Children's Home run by Redcar and Cleveland Council in Redcar and Cleveland

Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 1 Registered provider: Redcar and Cleveland Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a local authority. It provides care for up to six children who may have social, emotional or mental health difficulties. Children might live in the home for short or longer periods of time.

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Information about this children’s home

The home also offers outreach services to children who live with their families or in other placements.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 2023, when the home was also registered.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 3

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improvement to be good

Staff develop strong relationships with the children. Some children respond well to the input from staff. They begin to understand that the staff want them to be safe and happy in the home. Progress is clear for one child because they trust what the staff say to them. However, the staff cannot positively influence another child. This is contributing to slow progress and ongoing concerns.

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improvement to be good

Children’s educational needs are not met. Staff are unable to help the children to recover from anxiety about school or college. There are early signs of change for one child, with creative support from the staff. However, the children’s learning, social development and day-to-day structure are hampered by this lack of progress.

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improvement to be good

Children’s health outcomes are mixed. One child attends medical appointments that support their development. However, the staff do not do enough to stop the children from regularly smoking cigarettes. Staff have been unable to help one child to reduce their risk from drug misuse. Although the staff make referrals for substance misuse support, they cannot encourage the child to attend.

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improvement to be good

Children’s emotional development is supported by specialist staff who work in the home. These professionals provide timely, individualised support to the children, and advice for the staff. The intervention helps the staff to understand and respond to the children’s needs. The creation of communication profiles helps the staff to talk to children effectively. This supports the development of trusting relationships between the children and staff.

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improvement to be good

Detailed, individualised planning takes place before the children move into the home. Staff meet the children early in the planning process, to begin to develop relationships. Careful assessment of the children’s needs, alongside the staff skills, means that the children receive personalised care from the outset. As a result, the children settle quickly when they move into the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff develop effective relationships with the children’s families. This helps the staff and family members to work together to maximise the progress for children. Families feel included in their children’s care plans. This enables them, as well as their children, to invest in the support from staff. For some families, this is the first time they have felt so involved in their children’s care.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not consistently help the children to become safer. Although the rate of missing from home and offending behaviour for one child has significantly reduced, the risks for another child remain high. Staff are unable to work effectively with the Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 4 child to reduce concerns. This gives a worrying message that they are beyond adult support.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not protect the children and staff from the risk of fire. Children smoke in their bedrooms without detection. Fire drills do not ensure that everyone knows what to do in the event of a fire. Leaders accepted these shortfalls and new systems were introduced immediately. It is too soon to evaluate the effectiveness of these changes.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not fully understand the children’s risks. Plans to assess some risks are not pursued with urgency, despite what is known about the children’s vulnerabilities. This means that the staff are not equipped with the knowledge required to work with the children effectively.

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improvement to be good

Staff act promptly when the children are missing from the home. Missing-from-home protocols are unambiguous and provide the staff with essential guidance. Staff use their knowledge of the children, including where their friends and family live, to find them when they do not return home. Children know that the staff take this action. This powerful message helps children to understand that the staff care about their safety and well-being.

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good

The registered manager’s monitoring of the home is not yet effective. Her oversight does not always identify important issues, such as the children’s risks and concerns about fire. There is little evaluation of individual work that the staff do with the children. This means that the registered manager does not know if the work is effective and in line with the children’s plans. The registered manager accepts this shortfall in her practice and has plans to improve the quality of her oversight.

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good

The registered manager is aspirational for children. She promotes an ethos of children receiving nurturing, unconditional care. She has a strong vision for the development of the home. For example, she will not admit children to the home before those who are already living in it are settled. This is proving effective, and children feel at home in their home.

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good

Staff feel supported by managers who they find approachable. Staff have regular supervision sessions of their practice. These sessions enable the staff to reflect on the effectiveness of their care for children. Team meetings are used to review the children’s progress and to ensure that the staff have a shared understanding of the children’s needs. This helps to ensure that the children are looked after by staff who work well together.

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good

Staff undertake a great deal of training. The availability of specialist staff in the home means that training is highly individualised according to the changing needs. Staff undertake relevant learning prior to the children moving into the home. This Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 5 enhances the staff knowledge and skills so that the children’s needs can be met from the beginning.

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good

The registered manager listens to the views of the children. Staff talk to the children regularly about their lives in the home. The registered manager responds to the children and agrees to their wishes whenever possible. Children learn that they have as much right as anyone to voice their views. This essential message supports the children’s sense of self-worth.

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good

The registered manager responds well to external scrutiny. For example, she meets all recommendations from the independent visitor. This shows a forward-thinking manager, who is open to improving her own practice to provide the best level of care for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered persons must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. The registered persons must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe; and

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the staff should take effective action to reduce the children’s risks from being missing, including involvement in potentially harmful behaviour with other children and young people. 31 July 2023

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Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment in the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

ensure, by means of fire drills and practices at suitable intervals, that persons working at the home and, so far as reasonably practicable, children are aware of the procedure to be followed in case of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(a)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the staff should ensure that effective arrangements are in place to protect everyone from the risks associated with the children smoking in their bedrooms. 31 July 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 7 The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(f)(h)) 31 July 2023

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers; and

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(viii)) 31 July 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 8

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the staff help the children to understand the harm from drugs and cigarettes and to reduce their use. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.18)

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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: 2699377 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Seafield House, Kirkleatham Street, Redcar TS10 1SP

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Inspector

Jane Titley, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2699377 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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