Children's Home run by The Together Trust in Stockport

Inspection report children’s home: SC025745 1 SC025745 Registered provider: The Together Trust

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home provides short breaks for up to five children who may have learning disabilities and/or physical disabilities. The home is run and managed by a charitable organisation.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home has an experienced registered manager in place.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 6 November 2018

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC025745 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/11/2018 Full Good 29/11/2017 Full Good 26/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 01/09/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC025745 3

p.2

Recommendations

 The registered person must have systems in place so that staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children in their care. A record of supervision should be kept for staff, including the manager. The record should provide evidence that supervision is delivered in line with regulation 33(4)(b). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61 paragraphs 13.2 and 13.3).

p.3

Recommendations

 Under Regulation 46, the registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and the premises of the home at least once a year. The review should include the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and strategies for managing these. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1). In particular, provide a risk assessment in relation to the wooden flooring in the sensory room.

p.3

Recommendations

 For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. Children’s homes must comply with relevant health and safety legislation. (‘Guide to the children’s home’s regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9). In particular, that all bedrooms have window coverings and consideration is given to the addition of secondary glazing to the remaining bedrooms.

p.3

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they and their staff engage proactively with the placing authority to contribute fully to the relevant plans for the child’s care on an ongoing basis. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.3).

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people’s lives are enriched by the variety of experiences provided by the home. Staff support individuals to participate in activities which they may not otherwise be able to access.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are cared for by skilled and committed staff who understand their needs. The high ratio of staff to young people means that young people are given individualised care. Staff retention in the home is good. As a result of this, young people have the Inspection report children’s home: SC025745 4 opportunity, over time, to form trusting relationships with the adults who care for them.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some young people have a long history of taking short breaks within the home. All young people’s progress is well recognised and celebrated. Two young people with complex needs were recently nominated by staff for the wider organisation’s annual achievements awards, where they had the opportunity to celebrate their achievements at a formal social event along with their families. One young person received an award for the significant improvement in his confidence to take part in community activitie s, and the other won an award for progress with his communication skills. The progress that these young people have made from their starting points is exceptional.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Non-verbal young people are able to participate in decision-making, using pictures and symbols. Staff use pictures to communicate with young people and to encourage them to use the home and the resources available to them. This inclusive approach also promotes young people’s independence.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents value the quality of the short breaks provided by the home. The service, for the majority of the time, is able to provide short breaks for young people at times requested by families. There is good communication between the home and parents and carers. One parent said, ‘Without the home, everyday life would be impossible.’ Another commented, ‘Without this help and support, families like ours would go under’.

p.4

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

There are comprehensive behaviour support plans in place to identify and manage young people’s challenging or risky behaviours. These plans provide staff with clear, practical strategies to avoid or reduce risk to young people and are drawn from a detailed knowledge of individual young people.

p.4

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

If young people become agitated, staff make effective use of de-escalation or distraction techniques. The use of restraint, when absolutely necessary, is well recorded by staff and evaluated by the registered manger or senior staff member. This provides learning from these incidents, which is shared within the staff team to improve practice in this area.

p.4

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

It was a requirement from the last inspection to develop a policy regarding the use of mechanical restraints. There was a further requirement that young people’s education, health and care plans included the use of mechanical restraints where this was applicable. Both these requirements have been met. The assistant manager has been persistent in her attempts to obtain updated plans from local authorities. Where this has not been successful, she has escalated this to the registered manager, and some updated plans have now been provided.

p.4

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

Where there are safeguarding concerns for young people, there is prompt information sharing with parents and the local authority. Staff are vigilant when caring for young people. They are knowledgeable about the processes to follow when recording and reporting safeguarding incidents, and records of these incidents are of a good quality. Inspection report children’s home: SC025745 5 This contributes well to the overall multi-agency safeguarding response.

p.4

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

Since the last inspection, one young person has been discharged from the service due to the high levels of risks presented. It was assessed that the home could not keep him safe. While this was a difficult decision for staff to make, it demonstrates a good understanding of both the young person and the ability of the staff to meet his needs and safeguard him.

p.5

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

On the whole, staff provide a safe and welcoming environment for young people. Some bedrooms do not have window blinds as young people have removed them. This omission may negatively affect the sleeping patterns of young people and it does not promote a homely environment. The sensory room is well equipped to give young people a safe space to relax or play. However, while there are soft play mats in the room, the flooring is wooden, and this could hurt children if they were to fall.

p.5

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

There is a range of play and exercise equipment and a summer house in the garden. This encourages young people to spend time outside in outdoor play or relaxation.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The experienced registered manager is well supported by an assistant manager, and together they are effective in leading a team of skilled and enthusiastic staff.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager welcomes external scrutiny to improve practice in the home. Since the last inspection, she has worked hard to address the requirements and recommendations previously made and these are all met. The registered manager is now looking at ways of working with the independent person to improve the effectiveness of the monthly visits and actions arising from these, to support further improvements in practice.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision. However, the quality of the supervision sessions and the detail of session recording are variable. A number of supervision meetings are very brief. This does not allow for a thorough discussion of the roles and responsibilities of the staff member. Supervision is largely task focused. Staff are not being provided with opportunities to reflect on their practice or on the needs of young people.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Case records for young people include comprehensive individual and vibrant portraits of the personalities and needs of each young person. Records are young person centred. The assessments and documents used by the home make information more accessible to young people, including those with additional communication needs.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Social workers told the inspector that staff make active and valuable contributions to meetings about young people. The records of these meetings and copies of the short break plan or child in need plan for children, are not included in young people’s case records. This means that staff do not have up-to-date written information about the wider plans for young people. Inspection report children’s home: SC025745 6 A key strength of the home is the culture of continuous improvement. Staff at all levels of the home want to learn and improve practice for the benefit of young people. Staff are encouraged to take responsibility for developments in the home. For example, staff have set up two working groups focusing on the sensory and communication needs of young people. Ideas developed by the groups are shared with the wider staff team through team meetings. There is a shared responsibility for the success of the service

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

and the quality of care provided for young people.

p.6

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.

p.6

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: SC025745 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Together Trust Centre, Schools Hill, Cheadle, Cheshire SK8 1JE

p.7

Inspector:

Dawn Parton, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC025745 8 and inspects to 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. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit

p.7

Inspector:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspector:

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector:

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

p.8