Children's Home run by Windows For Children Ltd in Medway

Inspection report for children's home: 2559013 1 Registered provider: Windows For Children 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 is registered to provide care for up to eight children with social and emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, there were four children living at the home.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2559013 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/08/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2559013 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff relationships with the children are warm and loving. They provide the children with consistent care and boundaries. Children who live in the home say that they think their home is amazing and that they feel safe.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The therapeutic approach is embedded in staff practice, and the children understand and know that they are cared for. There is a dedicated therapist whose involvement makes a significant difference to the children’s understanding of their trauma and helps them to process it.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in education and make good progress. One child who is not attending school is provided with education that is overseen by the school they are enrolled in. There is excellent communication between managers and the child’s professional network to ensure that their educational needs are met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with experiences that enrich their day-to-day lives. They are encouraged to engage in their hobbies and try new activities. Children complete activities as a group and on a one-to-one basis. This strengthens their relationships with each other and with the staff supporting them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s transitions in and out of the home are well considered and planned thoroughly. Communication between managers and external professionals is significant in all parts of this process. The children are well prepared when moving in and out of the home. There is a high level of planning and preparation completed with the children. A professional said, ‘It’s the best example of a transition I have ever been involved with. The child’s best interests were always kept at heart.’

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

Children are provided with consistent boundaries in the home, which are supported by rewards for positive behaviour. Children have made good progress with a reduction in behavioural incidents since living in the home. They are encouraged to discuss how they feel and are provided with reassurance and emotional warmth.

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

The home is inviting, and it is well presented and maintained. The children are proud of their home, and they all have lovely personal touches in their bedrooms.

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

Relationships between the children are promoted through group activities and guidance provided by staff to promote these relationships. This has resulted in positive relationships forming and a restorative approach being used between the children. Inspection report for children's home: 2559013 4 There have been no incidents where children have gone missing from the home since the last inspection. Staff responses to the children ensure that they remain safe and do not leave the home unattended.

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

Risk assessments are thorough and well understood by staff. Risks to the children are monitored by managers who consider patterns and themes, which are also understood by staff. Staff are proactive and inventive in considering ways to de- escalate tricky situations. There has been significant work completed with the children to help them understand risk. This has led to the children feeling safe and making good progress over the time that they have lived in the home.

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

New staff have been safely recruited. However, there is no evidence that recruitment checks have been overseen by the manager as part of her monitoring of safer recruitment, although they have been checked by human resources staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and senior leaders are passionate about the needs of the children being met and ensuring high standards of care. There is a good working relationship between them and appropriate challenge for the best interests of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals have unanimously provided excellent feedback on working with the manager and staff. This is a real area of strength, with particular praise for their care planning and communication and for making sure the children feel heard and involved in decision-making.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings are held consistently, staff are encouraged to reflect on practice and they use resources that encourage self-reflection to build their knowledge base. This includes reading material that is trauma based, discussing how this has made them feel and relating it to their own experiences and those of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Management oversight of records is reflective, clear and consistent. The manager knows and understands the strengths and weaknesses of the home and is actively working towards making improvements where needed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager wants to know the wishes and feelings of the children and uses these to implement changes in liaison with the children. When children asked for a smooth space to ride their bikes and new equipment for the garden, this was fulfilled.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are provided with a range of training opportunities that include the needs of the children. However, the manager does not have a workforce development plan or an effective system in place to monitor this. Therefore, there is a lack of evidence in regard to the monitoring and oversight and the impact of training.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel supported by the manager, who is approachable and provides support on a day-to-day basis. However, supervision for staff has not been consistent and in keeping with the home’s policy of frequency. Inspection report for children's home: 2559013 5

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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, The 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 registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that supervision is held within the timescales outlined in the statement of purpose and policy. 30 November

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Recommendations

 The registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice. They must ensure that the recruitment of staff safeguards children and minimises potential risks to them by documenting decision-making and ensuring this is completed in a timely manner when carrying out pre-employment checks. (Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)  The registered person should have a workforce development plan that can fulfil the workforce-related requirements of Regulation 16 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should be updated to include any new training and qualifications completed by the staff while working at the home. The plan should also be used to record the ongoing training and continuing professional development needs of the staff, including the home’s manager. (Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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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: 2559013 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Windows For Children Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 90-92 King Street, Maidstone, Kent ME14 1BH

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Inspector

Faye McCarthy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2559013 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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