Children's home run by South West Childcare Services

Inspection report children’s home: 1248071 1 Registered provider: South West Childcare Services 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

This children’s home is operated by a local provider of children’s homes. It provides care and accommodation for up to two young people.

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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 requires improvement to be 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: 28 January 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: improved effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1248071 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/01/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 16/05/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 03/10/2017 Interim Declined in effectiveness 10/05/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 1248071 3

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the need to ensure that all behaviour management and safeguarding strategies are clearly recorded in the child’s behaviour management plan and risk assessment. 19/08/2019

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Recommendation

 Any sanctions used to address poor behaviour should be restorative in nature, to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them and the wider community. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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Recommendation

In particular, the registered manager must ensure that they evaluate the effectiveness of each consequence given to the young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people living at the home benefit from the staff’s good-quality and nurturing care. The stable and consistent staff team builds trusting relationships with the young people. These relationships form the basis from which the young people can begin to make progress. Inspection report children’s home: 1248071 4 Since the last inspection, one young person has moved out of the home and away from the area. One young person has recently moved in to the home. He is beginning to trust the staff and see them as people that he can rely on for help. He regards the home as a place of stability and safety.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff ensure that young people make good progress with their education. The manager and staff advocate for the young people to obtain places at educational provisions that best meet their educational needs. As a result, one young person is growing in confidence and successfully making friends at his new school. He was recently awarded ‘student of the month’ by his school.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff understand the importance of carefully considered moves of the young people in and out of the home. The manager undertakes a comprehensive compatibility risk assessment prior to a young person being admitted to the home. This process helps to ensure that the young people can live positively together and that staff can meet their care needs. The staff understand the importance of keeping in touch with the young people after they have left the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff promote and support relationships between the young people and their families and friends, including regular visits. Parents comment on how they value the staff’s support and regular communication, so they know how their young person is getting on at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and the staff are clear about how they will help each young person to achieve their objectives. However, information is contained in many different documents. The manager intends to compile the information into a smaller number of documents, so that the staff can quickly and easily find the information they need to care for the young people effectively.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff encourage the young people to give their views and opinions. Their views are included in the young people’s care plans.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff encourage young people to participate in many different activities. These include golf, cinema trips, outings to theme parks and an annual summer holiday.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people benefit from the staff implementing clear routines and boundaries in the home, because it helps them to feel safe and secure. There are clear expectations of the young people in the home. They are expected to participate in the daily routines of the home. They learn independence skills, such as cooking and how to keep their rooms clean and tidy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff meet the young people’s physical and emotional healthcare needs well. For example, they manage medication safely and support the young people to attend all medical and dental appointments. The staff receive training so that they are equipped with the necessary skills and information to support the young people with specific conditions. Inspection report children’s home: 1248071 5

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improvement to be good

Young people recently admitted to the home have not had a stable home base for some time. Some are currently choosing to stay with their friends and family rather than at the home. The staff are building sensitive, trusting relationships with the young people. They encourage them to spend more time at the home. The staff team’s strategies are effective but are not clearly recorded in behaviour management plans. There is, therefore, insufficient written evidence that the staff are consistent in their approach when encouraging young people to return to the home.

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improvement to be good

Consequences for negative behaviour are not always recorded as being evaluated for their effectiveness by the manager so that the staff can learn from a management evaluation of their practice.

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improvement to be good

The staff encourage the young people to behave positively. The home’s behaviour management policy rewards positive behaviour and helps the young people to learn from any mistakes. This approach is effective. As a result, the young people’s behaviour has improved since they arrived at the home. One young person no longer spends excessive time on their games console and does not now become angry when asked to end their gaming sessions.

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improvement to be good

The young people state that they feel safe living at the home and can name a member of staff they could speak with if they were worried or felt unsafe. The home has comprehensive safeguarding procedures. The staff are clear about what action they would take if there was a safeguarding concern about any of the young people.

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improvement to be good

Rigorous staff recruitment procedures help managers to ensure that suitable people are employed in the home.

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improvement to be good

The manager and the staff have strong links with placing authorities, safeguarding professionals and the police. If young people go missing from the home, the staff try to find them and return them to the home, in line with the missing-from-home protocol.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is experienced and appropriately qualified. She provides strong leadership and management in the home and is well respected by the staff team. She succeeds in establishing a culture in the home where the staff have high aspirations for the young people they care for. There is a very positive and enthusiastic atmosphere in the home. The manager and the staff clearly enjoy caring for the young people and supporting them to succeed and make progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team is consistent and stable. Training is undertaken in all essential topics such as safeguarding, first aid and restraint. Staff can request additional training as required or identified through supervision. The staff benefit from regular, good-quality supervision with the manager. Inspection report children’s home: 1248071 6 The home provides the young people with a homely and well-decorated environment. The staff have recently decorated the lounge and office, providing an additional room for the young people to use. The young people report that they really like their bedrooms, which are personalised with photographs of the young person and their family, helping to give the young people a sense of belonging at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is tenacious and actively challenges other services and professionals. She advocates for the young people in her care if she believes they are not receiving the services they need, or if the plan for the young person is not in their best interests.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from the young people, their parents and professionals about the quality of care provided at the home is entirely positive. Placing social workers value the home and state that they would place another young person there in the future.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is aware of the strengths and areas for improvement in the home. The home’s development plan is informed by inspections and monthly visits by the independent person. Prompt action is taken to address any areas for improvement. All recommendations made at the previous inspection are met.

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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: 1248071 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: South West Childcare Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: First Floor Flat, 46 Durnford Street, Plymouth, Devon PL1 3QN

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Inspector

Tina Maddison, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1248071 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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