Children's Home run by Hull City Council in Kingston upon Hull

Inspection report for children’s home: 2517046 1 Registered provider: Hull City council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A local authority owns and runs this home. It provides care on a medium- or long- term basis for one child who has social and/or emotional difficulties and learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 2019.

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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: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2517046 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/06/2021 Full Outstanding 19/11/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 23/07/2019 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: 2517046 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff work collaboratively with partner agencies to ensure that the child makes good progress in all areas of their life, including health and education. This is echoed by many professionals and family members. This improves the child’s life choices, raises aspirations, and gives them a sense of achievement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is provided with consistent care from staff, which helps them to build trusting relationships and helps the child to feel happy and like living at the home. Staff build respectful relationships and engage with the child’s family members. This helps to repair fractured relationships between the child and their family so that they can remain in contact with important people and be part of their family when they leave the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The leadership team and staff understand the high levels of risks and vulnerabilities that the child presents with. Staff adopt a nurturing role. They place the child’s needs at the centre of relationship building and respond to risks and behaviours with dignity and respect. This improves the child’s ability to develop strategies to manage their own feelings, make positive changes and improve their outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has a strong focus on developing the child’s independent living skills, and staff understand the implications of this for the child’s future as an adult. The child is supported to develop independence skills. Transitions out of the home are done sensitively and in consultation with the child. As a result, the child feels equipped and positive about their move as opposed to a feeling of loss, which will help them to manage future relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote a variety of activities that the child enjoys, which also improves their social and communication skills. The staff invest in recording special occasions and day-to-day life in ‘Good Times’ books which are presented in a format that the child can keep. The quality of the books shows them that their experiences are important and to be celebrated.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The communal areas of the home are comfortable and inviting. The child’s bedroom is personalised to their requests. There are some areas that would benefit from more regular maintenance, such as walls and skirting boards in the child’s bedroom, so that they can understand the importance of cleanliness and hygiene.

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

Consistent routines and boundaries help the child to feel happy and safe. The child’s views are listened to and acted on where possible. Staff respond to the child’s emotional needs with a therapeutic approach which helps the child to think about how they show their emotions. The care and commitment that staff show the child help them to feel a sense of security. Inspection report for children’s home: 2517046 4 The child is supported to understand the risks of the outside world and how their behaviours may be perceived by others. They are helped to understand the difference between behaviours in public and in the privacy of their bedroom. This helps them to understand societal behaviours and protects them from being victims due to their own vulnerabilities.

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

It is rare that the child goes missing from home. However, when they do, staff follow individualised plans to ensure their safe return. Physical holds and negative consequences are not used to manage behaviour. Positive or natural consequences are used by staff as part of a therapeutic approach. This helps the child to feel valued and understood.

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

The leadership team and staff ensure that the home is a safe environment for the child. On occasions, protective measures of the home are used appropriately. However, when doors are locked with a key on an evening, this removes the child’s free will to leave the home. When this measure is in place to safeguard the child, the rationale should be properly recorded and regularly reviewed.

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

The leadership team can discuss the child’s risks. However, impact risk assessments prior to them moving into the home are not always complete. Incidents are not always captured in risk assessments or recorded fully. As a result, the information is not shared with all staff, which places the child and staff at risk. This also limits opportunities to identify direct work with the child and monitor their progress to reduce further incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and leadership team understand the complex needs of the child who lives in the home. They work closely with a network of professionals, which includes specialist services. This helps staff to be in the best possible position to support the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager actively challenges other agencies if the child is not receiving the service they are entitled to. The manager equally accepts and responds to challenge in a professional way which ensures that the child’s needs remain priority.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are insufficient recording systems in place to demonstrate that the manager has thorough oversight when serious incidents occur. The leadership team and manager are forward-thinking and acknowledge changes are necessary. This includes improving systems in place to record management oversight of children’s plans and recording staff’s training.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager recognises the importance of healthy gender balance in the home. The manager is tenacious and creative in ensuring that the child experiences healthy relationships with both male and female members of staff and that this becomes a natural part of the child’s daily routine. Over time, this provides the child with the skills and ability to separate their feelings about past and current relationships. Inspection report for children’s home: 2517046 5 The leadership team and manager have high expectations of staff and their capabilities. Supervision takes place on a regular basis, which allows discussions around staff’s well-being and learning opportunities. Regular reflective discussions provide opportunities to discuss the child’s progress. Staff feel supported by the manager and senior members of staff, which helps to provide a happy environment in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager recognises areas of staff’s individual development needs and values the experience that staff bring from other roles. While there are a variety of skilled and experienced staff to meet the child’s needs, some members of staff have not completed the required level 3 qualification. The manager has been in post since February 2019 and has not yet completed a level 5 qualification.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The statement of purpose provided by the home gives a clear overview of the support the home can provide. However, the language and use of acronyms can make this ambiguous for the reader. It is vital that information around staff’s training and qualifications is up to date so that this can be considered before a child lives at the home to ensure that their needs can be consistently met. Inspection report for children’s home: 2517046 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, the 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that risk assessments are updated to contain all known risks for children and give staff clear guidance. Ensure that proactive, planned work is identified for each child and takes place to help them understand how to keep safe. 31 March 2023

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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 home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their full potential; and 31 March 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2517046 7 promotes their welfare.

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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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the manager must have systems in place to review documents relating to the child and use planned meetings to fully review the quality of care received and identify areas for improvement. This includes reviewing all incidents regardless of severity.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when areas of the home are locked for safeguarding purposes, this is informed by the child’s risk assessment, is properly recorded and regularly reviewed. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)  The registered person should have the relevant qualification within the time frame set out in the regulation. The registered person should also ensure that staff members, including external or bank staff, have the relevant qualifications within the time frame specified in the regulation. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.12)  The registered person should ensure that the information set out in the statement of purpose accurately shows staff’s training and qualifications and that the home will be able to respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs. (‘Guide to the

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Recommendations

Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4)  The registered person should ensure that all areas of the home, including the child’s bedroom, are clean and regularly maintained to provide a homely and nurturing environment. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.6)

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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: 2517046 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Kingston upon Hull City Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Guildhall, Alfred Gelder Street, Hull HU1 2AA

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Inspectors

Cat Clasper, Social Care Inspector Debra Boldy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2517046 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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