Children's Home run by Middlesbrough Borough Council in Middlesbrough

Inspection report for children’s home: SC472374 1 SC472374 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 home is owned and managed by a local authority. It provides care for up to four children who may have physical disabilities and/or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The suitably experienced and qualified manager was registered with Ofsted in May 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: 9 November 2021

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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: SC472374 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/11/2021 Full Good 28/01/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness 01/10/2019 Full Good 20/03/2019 Interim Not judged Inspection report for children’s home: SC472374 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are happy in the home. They live here for a long time and are very comfortable. They have strong, trusting relationships with staff, who they know very well. Children benefit from the stability and security that staff provide and view the home as their home. This is extremely important to children and their families.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress in the home. Staff develop plans that underpin the care that they provide to children. Plans are regularly reviewed to ensure that children are working towards meaningful targets. Staff also prepare individualised plans in a format that children understand. This means that children know what they are working towards and how well they are doing. Plans are helping children to prepare for life as young adults.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff strive to communicate effectively with children. Staff use their positive relationships with children to learn about what matters to them most. Staff receive guidance from schools about forms of communication that children use. This is useful. It has a positive impact on the ability of staff to talk to and understand children’s wishes and feelings. However, training on children’s specific forms of communication has not yet taken place.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are met. Staff encourage children to attend routine health appointments. When children are anxious about such input, staff are creative in how they respond. This leads to children receiving any treatment or guidance that they need. Staff help children to manage their complex health conditions. However, referrals to specialist health teams are not always made swiftly. This has led to some delay in children receiving appropriate advice and guidance.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children attend school regularly and take great pleasure from doing so. Staff raise concerns with teachers and education staff when problems occur. As a result, solutions are found. This means that the impact on any disruption to children’s education is minimised. This is important for children’s day-to-day routines, as well as their overall development.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities. The families of some children are involved in these activities. This helps to support family relationships, including with children’s siblings. Family members see children with staff, which they find reassuring. Some children enjoy community activities. These are very enjoyable and help to develop the children’s social interaction skills. The progress that some children make because of these ventures is remarkable.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to develop skills to prepare them for adulthood. This work starts at an early age for some children. This means that children have time to develop and consolidate the skills that they learn. This allows children, their families and Inspection report for children’s home: SC472374 4 staff to see children’s potential as they grow up. This is essential for future care planning.

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

Staff use their relationships with children to promote positive behaviour. Specific and individualised safety plans contain strategies that are effective for each child. Staff follow these plans closely. Children learn that staff respond to them consistently. This helps them to feel secure. As a result, the number of incidents in the home continues to be very low.

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

Staff rarely use physical intervention with children. If there is no alternative to restraining a child, staff follow statutory guidance. Significant weight is given to the review of all such incidents. Children are encouraged to talk about how they feel. Their views are incorporated into written records. The learning taken from such events contributes to the significant reduction in the need for physical intervention.

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

Risk assessments are effective and specific to each child. They identify potential issues and provide strategies that work. For example, children do not go missing from this home because staff provide a high level of supervision. Staff also help children to learn their own strategies to keep safe. This means that when it is safe to do so, children can be independent in the community. This is vital for children, as they can develop some autonomy as they grow up.

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

Staff record incidents in detail. Managers, including senior managers, review all incident reports. They identify where clarification is required. This means that children will have a good understanding of what happened and what staff did, if they want to review their case files when they are older.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by a skilled and dedicated manager. She knows the children very well and is committed to ensuring that they make progress and are safe. The manager has a clear vision for the home. She recognises the improvements for children that have occurred under her leadership. She has plans to increase their opportunities further.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager seeks children’s views about the development of the home. For example, children chose the colour scheme when the home was recently redecorated. Children choose where they want to go on holiday. Being involved in decision-making in their home means that children develop their sense of self. Importantly, they learn that they have a right to influence their world.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has high expectations of staff. She is a strong presence in the home and leads by example. She responds effectively to any capability issues. This means that shortfalls in practice are dealt with quickly and there is limited impact on children. Staff value the clear direction they receive from managers. They become Inspection report for children’s home: SC472374 5 confident and perform well in their roles, because of the leadership of the managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager’s oversight of the home is very good. She prioritises the issues that affect children most. For example, her evaluation of key-work sessions means that these discussions remain pertinent for children. The manager reviews all incidents that take place. She identifies lessons learned and required changes in practice, following such events. This contributes to the significant reduction in incidents in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers provide staff with the support that they require. Staff receive regular supervision of their practice by senior staff who are equipped to carry out this role. Staff complete all mandatory training. The manager has plans to develop staff learning further. This will include training on communication with children with disabilities. Staff are qualified, or working towards their qualification. Staff understand and meet the needs of children well, because of the support they receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager responds well to external scrutiny of the home. The independent person visits regularly to meet the children. The manager responds quickly to any recommendations about the quality of care that children receive. Given the vulnerabilities of children with disabilities, this independent oversight is crucial. Inspection report for children’s home: SC472374 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that referrals for specialist health support for children are made in good time. If those services are not available, staff should work with health professionals to ensure that children’s health needs are met. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 34, paragraph 7.11)  The registered person should support staff to gain skills that enable them to actively support each child to achieve their potential. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.5)

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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: SC472374 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 House, 50 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RH

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Inspector

Jane Titley, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC472374 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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