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Inspection report for children’s home: SC437069 1 SC437069 Registered provider: Derbyshire County Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The service is registered to provide short breaks for up to six children at any one time, aged between seven and 17 years and with moderate to severe learning and/or physical disabilities. The children may have additional sensory impairments and disabilities. A local authority owns and manages the service.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a suitably qualified and experienced registered manager in place.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, 15 children were accessing short breaks.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 17 January 2023

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC437069 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/01/2023 Full Outstanding 12/10/2021 Full Good 20/06/2019 Full Outstanding 25/04/2018 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC437069 3

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outstanding

The children are welcomed to the home by passionate and dedicated staff. The staff provide the children with exceptional care, alongside activities that make the children’s break immensely enjoyable. Prior to the children’s arrival for an overnight stay, staff ensure that the children’s bedrooms are personalised and prepared for each individual child. Having familiar objects around them provides the children with a sense of belonging and helps them to settle for their stay. Interactions between the children and staff show that the staff cherish and nurture the children. Staff appreciate that all children are unique. They provide tailored support that reflects the individual needs of the child. There is a strong emphasis on making the children’s stay both enjoyable and enriching. Staff involve the children in selecting the activities that they wish to do and work extremely hard to achieve their wishes. Staff work around any obstacles

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outstanding

that occur. For example, when a cinema screening was fully booked, rather than the children be disappointed, staff strongly advocated for the children and the outcome was that the children had their own private screening with free popcorn. Engaging in various activities promotes social interaction and provides the children with memorable experiences. In addition, with the support of staff, children have the opportunity to access experiences they might not otherwise have. Children are supported by staff who are aspirational for them. Staff are constantly seeking ways to assist children to develop their independence. For one child, this has meant that he has gone from staff helping him to get dressed, to staff saying to him what he needs to do, and the child running off to do what is needed. This is remarkable progress for this child. A professional commented that another child had made ‘unbelievable’ progress in the short time he had been having short breaks at

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outstanding

the home. Staff are sensitive to the challenges faced by families with disabled children. On occasion, they have worked exceptionally well with the whole family. For example, staff have gone to the family home and created a fantastic opportunity for the parent to take all their children out on an activity together. This provided the whole family with an extremely helpful event that generated positive memories for them all. This approach contributed significantly to the overall quality of life for the child and their family.

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outstanding

The staff have a proactive approach to safeguarding. They are supported in their role by comprehensive policies and procedures. Safeguarding training is prioritised Inspection report for children’s home: SC437069 4 and includes a very strong emphasis on supporting the increased vulnerabilities of disabled children. Staff have an excellent understanding of these vulnerabilities and this helps staff to keep children safe. Risk assessments are very detailed and equip staff with the knowledge they need to support and respond to the children’s needs. When documents are updated, staff take time to read the updates. This enables staff to adapt their approach as neccesary when the child next accesses the home. Therefore, the children consistently receive high-quality, individualised care that is responsive to their needs. There are very few incidents in the home. Staff are very proactive and use their skills and experience to creatively respond to risks and de-escalate situations quickly.

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outstanding

The manager has excellent oversight and reviews all incidents. The manager is always keen to learn from events and ensures that any learning is shared with the staff. The home is a large environment and provides a lot of space for the children who access it. There is the facility to separate rooms and corridors should children’s behaviours escalate. Staff are vigilant and are quick to respond to and rectify any hazards they detect in the environment. The manager has completed a comprehensive locality risk assessment that identifies any risks within the local area. This is regularly reviewed to ensure that any impact on the children is considered, and they remain protected. Staff support children to take appropriate risks to assist their overall development and be as independent as possible. Safer recruitment practices have been followed and this ensures that all staff are safe to work with children coming for breaks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is highly experienced and committed to providing children with outstanding care. He has high aspirations for the children receiving care and works extremely hard to ensure that all children who come to the home have opportunities to have fun, develop their skills and remain safe. The manager is equally dedicated to supporting and developing the staff. There has been a recent addition to the leadership team of a deputy manager. The leaders are developing their working approach for the benefit of the team and children. Staff report that the leadership team is very supportive and approachable. The manager is self-motivated and has a proactive approach to all the work that is undertaken in the home. There are highly creative and responsive working processes embedded, alongside quality assurance mechanisms. These assist the team to maintain high-quality recordings that capture the children’s development

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

and achievements over time. The manager’s constant oversight of the home allows him to know what is happening in the home and to anticipate where any working practices can be altered for the benefit of the children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC437069 5 The documents produced regarding the children are child-centred and of a high standard. These support staff in their role and staff are proactive in reading updated documents. Therefore, staff are equipped with the essential information they need to support children. The leadership team works hard to develop and sustain commendable relationships with children’s families and external agencies. Engaging with the local community is a real strength of the home too. The community links have reduced barriers for children being able to access activities. A local pub opened especially for the children and families that access this home and they all had breakfast with Santa.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Furthermore, community volunteers undertake gardening work at the home with a view to enhancing the outside area for everyone who comes to visit. Staff receive regular supervision. Team meetings are held monthly. These provide an opportunity for the team to share their experiences of working with the children and reflect on practice, to determine how it can be improved. Inspection report for children’s home: SC437069 6

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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: SC437069 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Derbyshire County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Offices, Matlock DE4 3AG

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Inspector

Lizette Watts, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC437069 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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Inspector

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