Children's home run by Middlesbrough Borough Council

Inspection report children’s home: SC033840 1 SC033840 Registered provider: Middlesbrough Borough 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 a local authority. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to nine children and young people with learning disabilities and/or physical disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The suitably qualified and experienced manager is 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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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

Date of last inspection: 18 February 2020

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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: SC033840 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/02/2020 Full Good 29/01/2019 Full Outstanding 20/02/2018 Full Outstanding 16/02/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC033840 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s experiences at this short-breaks service have had a significant impact on many aspects of their lives. The staff provide child-focused care and support to enable children to achieve positive outcomes. Staff are enthusiastic, skilled and knowledgeable, and have high aspirations for each individual child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are understood by staff, who know them well. The retention of staff benefits the children significantly. Staff retention also enables families to build and develop effective working relationships. This affords children a sense of security and comfort.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have established a good knowledge base of children’s communication traits, notably with children who are non-verbal. This means that staff can quickly respond to children’s needs and wishes. The relationships established with children bolster staff’s ability to promote independent life skills where possible. This improves the children’s experience of the service.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a variety of activities, which are well considered. Children’s experiences are captured through photographs and included in monthly progress records, which are shared with professionals and parents. The use of photographs improves the quality of information being shared by providing a tangible insight into how children are cared for by staff. Progress records also enable treasured memories to be preserved.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience good transitions both into and on from the setting. Transitions are well considered and planned. For children that move on, staff highlight the progress that children make, thus providing a clear insight into their behaviours and the specific support that they will need. This promotes placement stability through good insightful planning that prioritises the child’s unique needs and characteristics.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The setting is clean and well presented, yet one child’s bedroom required attention by replacing a broken piece of bedroom furniture. The setting has ample resources for children to enjoy. Artwork displayed throughout the setting adds variety to the décor and has a connection to the local community . This gives the setting its own distinct, unique character.

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

Children who attend the service benefit from high levels of supervision. This means that risks in relation to problematic behaviours can be quickly responded to. This creates a safer environment for children to enjoy and explore. It also means that children’s needs are well met by staff. Inspection report children’s home: SC033840 4 Risk assessments for children are generally clear and focussed. They highlight strategies to reduce risk. However, one risk assessment was found to be lacking in key information. This could lead to staff being unclear about their expected response, particularly around accessing medical support for children.

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

The administration of medication is an area of strength. Various children access the setting, and their files are well coordinated. Children are consulted about their preferences around the administration of their medication. There is a clear process in place, which staff are confident and competent in applying. This reduces the risk of staff oversight and keeps children safe.

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

The setting has a clear and established recruitment process. The recruitment process ensures that adults working with vulnerable children are adequately checked and vetted. Staff are supported through a structured induction and training programme. This has contributed to excellent staff retention, which children and their families benefit from.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The setting has an experienced registered manager, who has been in post for many years. The manager’s input is highly valued by the staff team. This provides consistency for the children, staff and the setting.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The setting has shown flexibility and resilience in times of challenge in its ability to respond to children’s needs in the community it serves. For some children, the setting has been instrumental in redefining their care plan and contributing to identifying a suitable long-term home. This promotes much needed permanence for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has established good working relationships with professionals and families. However, the positive networks that have been established have not always been used to obtain and share key information about the children with the staff team. This could mean that care planning and decision- making become ambiguous.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision sessions with staff are frequent, yet they do not demonstrate a learning culture within the home that is rooted in reflective practice. This will stifle opportunities for staff development, in addition to overlooking opportunities to maximise their capacity to support children in crisis.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Management oversight of incidents is good. However, in one instance, the setting failed to notify the regulator of a serious event. This did not impact on the child’s welfare, but failing to report incidents that meet the threshold for notification impacts on the transparency of the setting. This increases the risk of oversight around instigating processes that contribute to the safeguarding of children. Inspection report children’s home: SC033840 5

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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 meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs. (Regulation 5 (a)(b)) 6 April 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child — is instigated; or

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(b)) 1 March 2022 Inspection report children’s home: SC033840 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person needs to ensure that all of the children’s bedroom furniture is in a good state of repair. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. Where there are safeguarding concerns for a child, risk assessments need to clearly outline the expected steps that staff need to take to safeguard the child from harm, particularly around accessing medical assistance. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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Recommendations

 The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 14.2)

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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: SC033840 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Middlesbrough Borough Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Middlesbrough Borough Council, Middlesbrough House, 50 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RH

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Inspectors

Steve Guirey, Social Care Inspector Deb Duffy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC033840 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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