Children's home run by Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust in Cornwall

Inspection report for children's home: SC428956 1 SC428956 Registered provider: Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The service provides short-break care for up to two children each night. Children who are referred to this service live with their parents. Children may have learning disabilities and/or challenging behaviours and may also have some ongoing healthcare needs. The service is managed by an NHS foundation trust.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since May 2013. They also manage another sister home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

One child was attending the short-break provision at the time of the inspection.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 26 October 2021

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC428956 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/10/2021 Full Good 08/10/2019 Full Good 25/02/2019 Full Good 21/12/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: SC428956 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean, well equipped and provides homely communal areas for the children. Children’s bedrooms are individualised for each stay, with photos of family and pictures of favourite cartoon characters on the wall, bedding chosen by the child and toys that they enjoy. The garden is a lovely place to play and relax. It has a large net swing and a summer house that children enjoy playing in.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make great progress at the home. One child who is reaching adulthood has developed some independence skills. They can put away their clothes and fill the dishwasher, and they have learned to chop an onion. Another child has paddled in the sea despite having a fear of water at the last inspection. His family now takes him to the beach.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to engage in a wealth of different activities that support their social, emotional and physical health. Staff took a child on a camping trip, went caving and visited the Scilly Isles. Children go to soft play, have trips on trains and go trick-or-treating in the village. Staff take photos of outings so that families have lovely memento books to cherish.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Plans for children are clear and detailed. They provide staff with the strategies to meet the child’s individual needs and keep them safe.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff listen to children and use inventive ways to ensure children’s voices are heard, especially when they are non-verbal. There are engaging displays in the home that help children to communicate their needs. Staff watch children carefully for changes in behaviour that signal what the child needs. Staff use Makaton to sign with children. They are also learning British sign language to have additional resources to communicate with children.

p.3

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

Records of the child’s daily life at the home are completed for every visit, but sometimes they are limited in content. When significant incidents occur, for example restraint, they do not consistently provide information about what has occurred.

p.3

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

Restraint is rarely used in the home. One child who has significant self-injurious behaviours has a clear plan detailing the restrictive practice that should be used to prevent them from hurting themselves. These are low-level holds.

p.3

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

Children are kept safe at the home. Their specific needs are well known by staff. Detailed plans help staff respond in ways that keep them safe. Inspection report for children's home: SC428956 4 The team responded well to a significant incident where a child sustained a bruise at the home. An appropriate referral was made to the local authority safeguarding officer, and this was investigated fully. Lessons were learned and shared with the team to improve practice.

p.3

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

There has been one medication error since the last inspection. This did not impact the health of the child. Leaders and managers fully investigated the incident and took lessons from this. Since that incident, medication procedures have been accurate.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Visits are consistently made by an independent person. However, the reports are not detailed and do not provide adequate analysis of the care provided. This means that opportunities to learn are missed.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The appointment of a senior support worker has provided an additional support to the care team. Staff told the inspector that they have been able to access more advice and guidance during shifts since this role was created. This new role is proving especially useful as the registered manager works on two different sites.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is adequately staffed. Some core staff have worked at the home for many years and have seen the significant progress children have made. Children build trusting relationships with staff, in part because they have been a consistent part of their childhood.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel well supported by leaders and managers. They have access to regular supervision that they find helpful. They also undertake good-quality training that supports their skills and progression within the NHS.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers know the children well. They understand the complexities of their care plans and ensure that staff are well trained to meet their needs.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has positive relationships with families of children using the service. One parent told the inspector that the team members were ‘wonderful people’. The parent said, ‘If there are any issues, we can talk to staff and resolve things.’

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A strength of the home is the multi-disciplinary approach it takes to providing care. Children’s needs are known by a range of professionals. They meet regularly and discuss changes in the child’s plans to ensure that their needs continue to be met. The registered manager is confident in advocating for children during this process. Inspection report for children's home: SC428956 5

p.4

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.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

p.5

Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

p.5

Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

to inspect the premises of the home and such of the home’s records (except for a child’s case records, unless the child and the child’s placing authority consent) as the independent person requires.

p.5

Requirement Due date

A visit by the independent person to the home may be unannounced.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person’s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

p.5

Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The independent person’s report may recommend actions that the registered person may take in relation to the home and timescales within which the registered person must consider whether or not to take those actions. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3) (4)(a)(b) (5) 02 February 2023

p.5

Requirement Due date

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

p.5

Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 02 February 2023 Inspection report for children's home: SC428956 6 This relates specifically to ensuring that incidents such as restraint are clearly recorded.

p.5

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: SC428956 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Trust Head Office, Carew House, Beacon Technology Park, Dunmere Road, Bodmin PL31 2QN

p.7

Inspector

Penelope Kutz, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC428956 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.

p.7

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8