Children's Home run by Benecare Limited in Kent

Inspection report children‟s home: SC465579 1 SC465579 Registered provider: Benecare Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children who are displaying behaviours that are symptomatic of a range emotional difficulties and challenging childhood experiences. The home is operated by a private organisation.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since January 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: 14 November 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: SC465579 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/11/2017 Full Good 28/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 02/11/2016 Full Good 26/02/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children‟s home: SC465579 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 compile in relation to the children‟s home a statement (“the statement of purpose”) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1. (Regulation 16 (1))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, and with reference to Schedule 1 (20), ensure that the supervision arrangements described are consistently repeated in all relevant documents, regarding frequency of supervision and the supervision arrangements during periods of probation. 14/06/2019

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children— receive effectively planned care in or through the children‟s home; and have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that each child‟s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)(2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that plans are attuned to the most critical needs of each individual child. 14/06/2019

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Recommendations

 As set out in regulation the registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice. They must ensure that recruitment, supervision and performance management of staff safeguard children and minimise potential risks to them. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 61, paragraph 13.1) In particular, ensure that the methods used for recruiting suitable staff are consistently applied. Inspection report children‟s home: SC465579 4  The registered person should have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20) The plan should: detail the processes and agreed timescales for staff to achieve induction, probation and any core training (such as safeguarding, health and safety and mandatory qualifications). („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of inspection, two young people had very recently moved on from the home, leaving one, well-settled young person.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A strong and stable staff team provides young people with warmth, routine and structure and takes a close interest in all aspects of their lives. This helps to provide the conditions in which the young people develop trusting and valued relationships with the adults who care for them. Young people express themselves freely and actively engage in the running of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the young people to engage in their learning and to follow their vocational aspirations. Through the provision of a wide range of activities outside the home, staff help young people explore and develop their interests and abilities and expand their experience of the world. These activities include ways in which young people can contribute and develop a sense of community awareness.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people who have lived in the home during this inspection period have been supported by staff to develop distinctly different interests and abilities, and their care has been highly individualised. The staff display strong commitment and interest in the young people and go to great lengths to make them feel valued and appreciated. This was reflected in the strong team effort, observed during the inspection, to provide a memorable birthday experience for a young person and included the involvement of off- duty staff.

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

A confident, cohesive and skilled staff team maintains clear and consistent boundaries, providing the young people with a sense of security. This firm and supportive environment enables them to express and explore their feelings, and staff are skilled in addressing any challenging behaviours that may result.

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

The young people are supported to keep themselves safe from risks associated with the use of social media, and staff are alert to the vulnerabilities of young people being exploited by others. Inspection report children‟s home: SC465579 5 The staff‟s response when actual risks arise, including when young people go missing, is immediate, comprehensive and well informed by their knowledge of the local area. This effective response is further strengthened by staff‟s positive relationships with their key safeguarding partners in the community.

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

The young people are encouraged and supported in meeting the challenges and hazards of increased independence and becoming safe and responsible adults. The way, however, in which this is planned and progress recorded needs to be improved. Greater expertise also needs to be applied in identifying and targeting key areas of need of the young people, particularly issues that are likely to affect their success as adults.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager leads a diverse and capable staff team with verve and enthusiasm. The leadership of the home is creative and innovative in seeking ways to improve and expand approaches to care. This contributes to a stimulating and fun environment that helps the young people to make progress and build positive memories.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team displays an openness to learning from young people, parents and carers and other professionals, and actively seeks their feedback to better understand how the team can improve its practice. Keenly seeking the views and opinions of the young people and hearing and responding to these are embedded practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Although managers are generally successful in recruiting and retaining suitable staff, there is currently an inconsistent approach to this. Procedures for identifying and selecting the most suitable staff for the home, induction and the completion of probation periods need to be clearly structured and consistently applied. Arrangements for staff supervision during this phase, as well as following this, are unclear. These need to be clearly explained and accurately reflected in the home‟s statement of purpose.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager‟s monitoring of the day-to-day running of the home and the experiences of the young people is strong and consistent. The way in which the young people make progress across key, targeted areas and the way that this is reflected are, however, not at the same standard and require further improvement. Inspection report children‟s home: SC465579 6

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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: SC465579 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 113a St Johns Hill, Sevenoaks TN13 3PE

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Stephen Richmond

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Inspector:

John Pledger, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC465579 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:

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: http://www.gov.uk/ofsted

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