Children's Home run by Brighton and Hove City Council in Brighton and Hove

Inspection report children’s home: SC044880 1 SC044880 Registered provider: Brighton & Hove 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

This local authority-owned children’s home provides short breaks and longer-term care for children and young people aged between eight and 18. According to its statement of purpose, the children have severe or moderate levels of learning disabilities, as defined in their education and healthcare plans. Some young people display varying levels of challenging behaviour and often have an autistic spectrum disorder diagnosis. The home has two managers who share the registered manager role. They have been registered with Ofsted since 2013 and 2015, respectively.

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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: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC044880 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/07/2018 Full Outstanding 08/08/2017 Full Good 14/02/2017 Interim Declined in effectiveness 06/07/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC044880 3

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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

In order to meet the quality and purpose of care standard, the registered provider must ensure; that staff— provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably. (Regulation 6(2)(b)(vii)) In particular, ensure that all bedrooms are suitably equipped and furnished prior to a young person’s stay. 04/05/2020

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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. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(d)) 04/05/2020

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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 that— helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and 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; ensure that the staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child; ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (2)(a)(c)(d)(e)) 04/05/2020 Inspection report children’s home: SC044880 4 If the registered provider is an organisation, the organisation must ensure that the responsible individual undertakes such

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Requirement Due date

continuing professional development as is necessary to ensure that the responsible individual has the skills needed for supervising the management of the home. (Regulation 29 (2)) 04/05/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must— keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b)) 04/05/2020

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff enable the young people to develop and make positive progress. The staff’s independence work with the young people is creative and supports well-planned outcomes. The plans for the young people to move on into adult services are robust, person centred and dynamically risk assessed. Lead support workers demonstrate high aspirations and commitment to the young people, working effortlessly to support and challenge transition services. One recent example is worthy of wider dissemination as an example of good practice. The staff gently encourage the young people to develop their skills in a meaningful way. The young people can cook their favourite takeaway meals while being encouraged by the staff to think about their personal health and nutrition choices. The young people’s chores and routines are matched in promoting their special interests and sensory explorations. For example, the young people who enjoy water play are

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

encouraged to wash up after meal times. For others, this includes laundry room tasks and tidying away. Young people enjoy a range of experiences centred around their interests and complex needs. For instance, young people enjoy regular trips to a nearby hydrotherapy pool and the on-site ball pit. Annually, the home hosts a themed summer BBQ and invites the young people’s family and friends. There are games and themed foods for everyone to enjoy. These activities and events help to build the young people’s self-esteem and develop their social skills. The staff support the young people to enjoy safe arrangements when they spend time with their friends and family. The staff work in partnership with parents and allocated social workers to ensure that this time is positive and in the interests of the young people. This promotes placement and home-life stability for the young people. Inspection report children’s home: SC044880 5

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff work closely with child and adolescent mental health services to develop their strategies and expertise in supporting the young people to effectively deal with their conflicting emotions. Consequently, staff interpret challenging behaviours as a young person temporarily losing control and becoming frustrated. A health professional commented, ‘This home is very committed to the care of its young people.’ The staff provide the young people with clear and consistent boundaries which assist them to develop improved coping skills, and reduce levels of challenging behaviours. A committed and enthusiastic staff team responds effectively to the young people’s diverse and complex needs. Staff are supporting one young person to explore their sexuality and gender in a safe and non-judgemental environment. Lead support workers write reviews that demonstrate the young people’s progress and accomplishments. ‘We are Proud of You’ cards capture the young people’s achievements

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

in a nurturing way. These are shared with professionals and families to encompass the young person’s celebration. One parent said, ‘This is so lovely to read, thank you. I am incredibly grateful for all the staff’s dedication and hard work.’

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

Staff actively promote the young people’s physical and emotional safety and well-being. There is routine monitoring of health needs and the staff provide the young people with appropriate support to ensure that medical appointments are kept. For one young person, the staff team visited the optician prior to the young person’s appointment so that the environment could be individually risk assessed and photographed. Staff then made a social story for the young person in preparation for this visit. It is this thoughtful attention to detail that protects the young people from potentially upsetting and distressing experiences. Staff encourage the young people to confidently express their feelings and emotions through various methods of communication. This results in the young people’s gradual development of better coping strategies to manage any anxieties, frustrations and, at times, unpredictable behaviour. The staff fully appreciate the very real and contextual

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

safeguarding concerns that affect vulnerable young people with additional disabilities. Consequently, they strive to teach the young people to have a voice. Good-quality risk management practice is underpinned by clearly written individual risk assessments. Such guidance outlines the young people’s needs and guides the staff to allow the young people to take safe and managed risks at their own pace. One example of this is the staff team’s meticulous planning of routes to avoid dogs as one young person is fearful of dogs. The team has now slowly started to introduce dogs in a familiar and safe setting.

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

The decisions made and being considered by senior leaders are compromising the home’s identity and the staff team’s ability to fully operate as a short-breaks provision. The service is unable to deliver its full short-break packages to all of the young people and their families who routinely use it because of this. Inspection report children’s home: SC044880 6 The registered manager understands her responsibilities, in terms of regulatory compliance, but this is not reflected in the decision-making and planning of the senior leadership, including the responsible individual. Consequently, there is a disconnect between the senior leadership’s and the registered manager’s understanding of the service. During this inspection period, the range and complexity of the needs of the young people has changed considerably. There is a mix of young people who use the service for short breaks, as well as for longer-term care. However, there is little evidence to

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

demonstrate that the skills, expertise and knowledge of the staff team have been reviewed and supported to respond to these changes. Some staff are not confident in their ability to meet some of the young people’s needs. This presents additional challenges for the registered manager to deploy staff across the setting. The home’s statement of purpose is unclear and the staff team is unable to fully deliver the current ethos and values that are described. Some sections of this document are outdated and do not accurately reflect the needs of the young people. For example, an attachment that describes the service’s expectations of the young people does not recognise the cognitive and processing difficulties that many of the young people have. Staff say that they have very positive relationships with their immediate line managers. They receive meaningful supervision and some good training opportunities. The

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

registered manager is equally skilled in managing staff performance concerns, when these arise. The registered manager and acting practice manager make full use of the current staff team skill set, albeit there are gaps and staffing shortages. Consequently, any negative impact on the young people is minimised. Those staff interviewed and seen during this inspection were able to demonstrate their detailed and clear understanding of the young people that they look after. During this inspection period, seven staff members have left and there are occasions when staffing levels are thin. One example of a young person’s planned short break being cancelled due to staffing shortages resulted in a complaint from the child’s parent. A recruitment drive is ongoing and some recent care staff appointments have been made. The understanding of managers with regards to the qualifications of some staff is not always congruent with current guidance. The sampling of such records during this

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

inspection identified two examples of this. The insufficient provision and processes for the repair, renewal and maintenance needs of the home require a significant review and investment. There is a lack of clarity in how processes operate, from the local authority’s estates department, through to the registered manager and maintenance person. Many areas of the home require repairs, which include plastering and broken furniture. Care and domestic staff are commended for their efforts in giving up their own time to assist with the redecoration of bedrooms, but this does not mask the overall tired and worn presentation of the buildings. Inspection report children’s home: SC044880 7

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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: SC044880 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hove Town Hall, Norton Road, Brighton BN3 3BQ

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Karen Rusbridge and Victoria Witham

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Inspector

Kelly Monniot, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC044880 9 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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