Children's Home run by Keys Care Limited in Cambridgeshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC370910 1 SC370910 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

A private organisation runs this home. It provides care for up to three children who have experienced trauma that has left them vulnerable.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2017.

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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 outstanding

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 17 January 2023

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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: SC370910 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/01/2023 Full Outstanding 30/11/2021 Full Good 21/01/2020 Full Good 19/06/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC370910 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, three children were living at the home. Since the last inspection, one child has moved into the home and one child has moved back to live with their family.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has a warm and lively atmosphere and is filled with laughter and shared humour. Children gravitate towards staff and there is a natural flow of conversation that shows mutual respect. The staff clearly care deeply about the children and are sensitive to their needs. When children return from school, they talk to staff about their day and ask questions about what the staff have been doing. There is a lot of care and empathy shown by everyone at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All the children are in education. Staff support the children with homework, and they understand the importance of education. One child has an excellent school attendance record. The child had not attended school for three years before he moved to the home. The headteacher said that communication with the home’s staff is second to none. The child has made such good progress. The headteacher said, ‘No matter who comes to pick up the child, he is always pleased to see them.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to attend their health appointments. They are encouraged to eat healthy meals, including fruit and vegetables of their choice. One child cooks their own meals as part of planning for independence. There is a strong emphasis on helping the children to plan for their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff and children are keen to be part of the local community. Recently, they have taken part in a run and raised over a thousand pounds for a charity chosen by one of the children. Every fortnight, they go litter picking in the area around the home. This helps the children to make a positive contribution to the local community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff team is very culturally diverse. Children get to talk to staff about religion, diversity and ethnicity. The children can talk about other cultures with confidence and insight.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

During the summer, a child was working towards independence. This was a time of high anxiety for the child. The staff were not vigilant regarding the cleaning of the child’s bedroom and the levels of cleanliness dropped to an unacceptable standard. This was highlighted by the independent person. Immediate and thorough cleaning of the bedroom was initiated. Managers responded appropriately by taking responsibility for the lapse in the child’s care. Inspection report for children’s home: SC370910 4

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

Children do not go missing from the home, and restraint is rarely used. Any consequences for behaviours are natural and are used in line with children’s plans. The children gave very positive feedback about the staff and the home. They said they feel safe and always have someone to talk to.

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

Risk assessments are based on existing and potential risks. These are tailored to the child’s individual needs. The strength of the staff team is that they know the children well and apply this knowledge to protecting them. Reflective debriefs based on therapeutic conversations are offered after any incidents. This provides children with the opportunity to learn from behaviours that might upset others. This learning helps children to develop strategies for life.

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

Staff receive regular safeguarding training. Managers provide scenario-based safeguarding examples during team meetings. This focus encourages staff to maintain professional curiosity about incidents. Children know that staff respond consistently to incidents. This embeds a culture of good practice.

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

Key-work sessions are reflective and show that children can explore how they feel emotionally. They include a wide range of topics that help to develop children’s emotional well-being. This supports children to increase their negotiation skills and understand relationships. Situations that children find challenging are discussed with staff, who encourage positive responses. The children said that they like the time they spend with staff during key-work sessions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is qualified in leadership and management. She is a highly experienced manager who is keen to share her knowledge with the wider team. The deputy manager is also highly qualified and experienced. Combined, they are a motivated and passionate team. The manager drives continual improvement. She encourages the children to set high goals for themselves and consistently praises them for all their achievements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a warmth to the management team. They show love and affection, which helps the children to feel safe and secure. The manager is a good advocate for children. She is confident in challenging the wider professional network to help children achieve the best possible outcomes. A social worker described the managers as ‘amazing’ and said that she can see progress for the child. She described that in a short time, the child ‘seemed to fit right in’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The team of staff are dedicated to providing the best experience they can for children. They adapt to the children’s needs and try to understand them as individuals. When the team of staff do not get something right, they are keen to learn from it. Inspection report for children’s home: SC370910 5 Staff understand the options for their career progression. They are encouraged to take on additional responsibilities to support their goals. One member of the staff team has taken on the role of safeguarding champion. This provides them with additional training which they pass on to the staff team. The champion then feeds back to the wider management team regarding how staff evaluated the training. This helps to identify further training needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff are very creative and keen to work with the children. They use a therapeutic framework to identify targets and create plans that children understand and contribute to. The children’s views are sought to help managers write their plans, and any discussions about their future are child centred.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

External monitoring is achieved through a variety of ways and supports quality assurance. Managers identify patterns and trends from stakeholder feedback. This reinforces the home’s development plan. One parent said that he finds the communication from managers helpful. He said that it is difficult to have a child in care, but the managers help to make this bearable. Inspection report for children’s home: SC370910 6

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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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children.

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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

make decisions about the day-to-day arrangements for each child, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans, which give the child an appropriate degree of freedom and choice. (Regulation 6 (1)(a) (2)(ix)) 30 November

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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: SC370910 7

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Children’s home details

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

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Inspector

Trudy Potter, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC370910 8 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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