Children's Home run by New Forest Care Limited in Hampshire

Inspection report children‟s home: SC068046 1 SC068046 Registered provider: New Forest Care Ltd

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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 private company owns the home. Its statement of purpose states that it provides care for one young person with social and/or emotional difficulties. The young person living at the home is able to attend the organisation‟s school. The home is located within easy reach of community resources and services.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted on 23 April 2017.

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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 requires improvement to be 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: 25 September 2018

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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: SC068046 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/09/2018 Full Good 28/11/2017 Full Good 20/03/2017 Interim Not judged 20/12/2016 Interim Not judged Inspection report children‟s home: SC068046 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

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child; demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on— research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (2)(d)(g)(i)(h)) 01/08/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes— the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(vii)(c)) 01/08/2019

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating— the quality of care provided for children; the feedback and opinions of children about the children‟s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children. After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review 01/08/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: SC068046 4 report”). The registered person must— supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is

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Requirement Due date

completed. (Regulation 45 (2)(a)(b)(c)(3)(4)(a))

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Recommendations

 Staff should continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. Where there are safeguarding concerns for a child, their placement plan, agreed between the home and their placing authority, must include details of the steps the home will take to manage any assessed risks on a day to day basis. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 42, paragraph 9.5) Specifically, ensure that plans for known risks and needs provide clarity about the approach to take.  Where there is a possibility that a child will run away or go missing from a children‟s home placement, their placement plan should include a strategy to minimise this risk. If the child is looked-after, their care plan (arranged by their placing authority) should include such a strategy. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 45, paragraph 9.24)

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Recommendations

Specifically, ensure that the content of the plan is consistent when detailing strategies to be followed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young person has lived at the home for several years, during which time he has continued to make good progress. A small and stable staff team supports him to engage in daily education and activities. Caring and insightful staff encourage the young person to fully explore and consider all of his opportunities for future education and employment. Staff offer a wide variety of experiences to the young person, who has developed his personal care skills and life and social interaction skills, which benefit him now and into adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager frequently works alongside the young person to support him. This is of great benefit to the young person, as they have formed a very positive and established relationship. Relationships with the wider staff team are also positive and secure.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The knowledgeable and experienced staff have used their skills to support the young person to learn and develop positive ways to express his emotions, feelings and anxieties. Their consistent approach, commitment and determination have supported the Inspection report children‟s home: SC068046 5 young person to engage in regular therapeutic support that has allowed him to begin to explore his previous experiences, losses and traumas.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage and facilitate lots of opportunities for the young person to maintain his relationships with family and friends. The young person is regularly encouraged to spend time with family and friends at the home. Staff have regular and good-quality conversations with the young person. They provide lots of informative practical advice and informal education that influences the young person to make good choices. The young person has been able to personalise much of the home with artwork, and staff involve him in making decisions about decoration and other aspects of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young person‟s plans are detailed and informative, but staff have not ensured that they are all current and up to date. Leaders and managers have recently collated all the young person‟s information, needs and risks into one plan. Through this process, some of the beneficial and helpful information has not been transferred or has been incorrectly detailed into the new plan. An example is information to advise staff about the required actions to take when the young person is missing. The information that is available is currently inconsistent within the plan.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have worked well with all professionals and family involved in making key decisions about the young person. They work collectively with other professionals to support the young person to engage in specific programmes of education. Professionals spoke highly of the support given to the young person by the staff at the home. They described their commitment and dedication to the young person as being a key factor that has enabled him to make progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the young person to address his physical and emotional health needs. They have encouraged him to make informed choices about consent to medical procedures and interventions.

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

There is a good, positive safeguarding culture within the home. Staff talk openly about concerns and ensure that the young person is safeguarded. Leaders, managers and staff have a good understanding about risk factors and how to keep the young person safe and secure.

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

Staff swiftly report and refer concerns to safeguarding agencies. The manager ensures that he has an outcome to matters referred to others. Records are detailed and provide clarity of actions and outcomes from instigation of concern to its conclusion. Managers work well with others to ensure that the young person is safeguarded and that his welfare is paramount and promoted. There have been no allegations made or complaints received in the home since the previous inspection.

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

The young person feels safe and secure at the home and stated that he has several key people he trusts and can talk to when worried, upset or anxious. The manager is Inspection report children‟s home: SC068046 6 inquisitive, thorough and persistent in advocating on behalf of the young person. In one case, he persisted with other safeguarding agencies to ensure that they were exploring a concern which had arisen.

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

Staff are trained in the home‟s preferred method of behaviour management. They have been committed to, and successful in, reducing the level of incidents in which physical intervention is required. The manager delayed the implementation of the organisation‟s new system for the review of incidents. However, staff now complete reflective accounts following an intervention.

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

The manager is not consistent in the quality of his critical review and evaluation that he applies to incidents. He has not ensured that others review incidents in which he was involved. Due to this, on occasions learning and development opportunities have been missed. When staff do complete a reflective review of an incident it has been beneficial, and staff consider what they may do differently next time. The young person is always offered a full debrief following an incident, although records do not clearly evidence whose words and opinions have been recorded. Staff have also not ensured that the young person is offered an opportunity to voice his views, opinions and feelings following a sanction or consequence being given.

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

Missing-from-home episodes have been well managed through a collective approach. Staff actively look for the young person and, once found, welcome him back to the home. Staff have ensured that return home interviews are requested. Staff are proactive and educate the young person about the risks and worries for his welfare when he is missing. They have facilitated appropriate support from others to encourage and influence the young person to make good choices.

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

The home environment is well maintained and presented. All aspects of damage are swiftly repaired and made good. Staff and the young person work hard to ensure that the home is presented as they would like. The young person‟s artwork is proudly displayed in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager of the home has focused his attentions on supporting the young person over recent months and has not ensured that he has also maintained his management oversight of other areas of the home. The manager has demonstrated that he has the capacity to address matters, but he has not sustained this over recent months. The impact on the young person has been minimal. However, the lack of oversight in some areas has prevented further improvements to the home. This is compounded by the manager having to regularly work to support staffing numbers, due to some shortages in the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager has not utilised all of the methods of monitoring and review available to him. He has completed three-monthly reviews of the home, but they lack critical challenge and evaluation to inform him about what is required to improve areas of weakness identified. Inspection report children‟s home: SC068046 7 A new independent visitor has been appointed. They attend the home regularly and provide an additional layer of scrutiny and oversight. However, the manager has not utilised this information to inform his plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The home development plan was created in October 2018 but has not been reviewed or updated since this time. The plan does not clearly identify the home‟s weaknesses and what actions are going to be completed by when, to improve areas identified. The manager has not addressed shortfalls and areas to develop and improve which were identified in October 2018. Nor did he utilise reviews of the home to inform and create an effective and realistic development plan that states how previous requirements and recommendations will be addressed. However, some of the previous requirements and recommendations have been met.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff form positive working relationships with other agencies and those outside of the home and this has a positive impact on young person‟s plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

All staff have regular, effective supervision and their practice is appraised at least annually. All staff access regular training, and staff have achieved the required qualifications. Some staff have recently completed additional training to supplement and improve their knowledge of the home‟s chosen model of care.

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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: SC068046 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Forest Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: West Shore House, West Street, Hythe, Southampton SO45 6AA

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Inspector

Amanda Maxwell, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC068046 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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Inspector

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