of safeguarding and are confident about what action to take if they have a concern. Correct referrals are made to relevant safeguarding agencies with full investigations undertaken in line with the advice that is provided by external agencies. Complaints are Inspection report children‟s home: 1024574 6 managed in the same robust manner. The recording of the reflective work that is undertaken once an investigation has been closed is not as detailed as it could be. For example, the recording of supervision sessions that were undertaken with staff and the recording of the lessons that had been learned from decisions made by staff are not

p.5

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

embedded. In addition, the recording of senior leaders‟ and managers‟ reflection is not always evident. During the inspection, the inspector was informed that this is an area that is being reviewed. New systems are to be introduced to ensure that these areas for development are addressed. The children are protected by careful recruitment procedures. Regular health and safety checks ensure that the physical environment of the home is safe.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection there has been a change in the management of the home. The current manager has been in post since July 2018 and was registered with Ofsted the week prior to this inspection. The registered manager is suitably qualified and experienced. She is supported by a team of staff that has also seen changes since the last inspection. At times, there have been some inconsistencies in the staffing of the home, with staff from other homes in the organisation covering shifts. Recruitment has been proactive, and the situation is improving as new staff commence. The registered manager has good oversight of the home and uses systems that enable her to monitor, review and analyse the practices in the home. Since being in post, the registered manager has provided good leadership and management that the children and the staff team respond to well. She provides good support to the staff and knows the children well. All staff receive regular, good-quality

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

supervision. The staff undertake a range of training to support their roles. The staff enjoy their work and the time that they spend with the children. They fully invest in the children. The home‟s manager monitors the quality of the service effectively through weekly and monthly checks on young people‟s progress and six-monthly evaluations of the home and care practices. In addition, the registered manager uses the detailed monthly reports from the independent visitor to improve the service. Notifications of incidents are, in general, submitted in accordance with the legislation. However, on one occasion the manager failed to inform the regulator (Ofsted) of an incident in a timely way. All other appropriate agencies were informed within suitable timescales. All children are treated as individuals in a fair and non-discriminatory way that embraces the objectives of the home‟s statement of purpose. The statement of purpose needs to

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

be updated following recent changes to the staffing arrangements. Inspection report children‟s home: 1024574 7

p.6

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.

p.7

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: 1024574 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: My Choice Children‟s Homes Ltd

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: My Choice Children‟s Homes Ltd, Unit 3a, Mill Green Business Estate, Mill Green Road, Haywards Heath RH16 1XQ

p.8

Inspector

Liz Driver, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: 1024574 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

p.8

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: http://www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9