Children's Home run by Compass Children‟s Homes Limited in West Sussex

Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 1 Registered provider: Compass Children’s Homes Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned children’s home provides care and accommodation for up to four children with social and emotional difficulties. According to its statement of purpose, its focus is on safety while providing intensive therapeutic personalised care and educational structure and attainment.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since July 2020.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 10 November 2021

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/11/2021 Full Outstanding 29/05/2019 Full Outstanding 29/08/2018 Full Good 19/03/2018 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 3

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outstanding

The children benefit from receiving individualised and nurturing care from staff who are committed to meeting their needs. Over time, the children build trusting relationships with the staff and develop a sense of security and belonging. A therapeutic approach is taken to meeting the needs of the children. This is partly achieved through the staff having access to the home’s therapeutic practitioner. The therapeutic practitioner consistently reflects on how the children are presenting and advises the staff on how their practice can be adapted to meet the changing needs of the children.

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outstanding

There is a strong emphasis on promoting the emotional well-being of the children. Where appropriate, the children have access to therapeutic counselling arranged by the organisation. The registered manager has effective oversight of how each child is responding to the therapeutic services they are receiving. A social worker commented that the staff had done ‘fantastic’ work in supporting a child to begin engaging in therapeutic work.

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outstanding

The children’s physical health is also prioritised. Detailed chronologies are kept of staff observations related to the children’s health, and how any identified needs are being met. A healthy lifestyle is promoted, with children having access to a varied diet and many activities which support them to keep fit and active. Timely referrals are made to specialist support services when children need additional support to address issues such as substance misuse.

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outstanding

A sensitive and child-focused approach is taken to welcoming new children to the home. They are supported to understand the home’s daily routines and expectations around behaviour. Sensitive issues such as the potential use of physical intervention and how to make a complaint are also addressed soon after the child’s arrival. Independent advocacy is explained and promoted in the home. Despite this good practice, one example was identified where there was no record of the child being given the opportunity to express their views on the outcome of a complaint they had made.

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outstanding

All the children currently living at the home are making significant progress across many aspects of their lives. All the children are attending school. One child has made significant progress in managing their anxieties about school, following a long period of non-attendance before moving to the home. Another child has made exceptional progress in terms of their communication skills. The children are all learning new and age-appropriate independence skills and are also developing their social skills. This has resulted in some children being able to develop new friendships and cope better in social situations. Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 4 The home provides a warm and welcoming environment where the children can relax, have fun and begin to address the impact of negative experiences they may have been exposed to in the past. The home is well furnished and well maintained. At present, the children’s playroom is also being used as a staff sleep-in room at

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outstanding

night. This means there is the potential for children to not always be able to access this part of their home. The registered manager has plans for how this situation will be rectified and is hoping to expedite these plans.

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

The managers and staff prioritise the safety and well-being of the children. They demonstrate a clear understanding of each child’s vulnerabilities and associated risks and are familiar with the strategies in place to prevent the children from coming to harm. The children’s individual risk assessments consider the implications of past trauma the child may have experienced. They provide the staff with clear guidance on the steps they should be taking to safeguard the children. This guidance is implemented in practice, and the children are safer as a result.

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

The children participate in individual sessions with their key workers, where they learn the importance of keeping themselves safe in the community and when they go online. This work is tailored to address the identified risks associated with each child. However, all the children learn about the dangers of being groomed and exploited and how to maintain safe and healthy relationships.

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

When it becomes apparent that a child is placing themselves at risk, prompt action is taken to address the emerging concerns. There is good liaison with external safeguarding agencies and the registered manager is tenacious in ensuring that professional discussion takes place with all the key professionals supporting the child. Some of the associated safeguarding records do not always contain detailed information of the steps that have been taken and how decisions have been made and acted on. Consequently, there is not always a clear audit trail of how concerns for a child’s safety have been resolved.

