Children's Home run by Willows (Devon) Ltd in Devon

Inspection report for children's home: 2597722 1 Registered provider: Willows (Devon) Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home provides care for two girls aged 11 to 17 with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home, having moved there in December 2021 and April 2022. A third child lived in the home from February 2021 to February 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since October 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

Date of last inspection: 3 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: 2597722 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/11/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2597722 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making progress in all areas. The children attend school regularly, including one child who, before moving into the home, had been out of consistent education for two years.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive relationships with staff. Staff know children well, have aspirations for them and take pride in their achievements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Overall, the home environment is warm, homely and welcoming, and the children are helped to personalise their bedrooms. Some areas of the home would benefit from being redecorated and there is damage to one wall caused by a leak in the roof, which was seen at the last inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children told inspectors they enjoy and value staff supporting them to engage in a range of activities outside of the home. Children also enjoy regularly cooking and baking.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Feedback from professionals and parents is positive. They report that communication is good, and children are given a good standard of care in the home and are making progress.

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

Children told inspectors that they have positive and trusting relationships with staff members and that living at the home has helped them make progress.

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

Staff provide nurturing care and have a good understanding of the needs and risks for each child. Incidents are responded to appropriately ensuring children are kept safe. This is underpinned by good quality risk assessments and behaviour management plans.

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

Missing-from-home episodes are rare, with two recorded since the previous inspection. When children do go missing, staff respond appropriately and follow the relevant policies and procedures.

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

Self-harm incidents are dealt with appropriately and empathetically. Records of incidents are clear and detailed.

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

There have been two instances of restraint being used since the last inspection. When restraint is used, this is appropriate and to prevent the child significantly harming themselves. Reflections and lessons learned are documented.

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

Staff support children to take age-appropriate risks and when these have not been successful, incident reports contain thorough evaluation and reflection, with input Inspection report for children's home: 2597722 4 from staff and children. However, children’s needs and the impact of children’s behaviour on each other are not considered in depth before they move into the home. Actions identified to ensure the process of a child moving into the home is a positive experience are not specific or detailed enough.

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

Recruitment of staff is robust. Safer recruitment procedures are followed and staff receive appropriate training.

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

No allegations or complaints have been made since the last inspection. Staff and managers are aware of the process to be followed if an allegation is made.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is child focused and both children and staff value her support and leadership.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have a clear understanding of children’s needs and risks. Children’s records are detailed and updated regularly, with good evidence of management oversight.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff report feeling well supported by managers. Supervision takes place regularly and is of good quality, with staff able to use these sessions to reflect on their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is evidence of reflection and lessons learned following incidents, although the recording of significant conversations with children is not always consistent.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team is stable, and staff are supportive of each other. Staff have positive relationships with the children and work collaboratively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals and parents spoken to were positive about the communication from the home and the care that children receive here.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive appropriate and up-to-date training and a thorough induction process is in place. One staff member identified that additional specialist training in mental health would be helpful for them in their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s wishes and feelings are recorded throughout documents. However, children told inspectors that they do not participate fully in the process of recording information and are unclear about the content of their plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Plans for children post-16 are not always clear. Where clear post-16 plans are not in place, there is evidence that the registered manager is chasing progression of plans with the local authority. Inspection report for children's home: 2597722 5

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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 children's views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them;

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children's care and welfare and their lives.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

help each child to express views, wishes and feelings;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how the child's views, wishes and feelings have been taken into account and give the child reasons for decisions in relation to the child;

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Requirement Due date

regularly consult children, and seek their feedback, about the quality of the home's care.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 7 (1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children are helped to participate fully in the care planning process, are clear about the content of their plans and have access to their records. 3 April 2023

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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 3 April 2023 Inspection report for children's home: 2597722 6 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

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a))

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home environment is maintained and that areas requiring repair and redecoration are addressed promptly. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that the psychologist’s skills and expertise are accessed by staff to strengthen the therapeutic approach to care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

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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: 2597722 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Willows (Devon) Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Old Farm House, Gussage St Michael, Wimborne, Dorset BH21 5JE

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Inspectors

Janet Jauregui, Social Care Inspector Penelope Kutz, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2597722 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 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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