Children's Home run by The Partnership of Care Today in Stoke-on-Trent

Inspection report children’s home: SC356318 1 SC356318 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Children’s Services

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A large provider of children’s services operates this home. The home provides care and accommodation for up to two young people who have experienced childhood instability resulting in trauma and associated complex behaviours.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in 2018.

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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 outstanding

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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: 27 February 2018

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC356318 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/02/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 08/12/2017 Full Good 09/03/2017 Full Requires improvement 25/11/2016 Interim Not judged Inspection report children’s home: SC356318 3

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Recommendations

 All children’s case records (regulation 36) must be kept up to date and stored securely whilst they remain in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3) In particular, ensure that internal plans reflect the progress of young people.  Under regulation 46, the registered person should review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home at least once a year. The review should include the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and strategies for managing these. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1) In particular, ensure that the home’s location risk assessment includes specific references to local community risks.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

One young person lives in this home. She has built strong and trusted relationships with staff and views them as members of her extended family. Staff know the young person extremely well and invest in her. They show a high level of commitment, nurture and aspiration. As a result, the young person is making significant progress given her starting point.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff place the welfare of the young person at the heart of their practice. They take great pride in the warm and homely environment they provide. In addition, staff take time to reflect on the challenges that the young person’s complex behaviour can present. They are innovative and use research to discuss and implement new strategies to support the young person.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff work closely with the in-house therapist to ensure that the young person receives specialist support. The registered manager attends therapeutic sessions alongside the young person to offer support and encouragement. Staff also benefit from regular consultations with the therapist. This offers them an opportunity to discuss the demands of the role and ensure that their practice is consistent and in line with the young person’s needs. This well-thought-out approach supports the young person to develop her emotional resilience.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The home environment is well presented and has a homely and nurturing feel. The young person has chosen the decor throughout. Her bedroom is personalised and is adorned with pictures of those who are important to her. The young person also enjoys having a pet. This environment helps her to feel settled and proud of her home. Inspection report children’s home: SC356318 4 The young person plays a central role in the day-to-day running of the home. Staff use a variety of means to capture her views, including key-work sessions, consultations and young person’s meetings. The young person is responsible for recording the notes of each meeting and helps to set agenda items. In addition, she is heavily involved in more complex aspects of her care, such as reviewing internal plans and setting goals for herself. This helps her to feel valued and have a sense of ownership over her plans.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The young person attends school regularly and is making excellent progress with her learning. Staff provide the encouragement and boundaries required to help her sustain this progress. They work closely with school staff to ensure that obstacles to learning are addressed and the young person is settled and ready to learn. A teacher told the inspector, ‘Everything I have asked of them [the staff], they have done. They work really closely with us. We jointly set targets for her. They are very supportive of her.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The young person enjoys a range of activities in the local community, including bowling and trips to a local theme park. In addition, staff support her to pursue new hobbies and interests. For example, the young person attends a local football club and enjoys regular training sessions. Recently, she attended the football club Christmas party and really enjoyed the experience. These experiences help her to build her self-esteem and feel part of her local community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff work hard to promote positive and meaningful relationships with the young person’s family. They advocate on her behalf to ensure that she spends quality time with people who are important to her. Family members spoke positively about the care the young person receives. They are kept up to date on her progress and feel involved in her care. A family member told the inspector, ‘I can’t thank the staff enough. They put their heart and soul into her [the young person]. They always keep me in the loop and ask my advice.’

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

Staff are intuitive and use their detailed knowledge of the young person to identify the triggers to risk-taking behaviour. They work closely with key safeguarding agencies to manage risk and they do this well. For example, they are in regular dialogue with local community police to address the concerns associated with negative peer groups and anti-social behaviour. Staff responses to risk are clear and measured and they take effective action to keep the young person safe. A police officer told the inspector, ‘Staff are supportive of the police. They work with us and ask our advice. They take concerns seriously and use various strategies to keep her [the young person] safe.’

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

Staff support the young person to understand how her behaviours may be harmful to herself and others. They work alongside the young person, using a reflective cycle to sensitively explore and learn from challenging incidents. Staff also offer targeted keywork sessions and day-to-day nurturing and advice. This helps the young person to develop greater insight and understanding of her feelings and behaviours. A member of staff told the inspector, ‘The young person shows much more empathy and Inspection report children’s home: SC356318 5 understanding about her feelings and behaviours. There is much more insight from her; she is able to put her past into context.’

