Children's Home run by Devon County Council in Devon

Inspection report children’s home: 2529648 1 Registered provider: Devon County Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home provides short-break stays for children who have disabilities. It is owned and operated by the local authority.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 17 to 18 December 2019

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2529648 2

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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

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home, (a) Helps children to aspire to fulfil their potential; and (b) Promotes their welfare In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose. In addition, the registered person must ensure that all aspects of regulation are reviewed and met. (Regulation 13 (1)(2)(a)) 15/01/2020

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Requirement Due date

Fire precautions After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must— ensure, by means of fire drills and practices at suitable intervals, that persons working at the home and, so far as reasonably practicable, children are aware of the procedure to be followed in case of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(d)) 15/01/2020

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Requirement Due date

Other records Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home. The registered person must— maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4; and ensure that the records are kept up to date. (Regulation 37 (1)(2)(a)(b)) 15/01/2020

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A dedicated and experienced staff team takes good care of children. Relationships between children and staff are built on trust and mutual respect. Good-quality care planning underpins the care that children receive. This supports children to make Inspection report children’s home: 2529648 3 progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child who recently moved to this home has had a significant reduction in incidents. This is because the staff provide consistently positive care. This has resulted in less emotional distress for the child. The child is calmer and happier.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s care is informed through cohesive multi-agency working. When required, expert advice is sought to ensure that the right approach is being used. This ensures that children receive individualised care which meets their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in various activities and socialise with their peers. These opportunities may previously have been limited for them. Children enjoy positive experiences and have fun.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is not nurturing or welcoming. Institutionalised aesthetics and a lack of housekeeping compound its poor presentation.

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

The arrangements in place to promote the safety and welfare of children are good. Concerns for children are appropriately escalated to safeguarding agencies. Risks for children are understood and acted upon effectively.

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

Records are clear and staff understand what they need to do to keep children safe, both in the home and in the community.

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

There has been a significant reduction in incidents for children. This is because staff take time to understand the support that each child needs. This has resulted in a reduction in emotional distress for children.

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

The arrangements in respect of medication are effective. Good practice has been taken from other homes. This has supported better oversight of medication. However, leaders and managers fail to ensure the records are consistently completed in line with policy and procedures.

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

Inspection report children’s home: 2529648 4 Leaders and managers have failed to ensure that all children and staff take part in fire drills. They have not devised a clear evacuation plan for a child who was recently admitted in line with their needs. Records are weak and lack analysis and oversight. This means any deficiencies are not understood well.

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

Leaders and managers have failed to ensure that all aspects of regulation have been met. For example, records such as the statement of purpose have not been updated. This has not had an impact on the care of children.

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

Due to the local authority’s duty to accommodate, senior leaders recently took the decision to admit a child on a full-time basis. This decision has improved experiences and reduced emotional distress for that child. Unfortunately, other children have not been able to access all their much-needed respite care. Managers have started assessments to consider re-integrating other children back into this service.

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

The registered manager leads the service with dedication and she is child-focused. She has effectively integrated several agency staff into the team. As a result, they deliver good, consistent care to children.

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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: 2529648 5

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Devon County Council, Chief Executive’s Directorate, County Hall, Topsham Road, Exeter, Devon EX2 4QD

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Inspector

Tracey Ledder: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2529648 6 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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