Children's home run by Keys Education Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2495335 1 -

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Registered provider: Keys Education Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private company. The home provides care and support to four children who can no longer live at home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted on 9 May 2022.

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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: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2495335 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/06/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 20/04/2021 Full Inadequate 09/05/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2495335 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a caring, friendly and supportive home. Staff give children the help that they need to grow, by being patient and understanding. Children described the home as ‘cool’, ‘fantastic’ and ‘awesome’. They said that they are happy and safe and enjoy living at this home. Social workers were unanimous in their praise for the home and the care that their children receive. One said: ‘Staff are child-focused.’ Another said: ‘The support the child receives is excellent.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move into the home, a good transition is planned. An impact risk assessment shows that the home considers the child’s history and behaviour and the needs of the existing children in the home. However, several children are reaching adulthood and they do not have a transition plan. As a result, one child said that he was unsure of what the plan was for him. This does not help children to be prepared for the move or to be involved in the decisions about their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children said that their views, wishes and feelings are taken seriously. They have opportunities to talk to staff and they are encouraged to comment on all aspects of their care. Records that are kept in the home show the progress that children are making. However, some records have not been signed by several members of staff, despite being directed by the manager. Therefore, this does not show that the staff are fully aware of any recent changes made to the children’s plans.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to regularly attend and engage in education. Children know how important education is and respond well to the education incentives in place. Consequently, children’s education outcomes improve. For example, children are achieving in line or beyond initial expectations and their attendance is excellent. One child said: ‘I need to focus on my exam, so I can go on to the next level of my course. I want to have a good career.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported well with their individual health needs and have good access to local services when they need them. When children struggle with their emotions or need extra support, a wrap-around system is put in place. This includes therapists, psychologists, consultants and advocates.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities. They like to spend time with the staff team cooking, playing football and going out for walks. Previously, children have enjoyed going to the cinema, theme parks, bowling and attending football matches. Children have earned extra activities, for example going out to restaurants or having beauty treatments.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to follow their religion. One child regularly goes to church. He enjoys being part of the choir and he likes to socialise at the church youth club. However, some children are of dual heritage. The aspects of their culture have not been explored with the children, such as hair and body products, food or knowledge Inspection report for children’s home: 2495335 4 of their parents’ or countries’ traditions. This does not ensure that the children have a positive self-image and understand their lineage.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are prepared for independence. Plans show each child’s skill set, their areas for improvement, what additional support is required and who is responsible for executing each stage of the plan. As a result, children are growing in confidence.

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

Children said that they are safe at the home. Staff demonstrated that they know the procedure to follow if a concern were to arise. All staff have received safeguarding training and additional supportive training, such as in child sexual exploitation, county lines and safer recruitment. This means they have the knowledge to support children. As a result, when serious incidents occur in the house, the staff team is adept at managing them safely.

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

Good individual risk assessments identify each child’s vulnerabilities, triggers and warning signs. They also include agreed strategies and actions for staff to take if an incident were to occur. This means that any potential incident is de-escalated quickly and that staff give the same consistent response to the children.

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

There have been minimal incidents when children have left the home without permission. Staff have followed the child’s missing-from-home protocol and searched the local areas for them. Staff work closely with external agencies and the children to try and reduce these incidents. Children have a return home interview with an independent person. This means that the children can discuss the reasons why they went missing and any concerns they have.

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

Similarly, there has only been one incident where a child has been held for their safety. Records show that the intervention was proportionate, and the staff and child had the opportunity to reflect on the incident. This helps the manager to evaluate the incident and take learning from it.

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

Behaviour management plans show how children would like to be supported if they become anxious or distressed. Several children told the inspectors about how much their behaviour had improved. One child said: ‘I just take myself away from the situation now and calm down.’ Another child said: ‘I have learned so many ways on how to cope and staff give me support and the opportunity to talk things through.’ Several social workers and an independent reviewing officer said that the children were rarely displaying previous negative behaviours and were showing a mature outlook on life.

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

Safe recruitment and health and safety practices at the home mean that only suitable staff work with children and that the home is a safe place to live. Inspection report for children’s home: 2495335 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by a suitably qualified manager who has the experience to undertake her role. She is supported by a deputy manager. There is a clear management structure. They work together to support one another and complement their skill sets, which has a positive impact on the staff team and the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are experienced and they receive training to support their learning. The manager has a clear system in place to make sure that staff have received mandatory and additional training. Staff receive a detailed induction, which identifies their training needs and is reviewed regularly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Eight staff have their National Vocational Qualification level 3 in residential childcare and there is a clear plan for new staff members to progress to an equivalent qualification when they have passed their probationary period.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have not received supervision in line with the home’s workforce plan. In contrast to this, appraisals have been completed for all staff. Appraisals focus on the development of individual staff members. They are reflective and are underpinned by development areas and individual strengths. In monthly team meetings, staff share examples of good practice, training and development information to aid their learning.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The managers are aware of children’s plans and make child-centred decisions to support these. They regularly advocate for the children and often challenge other agencies to make sure that children receive the best care and support. Relationships with partner agencies, families and children are strong. One professional said: ‘The wrap-around care that the child receives is exceptional.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring and review systems help the manager to identify the home’s strengths and areas for improvement. She is able to alter her practice accordingly. However, the manager has not sent her six-monthly review report to Ofsted within timescales. This reduces the regulator’s oversight of the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2495335 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

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)(2)(b)(iii)) 29 July 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 29 July 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should help children to develop and understand their culture. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 17, paragraph 3.22)  The registered person should ensure that case records are signed and dated. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)  The registered person should undertake a review that focuses on the quality of care provided by the home. Specifically, ensure that the report is sent to Ofsted within timescales. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.2) Inspection report for children’s home: 2495335 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 for children’s home: 2495335 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Keys Education Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Queensway, Halesowen, Worcestershire B63 4AH

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Inspector

Pam Nuckley, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2495335 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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