St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency

Inspection report for adoption support agency: St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency 1 St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency St Cuthbert’s Care St Cuthbert’s Care, St Cuthbert’s House, West Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE15 7PY Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this adoption support agency

This small agency is part of a larger charitable organisation. The charity also operates an independent fostering agency, children’s homes and adult care provision.

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Information about this adoption support agency

The agency employs the manager and one registered and qualified counsellor. It provides birth records counselling and intermediary services for people affected by adoptions carried out under predecessor Catholic adoption agencies, whose adoption records it now holds. The agency only works with adults. It provides one day per week of adoption support work and has worked with four cases in the last 12 months.

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outstanding

How well children, young people and adults are helped and protected good

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The adoption support agency provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the adoption support agency contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for service users.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for adoption support agency: St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency 2

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: outstanding

The small team of staff provide a highly individualised and specialised service to adults, their families and descendants who want access to their birth records. They also offer unique support in tracing and meeting birth or adopted relatives.

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: outstanding

Adults who approach the agency receive a prompt response to their enquiry. Service users receive an extremely welcoming approach, which helps them to make an informed decision about how they want to proceed. The trained and experienced counsellor provides information sensitively and at the correct pace for each person. This helps to reduce the impact on service users of receiving difficult or sad news. A service user said, ‘Staff are very professional from the start. Everything was relaxed because from the initial contact the process was properly explained.’

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: outstanding

Adult service users report how access to the service improves their lives. The counsellor helps them to fill in the missing gaps. This support answers long unanswered questions for the adult service users. This helps them to gain an understanding of their origins and the circumstances of their birth and adoption. This is because the knowledgeable counsellor provides a historical context to their adoption, as the adoptions took place many years ago. One service user said, ‘They have filled in a hole that has existed in my life since adoption.’

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: outstanding

The quality of the work with adult service users is exceptional, and the outcomes that they achieve are life changing. The counsellor is tenacious in trying to support service users in obtaining information about their birth relatives, which the agency may not hold in its files. This includes using a multitude of methods, such as different historical documents, databases and search engines. This determination has resulted in staff successfully tracing relatives from older historical cases or who now live overseas. One service user spoke positively about the difference it has made to his life in finding his birth siblings.

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: outstanding

The counsellor recognises the effect on the service users when they receive information or they do not get the response they expect. The counsellor is highly experienced in supporting adults who suffer trauma, rejection or bereavement. She uses her skills exceptionally well to manage the adults’ emotional expectations associated with tracing their birth relatives. Counselling support is available at the various stages of the process. Service users feel that their connection with the agency is lifelong, and some adults have returned years later to seek further information and support.

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: outstanding

The counsellor shares her skills and knowledge more widely. She supports external agencies and people who were adopted outside the charity. The agency will signpost people in order for them to make the right enquiries. This is because the empathetic staff recognise the importance to all people of trying to trace information about their past. One professional said that she would not hesitate to contact the staff member Inspection report for adoption support agency: St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency 3 to seek her advice and support. She described the staff member as ‘approachable’ ‘knowledgeable’ and ‘empathetic’.

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good

Staff have a good understanding and knowledge of the issues that can affect people who have been involved in adoption, and the complexity of this work. This is in respect of people’s identity, their mental health and emotional well-being. Staff’s sensitivity and care help all service users to manage the deeply personal information.

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good

The counsellor receives support in the form of weekly reflective meetings with the manager to talk about the work she carries out. She also benefits from formal supervision sessions and team meetings. Clinical supervision is provided in line with her professional expectations. The manager also now receives supervision sessions. These sessions protect the staff who are dealing with this emotionally challenging work.

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good

There have been no complaints or allegations made over this period. However, there are procedures in place if a service user feels unhappy. The agency adheres to strict guidelines and protocols when tracing birth relatives.

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good

The agency has relevant safeguarding policies in place. These include a vulnerable adult policy and a post-adoption historical abuse policy. These provide information to the staff on what actions they need to take if the situation arises.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The work of the agency has been diminishing over time, which is related to the increasing age range of the people who were adopted by the charity. However, leaders and managers are highly committed to ensuring that this service continues to exist. This is because they recognise the importance of people being able to access their files or to have support in tracing their birth relatives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The agency handles files and records with extreme care and respect, and they are held safely and securely. This is because the staff team recognises the importance to service users of receiving the original documents held by the agency.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has over 16 years of experience in the field of adoption work and she holds a professional certificate in social work. She receives extensive support from the counsellor, who has over 20 years’ experience. The counsellor has acquired a vast array of skills and knowledge. She uses these incredibly well to assist adopted adults and their adult birth relatives in obtaining the information that they need to trace a relative and arrange contact between them. Together, they work exceptionally well as they are both enthusiastic about the service that they provide. Inspection report for adoption support agency: St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency 4 Staff receive particularly good support, training and supervision which focus on service users’ experiences, needs and outcomes. Appraisals are carried out in a timely way.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The small team of staff work well exceptionally well together to meet the aims and objectives of the agency’s statement of purpose and function. The agency focuses on a very specialised area of adoption support. It is one of only a few agencies that continues to offer intermediary work. The agency recognises the impact of its work. Staff readily share their knowledge and expertise with other adults and professionals who are also involved in accessing records and intermediary services.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The recording by the counsellor is detailed, and the manager meticulously monitors and reviews the work carried out.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The feedback received during this inspection is highly positive and indicates the significant benefits of the service to people’s lives. This was summarised by one service user who said, ‘The level of support was outstanding. The process was explained, and I was surprised at the level of care I received throughout, with ongoing support also available.’ Inspection report for adoption support agency: St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency 5

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, young people and adults, using the social care common inspection framework.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the adoption support agency, how it meets the core functions as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with the Adoption Support Agencies (England) and Adoption Agencies (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2005, and the national minimum standards. Inspection report for adoption support agency: St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency 6

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Adoption support agency details

Registered provider address: St Cuthbert’s House, West Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE15 7PY

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Adoption support agency details

Email address: sheila.errington@stcuthbertscare.org.uk

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Inspector

Tina Ruffles, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for adoption support agency: St Cuthbert’s Care Post Adoption Support Agency 7 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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