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

Individual risk assessments and behaviour management plans are comprehensive and regularly reviewed. They provide staff with detailed information on the young person’s care history and measures to manage risk.

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

The home’s location risk assessment lacks specific information on the impact of local community risks, such as anti-social behaviour. In practice, the staff are dealing with the potential impact of these issues within the community. However, having relevant information recorded in the location risk assessment is good practice.

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

Staff involve the young person in devising strategies to manage her challenging behaviours. For example, they established that the young person prefers to write about her thoughts and feelings. They encourage her to write letters and recently installed a chalk board in her bedroom. In addition, the registered manager creates colourful and child-friendly graphs, which show the young person her patterns of behaviour. This provides the young person with an oversight and understanding of her behaviour and helps to identify her successes and needs. This proactive and nurturing approach helps the young person to manage situations in a calmer manner. As a result, incidents of challenging behaviour have significantly reduced when consideration is given to her starting point.

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

Staff respond promptly when the young person goes missing from the home. They follow clear, coordinated plans to manage this risk. Staff act as any good parent would. They search the local area, contact those who may know the young person’s whereabouts and visit known addresses. Staff also share intelligence with the police. This diligent response helps to disrupt the young person’s risk-taking behaviour. In addition, staff ensure that the young person receives a visit from an independent person after a missing from home incident. This consistent and thorough approach means that missing from home incidents are reducing over time.

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

The young person can seek out trusted members of staff to share her concerns or worries with. This open and supportive culture helps her to feel safe. Staff also ensure that clear and consistent rules and boundaries are in place. They are assertive in delivering difficult messages to the young person, when this is required. In addition, staff work effectively with the young person to agree targets and reward her for positive behaviour.

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

The registered manager ensures that recruitment processes are safe and robust. This helps to protect the young person from unsuitable adults.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The highly committed registered manager is ambitious for the young person. He leads by example and inspires his staff team to offer exceptional care. This has helped to significantly improve the young person’s life. A member of staff told the inspector, ‘This Inspection report children’s home: SC356318 6 is the longest time she [the young person] has lived in a home. We have been a very stabilising influence on her life. She trusts us. She’ll come for a hug when she needs one. This is massive progress.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

A stable, diverse and experienced staff team, with a range of expertise, ensures that the young person receives exceptional, personalised care. Internal care plans are in line with the local authority aims and objectives. However, some sections do not fully reflect the young person’s progress. The impact of this shortfall is lessened because staff have a detailed knowledge of her progress. Staff work proactively and positively with a range of agencies and family members. This joined-up approach ensures that the young person receives well-coordinated care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The dedicated registered manager and staff advocate strongly on the young person’s behalf, and challenge agencies when they feel that she is not receiving the required support. Recently, the registered manager attended a school meeting alongside the young person to help her express her views. This approach helps her to resolve difficulties and feel respected and valued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff benefit from a healthy learning environment that equips them with the knowledge required to offer high-quality care. The registered manager uses research in staff team meetings to enhance the staff’s knowledge of the young person’s needs. A comprehensive training programme offers staff regular opportunities to develop their knowledge on specialist subjects. Regular supervision enables the staff to have an opportunity to discuss the demands of the role and the young person’s progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is keen to develop his staff. Some are working through the internal progression programme, while others focus on specialist aspects of care. New staff receive excellent inductions. Senior staff act as mentors and support new staff to develop and reflect on their practice. A new member of staff told the inspector, ‘I really enjoy it here. There is plenty of support as well as opportunities to progress.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is undertaking the level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare. He has effective monitoring systems in place. Internal monthly reports help him to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the home. He is innovative and keen to introduce new ideas. His new agenda for staff supervisions encourages a more in-depth reflection on the young person’s progress. This ethos helps to develop staff practice and sustain high-quality care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff work in partnership with a range of agencies. This includes schools, social workers and the police. The registered manager is very active in the local community. He works hard to develop and sustain positive relationships with neighbours. For example, the young person has helped to walk an elderly neighbour’s dog. This helps her to develop a sense of belonging in her community. Inspection report children’s home: SC356318 7

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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: SC356318 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Children’s Services

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lansdowne House, 85 Buxton Road, Stockport, Cheshire SK2 6LR

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Inspector

Gareth Leckey, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC356318 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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