Children's home run by Newcastle City Council

Inspection report children’s home: SC033645 1 SC033645 Registered provider: Newcastle City 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

The home provides care and accommodation for up to five children and young people under short-break arrangements, and for a further child to live at the home. These children and young people may have learning disabilities and/or physical disabilities. The home is operated by a local authority.

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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: SC033645 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/10/2018 Full Outstanding 05/03/2018 Full Outstanding 28/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 16/11/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC033645 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children and young people can build trusted relationships quickly with the adults who are caring for them. The quality of individualised care is excellent. Detailed care plans are understood and followed by a qualified and professional staff team. Children and young people are encouraged to participate in their plans, using innovative communication tools such as a touch screen interactive computer programme. This is used to gain children and young people’s views in a fun and creative way. The quality of relationships between staff, children and young people, parents and carers is superb. Feedback from parents and professionals about the care their children and young people receive is glowing. Regular coffee mornings, summer BBQs and parent participation groups further develop these relationships. Communication that is open, honest and of high quality enhances the sense of trust between all parties. This trust

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

ensures that children and young people feel safe and protected by the adults who care for them. The manager and staff work tirelessly to provide exciting and imaginative experiences for children and young people during their stays at the home. An extensive range of activities are on offer and take place both within the home and in the community. The ‘Mission Hat’ film project has been further developed with young people new to the home. Within this project, they can become enmeshed in a fantasy world of superheroes who research and report on issues such as current affairs and recycling. Children and young people attend local schools. Attendance is excellent and communication between school and home is enhanced by using a shared software package. The package uses symbols as a way of communicating with children and young people in a consistent way. This, as well as the use of social stories and a pictorial record

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

of the children and young people’s individual plans for the day, helps to alleviate any anxieties children and young people may have.

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

The children and young people living at this home are kept safe. High-quality, in-depth multi-agency risk assessments enable staff to clearly understand the strategies required to ensure that children and young people are safely cared for. Staff are highly attuned to the presenting behaviours of the children and young people. They are skilled at identifying minute indicators that may suggest that children and young people need additional support. The living spaces at the home are designed and equipped to a very high standard. Children and young people are able to take age-appropriate risks in line with their development. One parent said, ‘The facilities are perfect, they are so safe. I know that he can play independently if he wishes, safe in the knowledge that he cannot come to harm.’ Staff know the children and young people very well. Staff work closely with families and other professionals to understand the triggers for behaviour and to provide individualised

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

care to the children and young people. One parent commented, ‘Whilst they are the Inspection report children’s home: SC033645 4 experts in dealing with children who have complex needs, I am the expert on [name] and they understand that, so we learn from each other.’ Children and young people are supported to develop their own behaviour management plans, using a range of tools suited to their individual needs. Positive behaviour is promoted consistently, with the award of certificates of achievements and positive praise. This enables children and young people to increase their sense of personal responsibility and awareness of boundaries and expectations.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is extremely ambitious and has high expectations for what children and young people can achieve in this home. Highly individualised care is delivered by a staff team that shares the manager’s vision and works extremely closely with parents and professionals to ensure that the children and young people are receiving effective and innovative care. Short breaks are planned extremely well. The management team considers several factors when planning stays, including parental preference, group mix and friendship groups. Children and young people are also able to have a say in who they share their breaks with. This means that children and young people can look forward to their stay at the home and treat it as a fun sleepover with their friends. Since the last inspection, the manager and his team have introduced a number of improvements that have had a positive impact on the lives of children and young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Daily summaries have been improved following feedback and these are well received by parents. The use of a closed Facebook page has been further developed by the addition of a resources section. Professionals can post information to support parents with the latest research developments, advice and information on activities and events taking place in the North East region. Those young people using the service who are leaving care are now able to access areas of the page for advice and support. This means that, although they do not access services from the home directly, they can still receive advice and support from trusted adults. Visits by the independent visitor do not always take place at the times when children and young people are available in the home. This is a missed opportunity to gather the views of children and young people by someone who does not work at the home. This would add to the quality and rigour of the independent person’s findings.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers provide high-quality supervision and appraisal to the staff team. Training and development opportunities are designed to meet the specific needs of the children and young people the home cares for. This learning regularly takes place with other professionals, such as education colleagues, ensuring a consistent approach from all agencies. Staff team meetings take place regularly and offer the opportunity to learn additional skills from guest speakers. External scrutiny and development activities are provided by independent visitors from organisations such as the National Autistic Society. This ensures that children receive care from adults who are highly skilled and have up-to-date knowledge. Inspection report children’s home: SC033645 5

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Recommendations

 Any individual appointed to carry out visits to the home as an independent person must make a rigorous and impartial assessment of the home’s arrangements for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the children in the home’s care. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.5) In particular, the independent person’s visits should take place at a time when children and young people’s views, wishes and feelings can be obtained.

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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: SC033645 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Newcastle City Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Barras Bridge, Civic Centre, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8QH

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Inspector

Mark Proffitt, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC033645 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 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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