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

The children currently living at the home rarely go missing. However, since the last inspection, in November 2021, some children who have moved on in recent months were often missing from the home. When these incidents occurred, there was a well-coordinated response from the staff. Significant efforts were made to locate the children at the earliest opportunity. Records were kept of the children’s known friends and associates, and the likely areas children may frequent. Consequently, the staff were able to gather information about children’s movements and share this with other relevant parties. When a child returned from a missing episode, the staff ensured the child was made to feel welcome and supported to share any worries or concerns regarding their circumstances.

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

There is an individualised behaviour support plan for each child. These specify the triggers and indicators that a child is becoming anxious, and the de-escalation techniques that the staff should implement to calm and support the child. There is a Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 5 creative incentive programme for promoting positive behaviour, which the children respond to well.

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

There are highly effective measures in place to ensure that unsuitable adults are not employed in the home. These include the registered manager completing a safe recruitment audit on all potential employees. This provides an additional level of scrutiny following the organisation’s human resources department completing their own pre-employment checks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is exceptionally well managed by an experienced registered manager. She is supported by a committed and knowledgeable house manager. They have ensured that the quality of care received by the children has not been disrupted by recent staff changes. A proactive approach is being taken to ensure that the home remains fully staffed and staff retention improves. The staff feel well supported by the management team and leaders within the wider organisation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There are highly effective quality of care monitoring systems in place. All serious incidents are reviewed by the management team in a timely way. This ensures that any shortfalls in practice are quickly identified. The organisation’s operations manager also conducts regular audits to ensure that good practice is being maintained. A strong learning culture has developed. For example, detailed placement reviews are conducted when a child leaves the home and staff team meetings are often used to provide staff with additional training on practice-related issues.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The staff have access to an excellent training programme. A broad range of induction and mandatory training ensures that all staff are well equipped to undertake the responsibilities associated with their role. The management team identifies whether the specific needs of the children indicate that the staff need additional training to ensure the children’s needs are met. Suitable training is then identified and delivered in a timely way. Effective monitoring ensures that all the staff keep their refresher training up to date.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Before a child moves into the home, a detailed impact risk assessment is undertaken. This considers the needs and behaviours of all the children in the home and analyses the potential for children to be negatively impacted by the behaviour of their peers. This process minimises the potential for the group dynamics to become disrupted and unsettled.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The quality of staff supervision is a strength. The staff receive practice-related supervision and therapeutic supervision from the home’s dedicated therapeutic practitioner. This provides the staff with opportunities to reflect on the impact the work has on them personally, and on their own professional development needs. In addition, the therapeutic practitioner undertakes some group work with the staff. For example, a session was held regarding feelings of loss after children who had lived at the home for long periods had moved on. Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 6 Professionals who were contacted during this inspection were unanimous in their view that communication with managers and staff at the home is good. External professionals are quickly informed of any significant events and receive regular updates on the progress the children are making. Managers are strong advocates for the children, and they challenge other professionals effectively when it is perceived

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

that a child is not receiving the level of service they are entitled to. This is indicative of the high aspirations that all managers and staff have for the children in their care. Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 7

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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

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 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. (Regulation 7 (1)(c) (2)(a)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children are given the opportunity to express their views on the outcome of a complaint investigation. 24 April 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s home from abuse or neglect; and sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect.

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Requirement Due date

The procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect must, in particular. (Regulation 34 (1)(a)(b) (2)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that safeguarding records contain detailed information on the steps that have been taken and how decisions have been made and acted on following a safeguarding incident. 24 April 2023 Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 8

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the children are able to access all shared areas of their home unless there are specific reasons why this would not meet a child’s needs. This is with particular reference to using the children’s playroom as a staff sleep-in room, thereby restricting the children’s access. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)

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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: 1253716 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Compass Children’s Homes Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Compass Community Ltd, 3 Rayns Way, Syston, Leicester LE7 1PF

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Inspector

Stephen Collett, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1253716 10 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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