Children's Home run by Keys Care Limited in Windsor and Maidenhead

Inspection report children's home: SC438624 1 SC438624 Registered provider: Keys Care Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and run by a private organisation. It provides individualised care for up to two children. The home is part of a cross-regional project, commissioned by six local authorities, that includes other homes and a school operated by the same organisation.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in October 2019.

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Information about this children’s home

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

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Information about this children’s home

Ofsted last visited this setting on 3 February 2021 to carry out a monitoring visit. The report is published on the Ofsted website.

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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 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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: SC438624 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/08/2019 Full Good 13/11/2018 Full Good 11/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 28/09/2016 Full Good Inspection report children's home: SC438624 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make consistent progress through their warm and nurturing relationships with staff. Staff are invested in children’s development and work in a manner that is consistent with home’s prescribed therapeutic approach. Staff are thoughtful about the way that they care for children. This ensures that staff tailor their support to meet each child’s individual needs. Children respond well to the help and care that staff provide, and they feel cared for and listened to.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views and wishes are central to the running of the home. A mood board in the kitchen shows children’s requests and ideas, such as how the home should be decorated, activities they would like to do and where to go on holiday. Children requested a swimming pool for the garden, which was a firm favourite throughout the summer. Staff listen to children’s views and help them understand when something they want cannot happen. Children are able to share their views on living in the home, and staff advocate well on their behalf. This includes supporting children to share their views and wishes with their social worker about their independence plans.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children attend the organisation’s nearby school. Children now have nearly full attendance when previously, they spent significant periods out of school. Partnership working and individualised timetables ensure that children are supported to overcome their barriers to learning and are helped to enjoy being in a school environment. Close links between the home and school, including twice daily handovers, ensure that children experience consistent and well-informed care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to lead healthy lifestyles and to understand what this means for them. Liaison with health professionals ensures that children’s physical health needs are met and they receive the treatment they require. Medication is stored securely, and there are clear records of the administration of medications. Children’s emotional well-being is central to planning. Strong links with the organisation’s therapist and child and adolescent mental health services support children to develop coping mechanisms and resilience. Children are encouraged to enjoy a range of physically and emotionally stimulating activities, such as cycling, playing board games and being creative with arts and crafts.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children moving into the home benefit from well-planned moves, and they have many opportunities to speak to staff before moving in. During lockdown restrictions, this included video chats with staff before the move and having a virtual tour of their new home. Children moving on are supported to be as prepared as possible for their next move or adulthood. They learn important independence skills, such as using public transport, budgeting and how to cope with spending time alone.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have been enabled to see their family and friends, including during the periods of national and local lockdowns. A parent commented that staff ‘have always Inspection report children's home: SC438624 4 been really helpful’, including bringing her child to her front door during lockdown, so she could still see him. She went on to say that ‘staff go to great lengths’ to look after her child.

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

Staff are knowledgeable with regard to each child’s vulnerabilities. They do all they can to protect children and to support them to protect themselves. Staff are confident in the processes to follow should they be concerned for a child’s welfare. They know how to report concerns and who to report to. They are aware of whistle- blowing procedures and understand the roles of the safeguarding teams in the local authority. Staff respond swiftly to safeguarding concerns and involve the relevant partner agencies.

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

Staff are supportive and consistent in their approaches to managing behaviours that could place children at risk of harm. Multidisciplinary approaches to supporting children at risk of substance misuse, self-harm or being missing from home are thorough and clear. Specialist training in therapeutic care provides staff with the tools that they need to support children in times of crisis. This helps children to be more aware of the impact of their behaviours and helps them to make safer choices.

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

Staff recognise all behaviour as a form of communication. They are constantly considering what the child is trying to tell them. Incident analysis provides a useful mechanism for reflection on why there may be peaks in some behaviours. Staff incident debriefs take place after incidents and these are a beneficial learning tool. Staff speak to children in a sensitive manner to help understand what may have influenced negative behaviour. They amend their approach as a result of understanding children’s experiences and involve children in strategies to help reduce their anxieties.

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

Therapeutic consultations link to children’s agreed therapeutic and behaviour management plans. This prompts staff to work in a therapeutic manner with the children. This helps staff to keep children’s needs in mind and also to understand what may be influencing children’s behaviours. In addition, behaviour management plans direct staff to use aspects of the home’s therapeutic approach to help children explore and express emotions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is highly aspirational for the children in the home. This is reflected through the care provided and the enthusiasm of the staff team. Staff say that they are well supported by the management and wider team. They receive regular supervision, which is appreciated by staff as they feel this helps them to learn and develop. They feel that they can contact the manager at any time, and that she is ready to offer practical support and guidance. Staff benefit from bespoke training to meet children’s needs, and has input from the therapist. This ensures that care practice is well informed by reliable assessments of children’s needs. Inspection report children's home: SC438624 5 Collaborative with partner agencies is deemed as crucial to supporting children’s success. The manager is confident in challenging agencies when she feels they are not providing the children with the care, service or support that they require.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s care and progress are regularly monitored and reviewed, ensuring that plans do not become stagnant and that children are supported to achieve their potential. End-of-placement summaries are well-balanced and focus on the positives and progress that children make, as well as reflecting on what could have been done differently. There is thoughtful recognition of what was beyond the child’s emotional control and good analysis as to whether staff put agreed strategies in place to help children make progress. Children’s identity and culture is respected and recognised as individual to them. However, plans are not detailed and do not, for example, explore children’s cultural identity beyond naming their ethnicity and religion.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager’s monitoring, of the quality of care provided to children, is robust and identifies clear action points to further develop the service. The manager has considered recommendations from the last inspection and has adapted her regular monitoring to be more reflective and evaluative, with action points included. A recent change of independent visitor has provided a positive, critical platform for reviewing care practice and children’s progress. The home’s development plan is aspirational, clear and realistic. Children’s views are central to the home’s development plan, and all of their requests are recorded and responded to. There is some drift within the plan and some aspects have not yet happened. For example, a plan to refurbish the loft room, to create a more functional space for children to use, is yet to happen after several months. Inspection report children's home: SC438624 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children’s plans include detailed information on their culture and identity in addition to their religion and country of birth. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.2)  The registered person should ensure there is continuous monitoring of the home’s development plan to ensure the changes are made. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, Page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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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: SC438624 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: C/o Pinsent Masons LLP, The Soloist Building, 1 Lanyon Place, Belfast, Northern Ireland BT1 3LP

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Inspector

Jennie Christopher, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC438624 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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