Children's Home run by Shropshire Council in Shropshire

Inspection report children's home: 2558682 1 Registered provider: Shropshire Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority home offers support and care for two children who may have experienced neglect, abuse or trauma which has left them vulnerable. The manager of the home registered with Ofsted in February 2020 and holds the relevant level 5 qualification.

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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. We last visited this setting on 05 June 2020 to carry out a monitoring visit. The report is published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 27 to 28 July 2021 and 06 August 2021.

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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 requires improvement to be good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers 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

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Inspection report children's home: 2558682 2 Inspection report children's home: 2558682 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

This is the first full inspection since the home registered in February 2020. Three children have come to live in the home and two children have left. Staff support children to have well-planned moves.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are proud of children’s achievements. There are photographs of children and staff enjoying activities together prominently displayed around the home. This helps children to feel a sense of belonging and of being valued. Staff know the children well and talk knowledgeably about them. Children say they like living at the home and that they feel safe.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Social workers praise the quality of relationships that staff have with children. They say that managers and staff give children individualised care which meets their individual needs. A social worker described the home as having a family type atmosphere because staff constantly involve her child in activities around the home in the way that a good parent would.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities in line with their interests, as well as continuing to have experiences which help them to create positive memories. A child has recently enjoyed a two-week holiday in Wales. The same child, who takes a keen interest in football, went on a tour of football grounds with a carer who she particularly has a good relationship with. Sharing children’s hobbies and interests enables carers to develop meaningful relationships based on these interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to develop skills for independent living. This includes children having their own bank account and support to safely manage their prescribed medication. Staff encourage and support children to contribute to their plans and to set goals which they review together. This enables children to invest in their independence journey, which takes place at a pace that is right for them

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work closely with teachers and support children to attend school and to access online education resources. When the time is right, they sensitively talk to children about their future and guide them towards appropriate college courses or employment. This helps children to develop aspirations and to feel hopeful about their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported well with their emotional well-being. Staff work closely with specialist clinicians help them to understand the impact of early childhood experiences, including neglect and abuse, on children’s behaviours. This guidance has helped the staff to develop their practice.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have lots of opportunities to share their views. Staff are creative in exploring how best to communicate with children who find communicating with Inspection report children's home: 2558682 4 others difficult. This includes writing down their thoughts and feelings. This helps children to develop trusted relationships with staff and to feel valued.

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improvement to be good

Recently one child’s complex behaviours have escalated, and they have been at risk from leaving the home and running onto a busy road. On two occasions, staff have not been sufficiently vigilant and the child has been able to leave the home without staff knowledge. Additionally, staff have been slow to intervene to prevent the child’s behaviours from escalating. As a result, police have been called to manage the child’s behaviour and to keep the child safe. More positively, managers have recognised the shortfalls in practice and have addressed them in supervision and team meetings.

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improvement to be good

When children self-harm, staff act quickly to keep them safe. Staff use their knowledge of children and their strong relationships to calm them and to help them to relax. Staff then ensure that children receive care and support that responds to their individual needs. This means that children feel confident about asking staff for help when they need it. However, on one occasion, staff did not record relevant information about a child’s self-harming behaviours. This omission risked compromising the quality of safeguarding information.

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improvement to be good

When children go missing from the home, they are found quickly. This is because staff are aware of how children’s vulnerabilities may increase risk to them. Staff follow children’s missing protocols well.

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improvement to be good

Staff take opportunities to praise children for positive behaviour and for managing their emotions safely. When restraint is used, it is as a last resort to keep children safe. In-depth de-briefs with children and staff ensure that relationships can be maintained and future practice can support the child further.

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improvement to be good

The recruitment process is thorough and ensures that only adults meeting ‘safer recruitment’ processes are employed to work in the home.

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improvement to be good

Children live in a safe environment. Staff conduct regular health and safety checks and are vigilant about risks in the home. The safe area report has been completed in consultation with key agencies such as the police. The report is relevant to the local area and gives staff and children relevant information they need to help them understand and manage potential risks when out in the community.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably experienced and qualified. He has high aspirations for the children and the staff team. The manager knows the children and the team well and speaks proudly about their achievements. The manager is committed and passionate, which translates to the staff team, and this has a positive impact on the quality of care. Inspection report children's home: 2558682 5 The manager is a strong advocate for children. He is confident in challenging other professionals when he believes that they are being too slow in fulfilling their responsibilities to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Effective partnership working ensures that child receive well-coordinated care that promotes their safety and well-being. The manager shares information well with relevant people about children’s progress and any concerns. He develops relationships with parents and carers and understands the importance of these relationships to children’s emotional health and well-being. This demonstrates the positive partnership working and child-focused approach that the registered manager and staff deliver through their care of children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision, which provides them with opportunities to reflect on their practice. The manager encourages staff to enhance their development and take up opportunities for promotion. Annual appraisals further promote staff’s professional development. Staff feel valued and speak highly of the support from their manager and for each other.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a commitment to the professional development of the team. Regular team meetings and development days are an opportunity for staff to reflect on their practice and to refresh their skills. The manager has introduced initiatives that are worthy of dissemination throughout the organisation. For instance, ‘the above and beyond’ encourages carers to be creative in meeting the quality standards and improving the quality of care for children. The manager promotes an ethos of unconditional positive regard in the home with an expectation that children and carers are treated with tolerance, dignity and respect.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children are cared for by a consistent staff team. Recently, a number of staff have left the home for professional development and through personal choice, and new staff have joined. The manager understands the impact of these changes on children. He has personally covered for shortfalls in staffing and has ensured that any cover staff are known to the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New staff have a comprehensive induction which includes training in the organisations model of care. Additionally, all staff have received mandatory training, which includes training in behaviour management, first aid and child protection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager uses monitoring systems to improve the quality of care. However, on one occasion, the manager was not professionally curious about the circumstances in which a child has been able to leave the home without staff knowing. This means that poor practice was not challenged, and children were placed at additional risk. Inspection report children's home: 2558682 6

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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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child.

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Requirement Due date

This relates to staff following a child’s risk assessment when they leave the home and place themselves at risk.

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Requirement Due date

It also relates to staff sharing information with each other about potential risks regarding self-harm. 17 September

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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—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

This particularly relates to the manager reviewing how child could go missing from the home without staff knowledge. 17 September Inspection report children's home: 2558682 7

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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: 2558682 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Shirehall, Abbey Foregate, Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY2 6ND

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Inspectors

Karen Gillingwater, Social Care Inspector Lisa O’Donovan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2558682 9 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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