Children's home run by Kent County Council in Ashford

Inspection report for children’s home: SC439282 1 SC439282 Registered provider: Kent County Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This short-break service is run by the local authority. The service also provides a day care service during some school holidays. It offers a service for children who have a physical and/or learning disability. The maximum number of children who can stay at the home at any one time is four.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since July 2021 and is not registered with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19, at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers carried out under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF) on 17 March 2020. We returned to routine SCCIF inspections on 12 April 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 29 and 30 September 2020 to carry out an assurance visit. The report is published on our 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 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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC439282 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/01/2020 Full Good 06/03/2019 Full Good 21/03/2017 Full Outstanding 24/05/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC439282 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the children well in this home and the quality of care to all children is of a good standard. Children make good and consistent progress as a result of the support and care provided by staff. Children have good interactions with staff and are given choices about many aspects of their care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents and professionals reported that they are happy with the progress that their children have made. Children benefit from good relationships between parents and staff. One parent said that they work together with staff to resolve any issues and to get a positive outcome for their child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the health needs of the children and receive training specific to the complex needs of each child. Staff work with a range of health professionals to ensure that actions are taken to keep children in the best possible health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the education of the children and ensure that there is good communication with their schools. Staff contribute effectively to meetings at school. When children do not have a school place, staff work with the local authority to ensure that a tutor is provided so that children can maintain their education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to take part in a range of social activities. These include cooking and baking, playing on the trampoline and pond dipping. Children are involved in their local community and some were supported to plant spring flowers in the village. This gives children the opportunity to be invested in the local environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff value children’s views and wishes. Attendance at the house meetings allows children to make their views known. Children are supported to make choices about menu planning, activities and, more recently, the decor of the home. This gives the children a sense of belonging and of being valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s day-to-day experiences are positive, as staff know them well. Staff support children to spend time with their families, despite the impact of COVID-19 restrictions. However, the provision of long-term care to several children meant that the offer of short-term breaks had to be reduced temporarily.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children have a positive experience when they move into or out of the home. Children who have lived at the home for some time have been well supported when they have moved out. Moving on has been completed at the child’s pace, ensuring that children have been well prepared for their new home. Staff also help children to build independent living skills by starting with small tasks and progressing to tasks that will challenge them and prepare them for their futures. Inspection report for children’s home: SC439282 4

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

Staff are committed to the safety of children at the home. Detailed care plans, and clear and easy-to-read assessments of risk, ensure that staff are provided with the tools to keep children safe. Children do not go missing from this home and appropriate measures are in place to ensure their safety.

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

Staff are well trained to manage a range of behaviours. Positive behaviour plans are in place for each child; this enables staff to respond appropriately to behaviours that might challenge. Maintaining the consistency of boundaries contributes to a feeling of well-being and security for children.

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

Physical interventions are only used as a last resort to keep children safe and staff use the minimum amount of intervention for no longer than is necessary. Use of physical interventions is well recorded. The process is clear and detailed and involves the opportunity for the staff involved, and the child, to talk about what happened. This helps to promote an environment where children are respected and valued.

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

Staff safeguard children well. They receive regular training in this area. Staff know the safeguarding procedures of the home and implement them with confidence. Safeguarding incidents are well recorded and body maps are completed on children’s admission to the home, to ensure that any marks are documented. This helps to promote the welfare of all children at the home.

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good

The manager has been in position since July 2021 and is not registered with Ofsted. He has high expectations of children and promotes high standards of individualised care to all children who stay at the home. However, there has been a significant period where staffing has not been sufficient to meet the needs of all children.

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good

Leaders and managers understand the progress that children make and take action to ensure that children receive the support that they need. For example, managers. acted appropriately when the use of target-setting had declined, and ensured that targets were reintroduced. However, the manager has not ensured that records have been maintained to the required standards. Some folders were found to be disorganised, with information incorrectly filed, making it difficult to locate. Records were not in sequential order, making it difficult to track events and outcomes. Medication administration records were generally clear, although one record was missing the admission date of a child.

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good

Leaders and managers have been working towards achieving the home’s stated aims and objectives. However, the statement of purpose has not been followed, as it makes reference to children receiving short breaks not being affected by emergency placements. Leaders and managers have accepted children into the home outside of Inspection report for children’s home: SC439282 5 the conditions of registration; this prevented other children from receiving their regular short breaks.

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good

Leaders and managers provide staff with regular and helpful supervision. New staff receive a detailed induction with a range of mandatory training, in preparation for working with the children. Staff are positive about the quality of the training that is provided and enjoy the twice-yearly, week-long whole-staff training events. This helps staff to come together as a team, while also ensuring that they receive the targeted training.

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good

Leaders and managers have good relationships with a range of professionals who are involved in the child’s care. This ensures the best possible all-round support to children. For example, they work with dieticians and other health professionals to improve the physical health of children if necessary.

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good

The manager promotes equality, diversity and inclusion effectively. An activity wall with a calendar that focuses on religious and non-religious festivals and special days promotes activities that staff can do with the children to help them to learn and engage. The diversity of the workforce and of the children who use the home is celebrated well. Inspection report for children’s home: SC439282 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 care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this refers to ensuring that only children who require a short break are admitted to the home in accordance with the statement of purpose and conditions of the home’s registration. 31 January 2022

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Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16 (5))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to children being admitted to the home outside of the conditions of registration. 31 January 2022

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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

promotes their welfare. 31 January 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC439282 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

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;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that the home has sufficient staff to manage all aspects of the running of the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all records that relate to the care of a child are clear, up to date, reviewed and monitored by the manager of the home. 31 January 2022

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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 for children’s home: SC439282 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Kent County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Sessions House, County Road, Maidstone, Kent ME14 1XQ

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Inspector

Vevene Muhammad, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC439282 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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