Children's home run by North East Lincolnshire Council

Inspection report children‟s home: SC069618 1 SC069618 Registered provider: North East Lincolnshire Council

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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 local authority operates and runs this home. A variation to the home‟s registration was granted on 6 March 2019. The variation increased the numbers of children accommodated from one to two. A child and young person both with additional learning needs live in the home. The manager is suitably qualified and has been in post since April 2017. She is registered with Ofsted and also manages another children‟s home.

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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: 16 October 2018

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children‟s home: SC069618 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/10/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 31/10/2017 Full Good 07/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 11/07/2016 Full Outstanding Inspection report children‟s home: SC069618 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

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained— the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma. The relevant date is— in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home. (Regulation 32 (4)(a)(b)(5)(a)) 13/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months. 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 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 completed. (Regulation 45 (1)(2)(a)(4)(a)) 13/09/2019

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Recommendations

 Children‟s home staff should take reasonable precautions and make informed professional judgements based on the individual child‟s needs and developmental stage about when to allow a child to take a particular risk or follow a particular course of action. Staff should discuss the decision with the child‟s placing authority where appropriate. If a child makes a choice that would place them or another person at significant risk of harm, staff should assist them to understand the risks and manage their risk-taking behaviour to keep themselves and others Inspection report children‟s home: SC069618 4 safe („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 42, paragraph 9.7). This is with particular reference to educating the children and young people about internet safety.  The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and

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Recommendations

experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  Staff should be familiar with the home‟s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  Regulations 35−39 detail the records that must be kept in children‟s homes („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standard‟, page 62, paragraph 14.3). This is with particular reference to the inspector having

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Recommendations

access to the records of all the children and young people who have lived in the home during the inspection period.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children and young people are making progress. They take pride in their appearance because their personal care skills and routines have improved. The children and young people can now complete some daily tasks independently. They have been taught by the staff how to make a snack, brush their teeth and shave. The children and young people‟s self-confidence has improved as a result of their achievements. A professional reported, „Both boys are thriving.‟

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children and young people are very active and enjoy taking part in a lot of activities and hobbies such as football, drumming, Cubs, and swimming. This is an accomplishment given their learning needs and difficulties in social settings. The children and young people are gaining memorable experiences; examples include going to a pop concert and on trips away. The manager and staff commit to giving the children and young people the best experiences they can, and a holiday abroad is planned.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children and young people‟s attendance at school and college is good. The curriculum is based around their learning and social difficulties and is helping them to make progress. Their education needs and desired outcomes are understood by the staff and are clearly recorded in their care plans. One child is reading bedtime stories with the staff, which is improving his reading ability. Inspection report children‟s home: SC069618 5 Children and young people experience a positive move into the home and these are well planned. This allows them to meet the staff prior to their placement, enabling an early formation of relationships. To help the children and young people to settle, they choose how they would like their bedroom decorated and pick ornaments and pictures to make the house feel like a home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children and young people regularly spend time with their families. As a result of the good relationships, family members are now visiting them at the home. This has led to the quality of the children and young people‟s contact improving. One young person also invited a group of friends to the home to celebrate his birthday.

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

The staff provide the current children and young people with high levels of supervision, which ensures their safety. The children and young people‟s safety in the community could be heightened as they have little comprehension of road safety and stranger danger. The staff provide the children and young people with guidance to develop their understanding and thereby protect them from harm. This has enabled one young person to walk independently to and from college.

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

The children and young people are settled in the home and, as a result, challenging behaviour is infrequent. When incidents occur, the staff implement strategies to ensure the safety and protection of all those involved. When necessary, the staff have physically held a child as a means of intervention. Lessons have been learned from incidents, and this has resulted in effective changes to the staff practice.

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

The knowledgeable staff understand the children and young people‟s complex needs and vulnerabilities. The children and young people currently do not access the internet or social media, as they would be susceptible to „grooming‟. However, the staff have not educated the children and young people about this risk.

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

Young people moving on from the home receive outreach support from the staff. This provides young people with the necessary motivation and guidance to achieve their outcomes. The outreach does not detract from the staff‟s attention to the children and young people currently staying in the home. When young people move out of the home, their records are archived and cannot be reviewed in subsequent inspections.

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

The manager is aware of the strengths and weaknesses of her staff‟s care practice. She has implemented strategies to develop the staff‟s care of the children and young people. Additionally, the manager has reflected on the findings from the last inspection. She has addressed the requirements and recommendations that were set. However, the manager has not evaluated the data within the six-monthly regulation 45 review. This would assist her to identify further improvements for the home.

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

The experienced staff have the knowledge and skills to meet the children and young Inspection report children‟s home: SC069618 6 people‟s needs. The manager ensures that the staff team has the experience and qualities to enrich the children and young people‟s lives. However, not all staff have achieved the required qualification within the prescribed timeframe. The manager has acknowledged this through individualised action plans. The manager identifies who within the staff team the children and young people rely on to receive nurture, fun and action. A professional described the staff‟s care practice as „phenomenal‟.

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

The manager understands the children and young people‟s individual care needs and the detail in their plans. The manager communicates well with professionals and will challenge their decisions and actions if this these have an impact on the outcomes of the children and young people. The manager has worked closely with the children‟s looked after nurse to prioritise a medical appointment.

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

The manager and her senior care officer have oversight of the children and young people‟s records and staff practices. Despite the implemented monitoring strategies, there remain gaps in the accuracy of the children and young people‟s written records. These recording errors do not have an impact on the care afforded to the children and young people.

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

There are gaps in the regularity and quality of the staff supervisions. This is mitigated by regular and detailed team meetings, handovers and consultations.

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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: SC069618 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Child Care Management Team, Civic Offices, Knoll Street, Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire DN35 8LN

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Inspector

Jennifer Fenlon, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC069618 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

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