Children's home run by London Borough of Croydon in Croydon

Inspection report for children’s home: SC041887 1 SC041887 Registered provider: London Borough of Croydon Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The local authority owns this home. It provides a short-breaks service for up to seven children with severe learning disabilities.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 2007.

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: 23 November 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: SC041887 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/11/2021 Full Good 20/05/2019 Full Good 12/06/2018 Full Good 10/10/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC041887 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy their short breaks at this home. They have fun in the home and wider community. Children can choose to use the home’s touchscreen computers and tablets and take part in arts and crafts, games and pamper sessions. Staff make sure that children widen their community experiences. This includes trips to the seaside, bowling and ice skating. Families are invited to the home to help celebrate their children’s birthdays and other significant events.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff’s communication with parents is good. Every year, staff meet with parents to review all aspects of their child’s development and needs. Working together, they agree any changes in their child’s routine, care and development targets, with an emphasis on improving children’s personal care, and social and independence skills.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress from their starting points. Dependant on their age and abilities, they learn to prepare themselves snacks and drinks, make their bed and improve their communication skills.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are well prepared for their short breaks. Staff are sensitive to children’s individual needs, and introductions to the home are carefully planned and carried out at the children’s pace. Staff always update parents about their children’s short- break stay.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is safe. A newly refurbished large accessible garden enhances children’s short-break experiences. Staff brighten the communal areas in the home with decorated windows to reflect the seasons. However, some areas of the home are tired and there is wear and tear to sofas and carpets. The registered manager has secured funding to refurbish the home, which will include a new kitchen.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Many children who attend for short breaks are non-verbal. Staff understand children’s communication styles and support them to use different communication methods, including the Picture Exchange Communication System. As a result, staff can respond dynamically to children’s wishes and feelings.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents describe the staff team as ‘lovely’ and ‘approachable’. A parent said, ‘My child enjoys attending very much and always has a big smile on their face.’

p.3

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

Children enjoy safe and well-managed short breaks. Staff make sure that children’s short breaks are arranged around their individual needs and abilities. For example, careful consideration is given to children’s mobility, independence skills and needs. Inspection report for children’s home: SC041887 4 Staff work together with parents and other relevant agencies. They contribute to children’s school and statutory reviews. This ensures that children receive seamless care when they stay at the home. Additionally, staff follow children’s usual family home routines during their short break, which helps children to settle during their short breaks.

p.3

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

Sufficient staffing levels, as set out in children’s risk assessments and care plans, ensure that they are safely supervised during their short breaks. Staff follow children’s behaviour management plans. However, if behaviour that is difficult to manage escalates, they use proportionate physical restraint. Such measures are only used as a last resort to ensure that children and adults are kept safe. Children are always offered the opportunity to communicate their experience of the incident, and the manager reviews every incident and takes forward any lessons learned. A parent said, ‘I know that my child is 100% safe when they stay.’

p.4

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

Children’s health and well-being are prioritised during their stay. Staff follow safe medication administration protocols. This helps to ensure that children’s health is not compromised. A doctor described the staff team as ‘knowledgeable, reliable and confident professionals’.

p.4

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

Food is safely prepared, and each child has an up-to-date diet card. Children’s likes, dislikes and allergies are clearly set out. With staff support, children complete annual feedback questionnaires, which consistently demonstrate children’s positive experiences of their short breaks.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, challenges of staff sickness and staff retirement have impacted on the team. However, leaders and managers have ensured that there have been sufficient staffing levels in the home. This has included managers covering weekend shifts to enable children to attend for their short breaks. A core set of regular agency staff complement the rota when needed. They are familiar to the children, which provides them with stability and continuity of care.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Partnership working with parents and families is strong. Leaders and managers have recently reintroduced coffee mornings where parents and staff meet to share information and updates.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff training is suitable to meet the needs of the children. Leaders and managers ensure that staff receive mandatory and refresher training. All staff have a suitable residential childcare qualification and new staff are enrolled after completing their probation.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The team of staff describe themselves as a ‘family’. They enjoy team away days and organised team dinners. A member of staff described their work as ‘rewarding’ and ‘fulfilling’ and said, ‘It’s like my second home.’

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have met all the requirements set at the last inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: SC041887 5

p.4

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the home is a homely, domestic environment. In particular, the registered person should ensure that they replace damaged sofas and carpets in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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: SC041887 6

p.5

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: P2P Team, PO Box 1967, Bernard Wetherill House, 8 Mint Walk, Croydon, Surrey CR90 9FL

p.6

Inspector

Victoria Jones, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC041887 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.

p.6

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.7

Inspector

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

p.7

Inspector

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

p.7