Children's Home run by Blandford House (UK) Limited in Hillingdon

Inspection report children’s home: SC484912 1 SC484912 Registered provider: Blandford House (UK) Limited

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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 privately owned and provides care for up to 10 young people. The home’s statement of purpose states that it provides care to boys aged between 12 years and 17 years who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been registered since October 2018.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 17 to 18 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC484912 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/03/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 13/11/2017 Full Good 30/03/2017 Interim Not judged 21/06/2016 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children’s home: SC484912 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 registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager must ensure that all staff members are included in the home’s training register and all staff training is clearly recorded. 30/04/2019

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Recommendations

 Children’s homes must comply with the relevant health and safety legislation (food hygiene). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Recommendations

 Progress can be measured and evidenced in various ways. The child’s personal circumstances, individual needs and educational history are relevant in considering what might constitute progress. (‘Guide to the children’s homes Inspection report children’s home: SC484912 4 regulations including the quality standards’, page 26, paragraph 5.2) In particular, staff must ensure that young people’s targets and progress are consistently recorded.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people receive good individualised care from managers and staff who understand their needs very well. As a result, young people have positive experiences in the home and make good progress from their challenging starting points.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Progress includes a decrease in episodes of missing from the home, increased confidence to travel independently and socialise with peers, and improved relationships with their families. However, while staff regularly review young people’s progress, staff do not consistently sign, date and revise progress targets, which may limit young people’s overall development potential.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the young people to attend school or college and the home provides financial incentives to young people to help them improve their punctuality and levels of attendance. Staff encourage young people to consider their future careers and help them secure work placements to match their ambitions. Staff ensure that young people receive additional tuition in the home when it may be needed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and managers have high aspirations for young people in the home. Business and sports professionals are invited to deliver presentations to young people during the home’s regular ‘inspirational evenings’. These successful events are designed to provide young people with ‘opportunities to flourish and grow’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The modern home provides comfortable and spacious accommodation with a large games room offering young people a range of activities from computer gaming to table football. Staff support young people with their individual hobbies and other interests, such as cadets, martial arts, archery, rock-climbing and vintage car shows, which enhance young people’s overall experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage young people’s age-appropriate independence skills, such as preparing their own meals. The home also provides young people with an individualised independence skills programme, which can include using a bespoke semi-independence flat adjoining the home that is available to young people when they are ready to move on.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people engage in their care planning. They contribute to their care plans, reviews and behaviour support plans. This helps young people develop a sense of ownership in the home. Inspection report children’s home: SC484912 5

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

Young people receive a comprehensive introduction to the home when they arrive. This helps young people settle and understand the home’s daily routines. Young people’s positive contribution to the home is rewarded with a generous incentive and reward scheme.

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

All staff undertake child protection and safeguarding young people training. This helps to ensure that staff are alert to the early identification of any safeguarding concerns.

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

At times, some young people manage their emotions inappropriately, such as by going missing from the home. Staff consistently follow agreed missing procedures and young people are always offered return home interviews by the home’s independently commissioned counsellor.

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

Positive behaviour is encouraged in the home and physical restraint is rarely used. When incidents happen, young people are encouraged to reflect with staff on their behaviours. Staff also ensure that young people are helped with additional support from other professional services, such as anger management or substance misuse services.

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

The registered manager considers each new referral in detail, taking account of any risks and the potential impact on the young people already living in the home. This helps to ensure placement stability for all the young people. The young people spoken with during the inspection said that they felt safe living in the home.

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

The registered manager ensures that all statutory certificates for fire checks and health and safety checks are both current and in line with regulations.

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

Healthy eating is encouraged in the home and is combined with menu plans that reflect young people’s lifestyle choices and allergies. However, during the inspection, out-of- date food and incorrectly stored fresh meat were found in the kitchen fridge. This demonstrates that staff are not conducting food safety checks consistently.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is child-focused and prioritises the needs of young people in the home. She spends time with them, is aspirational and wants young people to achieve to the best of their abilities. Staff describe the registered manager as ‘very supportive’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A social worker said, ‘I truly feel that the staff and manager see their work as a vocation rather than a job; they are always approachable, hospitable and go above and beyond for the young people.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers value staff development. Senior managers receive mentor training and all staff can access pastoral support with a private counsellor should they wish to. Inspection report children’s home: SC484912 6 The registered manager’s evaluation of the home’s strengths and areas for further improvement is underpinned by her monthly auditing of the home. The registered manager makes very good use of the independent visitor’s reports and regular questionnaire feedback from staff, parents and young people. This helps to inform the home’s development plan.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive comprehensive training that helps meet the needs of all the young people in the home. However, during the inspection, not all staff training records could be verified on the home’s internal monitoring systems. The registered manager acknowledged this shortfall.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

One social worker said, ‘Staff do excellent work, the home is very nurturing and is focused in supporting young people achieve their outcomes,’ while another social worker said, ‘The progress that [X] has made to date is amazing, they do not give up on him and continue to support and encourage him.’

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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: SC484912 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Blandford House (UK) Limited

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Inspector

Victoria Jones, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC484912 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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