Children's Home run by Cumbria County Council in Westmorland and Furness

Inspection report children’s home: SC034158 1 SC034158 Registered provider: Cumbria County Council

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is owned and run by a local authority. The home provides short- break accommodation for children and young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties. The service has two main functions. The first is to provide short-term intensive outreach work within the community. The second is to provide short-break care. The home can accommodate up to four children or young people on a short break. Currently, 33 children and young people access the short-break service.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 19 January 2018

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC034158 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/01/2018 Full Outstanding 16/03/2017 Interim Declined in effectiveness 16/12/2016 Full Outstanding 11/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC034158 3

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Recommendations

 For the children’s home to be a homely environment, the registered person should ensure that high standards are maintained throughout the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should have a system in place so that all serious events are notified, within 24 hours, to the appropriate people. Notification must include details of the action taken by the home’s staff in response to the event. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.13) In particular, ensure that staff include pertinent information and details of the action taken and subsequent outcome.  It is good practice to note the content and/or outcomes of supervision sessions. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.4) This is with specific reference to improving the overall quality

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The support provided to children, young people and their families is of exceptional quality and makes a significant difference to their lives. Children and young people receive a high quality of care, and the personalised support and guidance they need to help them tackle their problems and improve their relationships with their families. Parents and social workers are very positive about the quality of support provided. Comments include:  ’This is an absolutely fantastic service. I can’t speak highly enough of them. The support they give is excellent.’  ’They [staff] are lifesavers; they do a great job of keeping children out of care. They help not only the children but the families too. They have provided me with the best guidance and reassurance, and because of this, things have improved at home.’  ’What a godsend this service is. They are absolutely brilliant, and I know my child loves going. The weekend respite gives us much-needed space and time. I know my

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

child is safe and she loves going. I really can’t thank them enough for making such a difference to our lives.’ Short-break planning is effective. The team works collaboratively with children, young people, parents and social workers to tailor individualised short-break plans. The plans provide a comprehensive and detailed picture of the support needed to tackle concerns. Plans are routinely reviewed and updated. This ensures that children, young people and Inspection report children’s home: SC034158 4 their families continue to benefit from the right type of support. In addition to planned breaks, the team continues to provide additional outreach support to children, young people and their families. Staff work extremely well with families and provide them with reassurance, understanding and advice. They emphasise the importance of everyone working together to try to improve the situation. Several parents

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

confirmed that they are now more able to implement preventative strategies, which has strengthened relationships within the family home. Staff are extremely consistent, knowledgeable and organised in their work. They provide a warm and positive atmosphere that gives children and young people time out and space to understand their feelings and behaviour, and to develop skills to resolve the challenges that they face in their daily lives. Children and young people are positive about the support they receive. Comments from children and young people include:  ’I really like coming here. I enjoy the activities and we have fun. The staff are really friendly and funny and I like spending time with them.’  ’Going to respite has helped me make better choices in my life.’  ’I’m getting along better with my mum and I have seen a difference in my behaviour because I am not kicking off as much.’ The ethos of the home is one of mutual respect, support, care and commitment. The

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

strong relationships between young people and staff are evident. Staff demonstrate high aspirations and a genuine drive to help young people achieve. Because of this, children and young people are making excellent progress in many areas of their lives. The responsibility for children and young people’s health and education remains solely with their parents/carers. However, suitable arrangements are in place should a young person become unwell during their visit. This includes safe medication procedures, where all medication is safely stored and administered. Children and young people have made excellent progress with their independence skills. Many are taking greater levels of responsibility as they move towards adulthood. Staff are helping them to acquire emotional and practical skills through structured programmes where they can practise life skills. Because of this, young people have matured and are more prepared for the demands of adult life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children and young people are meaningfully consulted and involved in all aspects of their care and service delivery. This ensures that they can influence and contribute to key decisions about their lives. The home provides a tranquil environment where children and young people can relax and feel safe. There is a homely and inviting feel and the atmosphere is no different from that of a family environment. That said, there are aspects of the home that require attention due to general wear and tear issues. The manager is taking appropriate action to rectify this. Inspection report children’s home: SC034158 5

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

Excellent arrangements are in place to safeguard and protect young people. Proactive safeguarding measures mean that young people have a strong sense of safety and well- being. Children and young people say that they feel safe, and other agencies and family members consulted as part of this inspection report a high level of satisfaction with the home’s actions in respect of keeping children and young people safe. Staff have a thorough understanding of the risks facing individual children and young people and they work effectively to reduce these risks. They work creatively to provide young people with very good advice and guidance in fun and accessible ways. The impact of this is unquestionable, as many of the children and young people accessing the service have a greater understanding of how to keep themselves safe. Staff are excellent role models and use their positive, trusting and nurturing relationships

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

with children and young people to promote positive behaviour. Excellent routines, firm boundaries, constant praise and recognition help children and young people become more confident, resilient and self-assured. There have only been limited occasions when children or young people have gone missing from the home. Records demonstrate that when children or young people have left the home without permission, staff respond quickly and make efforts to locate them and ensure their safe return. This is a place where children and young people can relax, have fun and begin to address difficulties in their lives. This service has made a significant difference to the lives of children, young people and their families. The work undertaken has strengthened relationships and enabled a number of children and young people to remain safely at home with their families.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers foster a clear determination, energy and motivation for continual improvement of the home. The manager is ambitious and committed to ensuring that children and young people receive a high standard of individualised care from the staff. A real strength of this home is the high quality of care that is consistently provided by an experienced, stable and dedicated staff team. The staff team has a broad range of experience and skills to meet the everyday challenges of caring for young people. Staff confirm that they are supported effectively and value regular handovers, debriefs and team meetings. This ensures that they are clear about their roles and responsibilities. Families, placing social workers and other professionals are extremely positive about the service. They all report that the care and support provided at the home is child-focused and that there are excellent levels of communication. Partnership working is a great

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

strength of the home. Staff and managers understand their professional responsibilities, as well as those of other agencies. The service provides its staff with a wide range of training opportunities. As a result, the team is wholly equipped with the knowledge, skills and expertise to carry out their roles effectively. Inspection report children’s home: SC034158 6 Staff say that they are very happy working at the home, and enjoy working with the children and young people. Staff feel very well supported, and that their skills and experience are valued within the service. Staff confirm that they receive professional supervision that provides them with opportunities to discuss their work, reflect on their practice and continue to learn and develop. However, the quality of supervision records varies greatly. For example, some contain very little content, with no follow-up of recommendations from previous

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

supervisions. This does not demonstrate that potential practice issues have been addressed in a timely manner. Notifications of significant events are sent to Ofsted in a timely manner. However, these lack clarity. For example, some contain no details about the action taken and/or subsequent outcome. This is not good practice, as records made in this way hinder the regulator’s ability to ensure that the provider has taken all necessary steps to keep young people safe. Regular internal and external monitoring systems are robust. Reports are of high quality and demonstrate sustained improvement over time. The manager continues to strive to improve all aspects of the home, consulting with the staff team in the development of processes to ensure that there is safe and consistent child-focused practice. Shortfalls are quickly identified, and prompt action is taken to effect improvements.

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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: SC034158 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Cumbria House, 107-117 Botchergate, Carlisle, Cumberland CA1 1RZ

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Inspector

Ceri Evans, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC034158 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 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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