Children's Home run by Doncaster Children‟s Services Trust Limited in Doncaster

Inspection report children’s home: SC481439 1 SC481439 Registered provider: Doncaster Children’s Services Trust Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A local authority operates this home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to six children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home provides medium- to long-term care for children and young people aged between 11 to 17 years.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since August 2019 and has been registered since February 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 22 September 2020 to carry out an assurance visit. The report is published on our website.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers on 17 March 2020.

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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 outstanding

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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: requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: SC481439 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/05/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 13/12/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 17/04/2018 Full Good 11/07/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: SC481439 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children living at this home are supported to make good progress. Staff provide children with consistent care and reassurance. Some children have sustained the outcomes they have achieved. One child spoken to said, ‘The best thing about the home is the staff.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children attend their health appointments and are helped by staff to learn about adopting a healthy lifestyle. More specialised advice is also used from agencies, including the substance misuse service, the sexual health clinic, and the child and adolescent mental health service. Children receive consistent emotional warmth from the staff, which ensures their physical and emotional health needs are met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are being helped to learn life skills. They learn how to do their laundry, keep their bedrooms tidy, and they enjoy cooking activities. Staff also help children to develop emotional strategies to cope with life events, such as dealing with setbacks. For one child, this has resulted in a reduction of incidents in the home. His social worker commented, ‘He is more settled. He now self-regulates better. He has a great relationship with his key worker who is a positive role model.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some children have maintained their educational progress. The manager and staff have open lines of communication with schools, which enables them to address the barriers to learning. A virtual school lead officer recognises the efforts staff make and commented, ‘The team value the importance of education. They monitor and challenge others when a child’s educational needs are not being met.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with a consistent daily routine by staff. The continuity of staff practice provides children with a sense of predictability. This helps children to have emotional security in knowing that staff are there for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is tastefully decorated and provides children with a comfortable living space. Staff provide children with in-house activities and ample opportunities to have fun inside and outside of the home. Children personalise their bedrooms and pictures of children are displayed throughout the home. This helps to create a relaxing and homely atmosphere for children to live in.

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

The staff understand each child’s individual vulnerabilities and consistently follow detailed safety plans. Staff can identify when there is an increased risk of harm to a child. This helps to better protect children at home and in the community.

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

The manager regularly shares safeguarding information with partner agencies. Strong multi-agency working helps with the assessment of the children’s safety and Inspection report children’s home: SC481439 4 welfare. As a result, professionals have put in place strategies to better protect children from harm.

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

Some staff training has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. Training in the use of restraint has not been completed by staff. However, the manager’s leadership of her team and the consultation provided by the child and adolescent mental health service has helped to mitigate against this shortfall. The use of restraint is rarely needed. A mental health worker commented, ‘They are always seeking to have a better understanding of the children.’

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

There is a well-coordinated response when children go missing from the home. Staff follow agreed protocols when a child’s whereabouts are unknown. This helps to ensure that children are returned to their home as quickly as possible.

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

The team has a full complement of staff. Additional staff work each day to enable them to fulfil the requirements of each child’s community safety plan, as well as still offering care to those children who remain in the home. As a result, children benefit from having more choice in what they want to do.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager provides exceptional leadership to the team. Staff have high levels of support and they thoroughly enjoy coming to work. The manager has created a culture which is characterised by high aspirations for children. One staff member said, ‘The manager and seniors are second to none, they are brilliant.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager’s commitment and enthusiasm are shared amongst the staff. As a result, children’s day-to-day care is consistently delivered by the whole team. Staff arrive at work in a positive frame of mind and this has a significant impact on the children’s well-being.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager and staff’s creativity ensured that children still had fun throughout periods of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions. Activities, such as celebrating Australia day and a star award ceremony, helped to distract children from the impact of the lockdown restrictions. The manager’s ambition and drive to make a difference to the children’s lives have helped to maintain the best possible care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Children’s case records are well organised and are completed to a high standard. The ‘My Chat’ and ‘Let’s Talk’ sessions provide children with a reflective account of their achievements and the care that they receive from staff. The style and clarity of recordings mean that children have an increased understanding about their time living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is a strong advocate for the children. She raised concerns when it became apparent that the level of risk for one child in the community could not be managed safely. The manager’s contribution to ongoing meetings and multi-agency planning has supported other key agencies to better understand the safety concerns for the child. Inspection report children’s home: SC481439 5 The manager and staff team are highly valued by their fellow professionals. Feedback to the inspector consistently recognised the manager’s impact on her team. One professional commented, ‘The manager leads a team culture which all homes should aspire to.’ Inspection report children’s home: SC481439 6

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Recommendations

 The provider and registered manager should ensure that all the staff have been adequately trained in the principles of restraint and any restraint techniques appropriate to the needs of the children the home is set up to care for as defined in the home’s Statement of Purpose. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.57)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, 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: SC481439 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Doncaster Children’s Services Trust Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Colonnades House, Duke Street, Doncaster, South Yorkshire DN1 1ER

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Inspector

Aaron Mcloughlin, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC481439 8 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 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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