Children's home run by Solent Child Care Limited

Inspection report children’s home: 1227788 1 Registered provider: Solent Child 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

 The home is owned by a small private company in the south west of England.  The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to two children who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.  The manager was registered with Ofsted on 3 January 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: 21 November 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: 1227788 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/11/2018 Full Good 09/11/2017 Full Good 02/02/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 09/08/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1227788 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

13: The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (2)(g)(i)(ii)) 31/08/2019

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Requirement Due date

35: Behaviour management policies and records standard

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (‘the authorised person’)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)(ii)(c)) 31/08/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 1227788 4

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Recommendations

 Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person must ensure that the home is suitably located so that children are effectively safeguarded and can access services to meet needs identified in their relevant plans (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1). In particular, consider the emergency services’ response times and risks in the immediate locality of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are well looked after by a manager and team of staff who have high expectations and aspirations for them. Children enjoy living at this home because it is warm, welcoming and well maintained. The atmosphere in the home is akin to that seen in a good family home. Children are relaxed and at ease in their environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s opportunities and experiences are paramount to the operation of the home. Children are helped well to explore new interests and hobbies. They have access to an abundance of age-appropriate games and toys in the home and gardens. In addition, children are actively involved in helping the local community, they attend regular tea parties, help at the village fete and have recently been asked to help at the flower show.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Relationships between the staff and children are meaningful and loving; interactions are respectful and warm. As a result, the children’s self-esteem and confidence have improved significantly. Keyworkers play an active role in seeking children’s views. Children are encouraged to reflect on their week, and they are helped to identify what has gone well and what could have been better. Following this, children set their own targets for the following week.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are provided with comprehensive placement plans, risk assessments and children’s personal targets that give them clear guidance about how to meet the needs of the children. These documents are regularly reviewed and updated to ensure that they address children’s current needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported and encouraged to gain additional qualifications, which enhances their formal learning and develops their independence skills. Both children have achieved Inspection report children’s home: 1227788 5 accredited certificates in a wide range of subjects and frequently use their newly acquired skills in day-to-day life. A child said, ‘I can make scones, spell three-letter words using phonics and I am now learning to tie my shoe laces.’ Another child has achieved certificates in basic kitchen hygiene and safety, and road safety. She is currently learning to tell the time on both analogue and digital clocks. Children are making good progress in achieving their individual aims.

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

Children are safeguarded from harm. When safeguarding concerns are identified, the manager takes prompt action. She consults and communicates with all safeguarding agencies and other professionals effectively. Comprehensive records are kept and demonstrate an effective audit trail. Despite this good work, the manager has not always challenged the decision-making of all agencies when she feels that the outcome is not in the best interest of the child.

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

The manager and her team are good at keeping children safe. All staff are up to date with safeguarding training and spoke confidently when asked what actions they would take if they had any safeguarding concerns. There have not been any reported missing from home incidents or formal complaints.

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

Children’s behaviour is managed well, and boundaries and expectations are maintained. Staff support children very well when they experience difficult situations and emotional challenges. Since the last inspection, incidents in which staff have had to hold a child have reduced significantly. There have been two reported physical interventions since the last inspection; these were appropriate and safeguarded the child from harm. Following these incidents, children are supported to discuss what happened and why. The manager’s monitoring of these records requires closer scrutiny to ensure that staff explore how the child felt about being held and what staff could do differently in the future to prevent a reoccurrence.

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

The manager and her core team identify and manage risks well. Children are supported to take age-appropriate risks as part of their development. For example, outdoor play includes walking in the woods and paddling in rivers. The management and monitoring of social media use are effective. This safeguards the children from potential exploitation and abuse.

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

The manager’s monitoring of the records completed by staff requires improvement to be good. Electronic recording systems are not consistently monitored for effectiveness. The manager has not comprehensively monitored records of sanctions or scrutinised records of discussions with children and staff following the use of physical interventions.

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

The manager has completed a development plan for the home and a locality Inspection report children’s home: 1227788 6 assessment. These plans do not identify how the manager intends to maintain and/or develop the environment and the quality of care provided.

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

The manager has not ensured that all staff are up to date with basic mandatory training. As a result, not all staff are refreshed in subject areas that help them to meet the children’s complex and changing needs.

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

Staff meetings are well attended and focus on the children’s needs. The team members respect one another’s views and respond to each other honestly. They use these meetings to reflect on their practice and learn from each other. In addition, all staff attend monthly clinical supervision. This provides staff with the opportunity to consider alternative strategies for them to use to help the children to develop positive behaviour.

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

The manager provides staff with regular formal supervision. She takes effective action to address and improve staff’s practice for the benefit of children. However, the quality of supervision records varies and requires improvement to be good. For example, reflective discussions are not comprehensively documented and agreed actions are not always reviewed at the next meeting.

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

The manager has high expectations of the staff; her work ethos and child-centred approach are commendable. She leads by example and creates a culture of aspiration and positivity. Collectively, the team members share the same ambition and determination. One member of staff said, ‘We work as a team. There is not a them and us culture in our home.’

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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: 1227788 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Solent Child Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 9 St. Georges Yard, Farnham, Surrey GU9 7LW

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Charlotte Tanner

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Inspectors

Sharron Escott, social care inspector Wendy Anderson, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1227788 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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