Children's home run by Northumberland County Council in Northumberland

Inspection report for children’s home: SC468929 1 SC468929 Registered provider: Northumberland County Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated and managed by a local authority. The home provides care for up to four children who may experience emotional and/or social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2013.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspector spoke to all three children who live in the home.

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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 for children’s home: SC468929 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/05/2021 Full Good 28/01/2020 Full Good 29/01/2019 Full Good 10/01/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC468929 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress in a caring environment in which their individuality is celebrated. Some children have lived at the home for several years, and one child is being supported well to move back home to their family. This child said: ‘I love it here – I am going to miss them [the staff] so much.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and the staff speak about the children’s progress with pride. Children’s achievements are celebrated, and their successes are evident in the home. The children’s certificates and awards are displayed on the walls. This helps the children to feel valued and appreciated.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the previous inspection, two children have successfully moved out of the home to live independently, and another child has moved in. The staff provide outreach support for the children who have moved out, which helps them to adjust to living independently. The manager and the staff visit the children before they move in, and then the children visit the home and meet the other children. This helps to reduce any anxieties the children may have, and encourages the children to settle.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff support the children to maintain their identity, and to enjoy their time with their families and friends, where it is safe for them to do so. Regardless of geographical distance or location, the staff plan and arrange this time so that the children maintain their relationships, and have a positive experience of seeing their families. The staff are skilled at talking with the children about their relationships and their individual anxieties. Therefore, the children understand why they are unable to live with their families.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the barriers to learning that children may face. The children engage in their education because of the care and support they receive from the staff. Alternative education activities are offered to the children when required. This ensures that the children have access to learning opportunities. In addition, the manager has worked closely with education professionals to ensure that the children are offered the most appropriate education placements. This increases the children’s life chances.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to attend their medical appointments. When necessary, the staff engage with specialist healthcare professionals. Staff encourage the children to follow healthy lifestyles by promoting good nutrition and regular exercise. This ensures that the children’s known and emerging healthcare needs are met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have active social lives. The children’s hobbies and interests are promoted, and they are encouraged to try out new activities. Some children attend activity clubs, such as for horse riding and community youth clubs, and other children enjoy going out to the local parks. The children enjoy trips out to the Inspection report for children’s home: SC468929 4 cinema and other familiar and new places. These experiences increase the children’s social skills and confidence.

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

The children said that they feel safe at the home. Staff know the procedure to follow if concerns arise. All staff have received safeguarding training and additional supportive training, such as in internet safety and in coaching children to handle strong emotions well. This means that the staff have the knowledge and skills to support the children well. As a result, when serious incidents occur in the home, the staff are able to manage these safely.

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

Children’s risk assessments are clear, and these are reviewed regularly to describe each child’s presenting risks. Staff understand the identified risks for each child. Staff work well with the children to help them to learn about, and understand, harmful behaviours. When children disagree with the staff’s approach, the staff explain to them why they are taking a particular action. This helps the children to understand the risks associated with their behaviour, so that they can keep themselves safer.

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

Staff know how to respond to children in crisis, and provide a consistent response. The staff spend time with the children after any incidents, so that they can talk through their thoughts and emotions. The manager then conducts a debrief with the staff to promote reflection and learning, and reviews this practice to ensure that it is current and effective. As a result, incidents have reduced in frequency and severity.

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

The children have different interests and hobbies, but generally get on well together. When tensions arise, and bullying behaviours are identified, the staff address this promptly. Staff carry out anti-bullying work with the children on a regular basis, and they encourage the children to be kind to each other. Restorative consequences are used when necessary. This helps the children to understand how their actions have affected others.

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

Safeguarding concerns are responded to quickly, and subsequent investigations are thorough and involve all the relevant safeguarding agencies. However, the manager has not notified Ofsted of one serious incident. This oversight prevents Ofsted from consistently scrutinising the safeguarding arrangements for the children.

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

Staff support the children to develop socially acceptable behaviour, and they use restorative sanctions when the children’s behaviour is inappropriate. The manager reviews the effectiveness of the sanction in a timely manner to ensure that it is effective. However, some of the records lack factual background information, and they are not written in a way that distinguishes between facts and opinions. This means that these records are not helpful for the children. Furthermore, the manager and staff have missed an opportunity to identify the triggers for the children’s behaviour. Inspection report for children’s home: SC468929 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by a suitably qualified and experienced manager. She is supported by an experienced deputy manager. They work together to support one another and complement each other’s skills, which has a positive impact on the staff and the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands the strengths and areas for development at the home. Since the previous inspection, she has improved some of the recording systems for the home. She uses monitoring and review systems to make improvements. The manager addresses any shortfalls in practice. As a result, there have been overall improvements in record-keeping.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The consistent staff team provides stability for children. The staff feel supported by the manager, and they are able to have an open and honest discussion with her. The manager encourages the staff’s continuing professional development. She uses individualised trackers to monitor the staff’s progress, and she supports the staff to develop when she identifies areas for improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision from the management team. Staff are provided with opportunities and a safe space to reflect on their practice in their supervision. This helps the manager to identify and monitor the development needs of the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are up to date with the provider’s mandatory training. Most of the staff have a recognised residential childcare qualification, and there is a clear plan for new staff members to progress to an equivalent qualification, after they have passed their probationary period.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There have been challenges in staff recruitment, and this has resulted in agency staff being used. Furthermore, there are insufficient staff to care for the children during the evening and at night, should any children need to be held. This oversight may prevent the children from being cared for appropriately, and in line with their care plans, should an incident occur. The senior management team has a plan to address this shortfall. Inspection report for children’s home: SC468929 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 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

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

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(d)) 13 December 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

there is any other incident relating to a child, which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children’s home: SC468929 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: SC468929 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Northumberland County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, Morpeth, Northumberland NE61 2EF

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Inspector

Cherie Chen, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC468929 9 regulates and inspects 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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