Children's home run by Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust in Cornwall

Inspection report children’s home: SC428956 1 SC428956 Registered provider: Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The service provides short-break care for up to two children each night. Children referred to this service live with their parents. Children have learning disabilities and/or challenging behaviours and may also have some ongoing healthcare needs. The service is managed by an NHS foundation trust.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 25 to 26 February 2019

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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: 21 December 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC428956 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/12/2017 Full Good 12/12/2016 Full Good 24/02/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 29/07/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC428956 3

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs and should understand the key role they play in the training and development of staff in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The review of quality of care (Regulation 45) should enable the registered person to identify areas of strength and possible weakness in the home’s care, which will be captured in the written report. The report should clearly identify any actions required for the next six months of delivery within the home and how those actions will be addressed. The whole review process and the resulting report should be used as a tool for continuous improvement in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page65, paragraph 15.4)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy their visits to this home and they participate in activities that they do not have the opportunity to do with their parents. These experiences add to their quality of life. For example, children are encouraged to set aside electronic devices to enjoy a range of outdoor and sensory activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are introduced to the home in a sensitive and well-planned way. Decisions are child-centred and based on the individual needs of the child and their family. One parent said that her son’s introduction to the service was ‘superb’ and that she felt he has ‘an amazing time there’ and she ‘trusts them implicitly’. When children are older and move on to adult services, the home plays a key role in ensuring that this process runs smoothly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Relationships with children are excellent. Staff demonstrate insight, patience and compassion. They work hard to develop communication with children, by way of picture symbols, exploring their feelings and choices. Through social stories, children have been supported to achieve personal targets such as learning to dress and to feed themselves.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All of the children have two staff to care for them when they visit. Sometimes, just one child visits at a time. This is based on an assessment of need and risk. In this way, staff can support children to get the most out of their visit. Children have many varied opportunities, including horse riding and visiting the beach and trampolining centres. The home has a large garden with its own trampoline and play house and a nearby allotment where children can help to grow fruit and vegetables. There are plans to Inspection report children’s home: SC428956 4 develop the summer house to create a more sensory experience for children to enjoy. This improvement is planned in response to the changing needs of the children who visit the service.

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

Children are safe when they visit this home and parents have confidence that their child is well cared for. Staff have an excellent understanding of all of the children who attend. Consequently, staff make arrangements that support children’s safety while promoting enjoyable and stimulating experiences.

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

Staff demonstrate an excellent understanding of the vulnerabilities of the children who they care for. Staff carry out their safeguarding responsibilities in an open and diligent way. Staff work effectively with other professionals and parents. One professional described the staff team as ‘highly knowledgeable and compassionate’.

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

The team is supported by a clinical lead and a safeguarding lead within the trust. They attend meetings at the home and provide practice guidance.

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

All children have detailed care plans, risk assessments and behaviour support plans. Physical restraints rarely occur. When physical restraints do occur, they are low level guides. Any restrictive practices are carefully considered and best interest decisions are made by a range of professionals and parents based on the least restrictive approach that will keep the child safe from harm.

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

Medication is managed safely. Staff receive specialist training in how to meet the healthcare needs of each child. Their competency is signed off by a clinician external to the setting.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

This is a well-established and smooth-running home. The manager has worked at the home for 20 years and has been the registered manager for six years. She has achieved a level 5 diploma in leadership and management of residential childcare. During the past eight months, she has managed this home and another similar home located nearby. This arrangement is a temporary one, due to the unavailability of a suitable candidate locally and until plans for the rationalisation of short-break services in the area have been completed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is well thought of by her team, other professionals and families. She is dedicated to her role and strives to ensure that children are safe and have fun when they visit. The manager divides her time between the two homes that she manages. She has a deputy and hopes to introduce a new tier, a senior support worker. The staff team members are equally dedicated to the children in their care and there have been no new staff introduced to this home for four years. This provides an excellent standard of continuity for the children who visit, particularly as they are so dependent on staff thoroughly understanding how to meet their needs. Inspection report children’s home: SC428956 5 All staff have achieved a level 3 diploma qualification, many several years ago. Additional training is regular and covers both mandatory areas and responds to the changing personal and healthcare needs of the children who visit. During this inspection, the

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

inspector recommended that staff should be supported to have personal development plans and to achieve further professional qualifications that will help them in their current roles as well as contributing towards potential promotion and succession planning.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager completes a thorough review of the quality of care. The inspectors recommended that greater focus is given to reflecting on what lessons have been learned in the previous six months and what action will be taken to make further improvements to benefit children. This will provide a better sense of the continuous improvements that the manager seeks to make.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The two requirements made at the previous full inspection have been addressed.

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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: SC428956 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Trust Head Office, Carew House, Beacon Technology Park, Dunmere Road, Bodmin PL31 2QN

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Inspector(s)

Norma Welsby: social care inspector Polly Soper: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC428956 7 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(s)

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Inspector(s)

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Inspector(s)

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