Children's home run by Keys Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2539752 1 Registered provider: Keys Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is one of a group of homes that make up the Cross Regional Project (CRP), which has been set up between Keys Group and four local authorities: Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes. The home provides care for up to four children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since April 2020 when the home was opened.

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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: 2539752 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/06/2021 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: 2539752 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of the inspection, there were four children living at the home. The overall experiences for these children are positive, and they are making good progress. The manager and staff know the children well and treat them with kindness and respect.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children form good relationships with staff and benefit from individualised care. During the inspection, one child was going to the cinema with a member of staff, one was going to play pool, one played table tennis with the manager and one was making a fancy dress costume. It was evident throughout the inspection that children have a good rapport with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff actively encourage children to attend education and see education as an important part of daily life. When children struggle to attend school, the staff advocate for the children and work with providers to find alternative education plans and solutions to any difficulties. Schools say that the home provides excellent care for the children. They advocate on their behalf; they communicate exceptionally well with the school, and the children are thriving. Children are making good progress from their starting points.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support a range of activities that reflect the children’s hobbies and interests. Activities include ice skating, cinema trips, attending comic conventions and attending the army cadets. These experiences increase the children’s self-esteem, develop their skills and support them to explore new interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to see people who are important to them. Staff communicate well with children’s relatives and recognise the importance of these relationships. During the inspection, a parent was coming to the home to cook a meal with their child. Supporting family relationships in this way improves the children’s sense of identity and belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are consulted on every aspect of their care and encouraged to share their wishes and feelings. If children do not wish to join the weekly house meeting, their wishes are individually sought. The manager responds well to children’s wishes and feeds back to children on the decisions that are made. This helps children to feel that their views are important, listened to and acted on.

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

Staff manage unwanted behaviours well. When incidents do occur, staff use effective strategies to calm situations. Staff consistently support the children and reinforce boundaries. As a result, behavioural incidents are minimised. Inspection report for children’s home: 2539752 4 Physical intervention is used only as a last resort. The records are comprehensive and include how staff try to de-escalate situations. There is good managerial oversight of the records to ensure that interventions are proportionate and necessary. Children and staff are debriefed following any interventions.

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

Staff understand the risks for the children and actively help them to manage these. Children have individualised missing-from-home protocols that support staff should the children go missing. Missing-from-home incidents are rare. However, when they do occur, staff actively search for children and debrief them on their return. Children have return home interviews with an independent person. Staff use the information from the interviews to develop further risk-reduction measures.

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

The staff use appropriate consequences to deter unwanted behaviours. They record the reason for the consequence and the outcome. The manager evaluates the records to establish the effectiveness. Consequences help the children to understand acceptable behaviours. The staff focus on children’s positive behaviours, and the children can earn daily incentives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has the required qualifications and experience for the role. He is child- focused and dedicated. He strives for the best possible outcomes for the children. He has a good understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has established a stable and committed staff team. Staff have or are working towards a relevant level 3 qualification. Staff receive supervision in line with the organisation’s statement of purpose. Supervision is child-focused and provides an opportunity to support the individual’s continued professional development. Supporting staff in this way makes them feel valued and equipped to manage their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managerial monitoring is effective. Children’s records are well organised, thorough and fully inclusive. The manager has effective systems in place to ensure that there is good oversight and meaningful evaluation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The location risk assessment considers all potential risks in the area and risk- reduction strategies. As a result, the staff fully understand the potential risks for the children in the community and how these can be reduced to keep them safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff participate in regular team meetings and meetings with the therapeutic team. The meetings reflect on children’s progress, share important information about children’s plans and discuss the running of the home. The therapeutic meetings provide opportunities for staff to develop their skills, knowledge and understanding of the organisation’s therapeutic approach to supporting children. However, the meetings are not recorded in detail. This is a missed opportunity for staff to revisit the meetings or for those unable to attend to learn from the discussions. Inspection report for children’s home: 2539752 5

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that all staff can access appropriate resources to support their training needs. In particular, ensure that any meetings with the therapeutic team are well documented and provide guidance to staff. (‘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: 2539752 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: C/o Pinsent Masons Llp, The Soloist Building, 1 Lanyon Place, Belfast, Northern Ireland BT1 3LP

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Inspector

Paula Lewis, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2539752 7 inspects 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. 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

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Inspector

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 .

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Inspector

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Inspector

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

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