Children's Home run by BREAK in Norfolk

Inspection report children’s home: SC040191 1 SC040191 Registered provider: Break

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is run by a registered charity. The home provides long-term placements for up to four children who have traumatic backgrounds and may have experienced neglect and/or emotional abuse. The manager of the home was registered in October 2016.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 11 to 12 December 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: 4 December 2017

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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

04/12/2017 Full Good 21/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 24/11/2016 Full Good 29/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC040191 2

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Recommendations

 For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) This is with particular regard to the decor and soft furnishings in the children’s bedrooms.  The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. Staff should

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Recommendations

record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children are settled in established routines. They all go to college or school and their attendance is good. Children spend purposeful time with peers outside the home. One child performed at the theatre and another child plays in a football team. Children’s days are structured purposefully. The children feel positive about their achievements. A child said, ‘Since coming to the home, I have caught up and passed my exams in maths and science.’ The staff take pride in children’s successes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children benefit from new experiences and build happy memories. During the summer, some of the children had part-time jobs, and they all went on holiday to Spain. The children enjoyed their holiday, it cemented their relationships and improved group dynamics.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children spend increasing amounts of time with their families. These arrangements are supported well by staff. The relationships between the staff and children provide support and help children mature. Children recognise their progress. A child said, ‘I have got a lot better at managing my mental health and anxiety.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to try new foods and enjoy communal mealtimes. They are encouraged to cook healthy meals and eat a balanced diet. This teaches them valuable Inspection report children’s home: SC040191 3 life-skills. The children are encouraged to lead healthy lifestyles. Exercise is promoted by the staff. Children go swimming and have a trampoline to use in the garden.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is a new cabin in the garden that extends the living space. The children have been fully involved in this development. Pictures of the children are on the wall of the cabin. The cabin was opened in a celebratory way and is the venue for the home’s Christmas party. The children are animated and enthusiastic about this, helping the staff to make this a success.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The house is clean, although a bedroom wall requires maintenance work and the bedroom carpets are worn. The ground floor has been repainted. Generally, the home presents as a comfortable family home. Christmas decorations provide a festive and cosy atmosphere.

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

The children’s behaviour continues to improve. Children are encouraged to reflect on their actions. Positive reinforcement is used to good effect. The staff use meaningful consequences effectively in response to negative behaviour. Children who damage the home help staff to make repairs. These reparations help children learn from their actions.

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

Children do not leave the home without prior agreement and incidents of self-injury have significantly reduced. Bullying is not a concern. Minor disagreements are successfully resolved with the help of staff. Children are starting to develop empathy and understanding of one another.

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

The children living at the home enjoy time out with their friends in the community and return at agreed times. They take reasonable risks, which help them learn how to safely manage their free time.

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

Identified risks to each child are assessed and mitigated, which helps to guide the staff to care safely for the children. However, the risk assessment documents are long and unwieldy. Staff add to existing information rather than updating it. This can dilute important information and lead to a lack of clarity.

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

Staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities. The home is an environment in which children and staff can raise concerns. Allegations against staff are managed properly. Children’s welfare and well-being are given priority and safeguards are in place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has an established registered manager who is experienced in residential childcare. The manager holds a relevant level 5 diploma. He has the skills to manage the home effectively. Inspection report children’s home: SC040191 4 The manager’s approach is fair. Children’s views are encouraged and listened to. They are treated as equals and given a voice at the home. Their preferences and choices are evident throughout the house.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a clear idea of areas that require improvement at the home. Previous weaknesses are being addressed. For example, the staff and children are embarking on collaborative residential conflict training, both at the home and away from the home. This helps develop consistency, contributing towards children feeling equal and valued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are some records that are overly descriptive and written in a negative way. These could be unhelpful to children wishing to access their records now or in the future.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff are developing their skills and knowledge. Regular training supports a shared approach to the children’s care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff generally feel supported in their roles and most of them are supervised regularly. However, this does not apply to all the staff. This means that staff who need support may not always have access to it.

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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: SC040191 5

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Schofield House, Spar Road, Norwich NR6 6BX

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Catherine Kenney

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Inspector

Deirdra Keating: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC040191 6 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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