Children's home run by My Choice Children’s Homes Limited in Mid Sussex

Inspection report children’s home: SC359812 1 SC359812 Registered provider: My Choice Children’s Homes 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

This home is owned by a private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to two children and young people. Its statement of purpose specifies that the staff can care for children and young people who self-harm, have minor physical and communication difficulties, who have an autism spectrum disorder or are at risk of exploitation.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in August 2016.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC359812 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/07/2018 Full Outstanding 12/09/2017 Full Good 15/06/2017 Full Inadequate 16/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC359812 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The young people live in a setting where the staff are fully committed to supporting them to develop and to successfully manage the challenges that they face. The young people have excellent experiences at the home and make significant progress. They are proud of their achievements and spoke very positively about the home and the staff. They have a real connection to the home and refer to the service as their ‘outstanding home’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Through the resilience, support and guidance of staff, young people have learned to make safer choices. In particular, the young people no longer go missing from the home and calls to the police have decreased significantly. The commitment and dedication shown by staff have helped the young people through difficult and challenging times. Young people have learned the skills necessary to develop mature, healthy relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The staff said they are extremely proud of the young people. The young people respond well to the staff’s praise and encouragement. Professionals spoke positively about the staff and of the progress that young people make. One professional said of the staff, ‘The constant support, empathy and understanding makes a big difference to [young people’s] changing behaviours.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The young people attributed their progress to the commitment of a consistent staff team which has worked with them for many years. They enjoy excellent relationships with the members of the staff team, who know them very well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The stability of placements has resulted in a calm and positive environment where young people feel safe, have fun and make progress. While young people said they don’t want to leave the home, they also acknowledge and understand that staff put a huge amount of work into making sure that decisions made about their future are in their best interests. Staff challenge professionals, when necessary, to ensure that the best interests of young people are always at the heart of decision making.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff support the young people to frequently take part in activities such as swimming and football. Other activities enjoyed by the young people include boating holidays, charity runs and joining in summer activity programmes. One young person has recently celebrated a birthday with his teammates at the local community football club.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The registered manager and staff work with a range of professionals to ensure that the young people make excellent progress in their education, health and social development. Education attendance is now exceptional. This was previously very challenging for young people. The young people now enjoy and see the benefits of education. Numerous successes and individual achievements are celebrated, with many certificates proudly displayed around the home. In addition, the young people have created their own certificates about the staff’s skills and personalities. These are mostly humorous but Inspection report children’s home: SC359812 4 appropriate. This shows how much they care about the staff who are looking after them, and the comfortable relationships that they have developed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The young people are treated equally and fairly. Discrimination of any kind is not accepted. Staff work with the young people to enable them to have a confident voice. This can be seen by the recent successful interviews by a young person for a college placement and a part-time job.

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

The staff work tirelessly to make sure that the young people feel safe and that they are as safe as they can possibly be, both in the home and out in the community. The registered manager and her staff team are skilled at identifying potential risks and triggers. Plans to reduce risks are detailed and are reviewed at least monthly or after a significant event. Staff understand and implement these plans, which are effective in reducing risks for young people. Multi-agency meetings are held to ensure joint decision making and joint responses to risky behaviours. This has proven highly successful and has led to a reduction in missing-from-home incidents, anti-social behaviours and self- harm incidents.

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

The staff receive a wide range of training, delivered in the organisation’s dedicated and registered training centre. They cover topics such as sexual exploitation, drug misuse, radicalisation and the risks associated with going missing. An extensive training package enables the staff to provide consistency of care and enables them to better understand the young people’s behaviours.

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

Safeguarding matters, including any allegations against staff, are competently managed and referred to the relevant safeguarding professionals when needed. High standards of recording are embedded and well maintained. This assists the registered manager in monitoring the home’s safeguarding practices and procedures.

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

A strength of the service is the trusting relationships formed between young people and staff. This is a key protective factor because staff are able to consistently provide sensible support to the young people, especially at times when they have put themselves at risk. The young people have the trust and confidence in the staff to discuss sensitive issues with ease.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is led and managed effectively and efficiently by a permanent, suitably experienced and qualified registered manager. The registered manager is a passionate and strong leader. She continues to develop her leadership skills and has successfully encouraged and supported her staff to develop their skills further. She is up to date with research and practice, especially regarding therapeutic interventions. More staff have completed the home’s therapeutic training. This increase in therapeutic knowledge can be seen in the staff’s practice. The registered manager has upskilled her staff team, and together they communicate extremely well and deliver consistently high standards of Inspection report children’s home: SC359812 5 care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is confident and ambitious for the young people. She is highly influential in changing their lives. This can be seen in the outstanding progress made by the young people, the relationships that they form and the stability of their placements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The staff said that they receive excellent support from the registered manager and that she is an excellent role model. They spoke positively about her managerial style and feel very well informed. The staff spoke very proudly about the progress young people make, and of their contribution to this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The staff team is suitably qualified to work in the home. The staff, including the registered manager, receive frequent and effective supervision. The staff feel supported, valued and appropriately challenged. The staff team is a very stable group of mixed gender and age. Its members work very well together, showing commitment and consistency in the delivery of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Professionals have confidence in the staff’s skills. One professional said, ‘Thank you for all your amazing work. You and the team are really helpful,’ another said, ‘ I would like to congratulate the home for doing an excellent job on looking after and advocating for [name of young person] for the past five years.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

At a time when young people are moving on to adult life, the registered manager and staff team have a strong focus on getting it right for them. Their aim is for the high level of support and commitment they have given to each young person to continue into adult placements.

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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: SC359812 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: My Choice Children’s Homes Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 3a, Mill Green Business Estate, Mill Green Road, Haywards Heath RH16 1XQ

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Inspector

Liz Driver, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC359812 7 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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