Children's home run by Darlington Borough Council

Inspection report for children’s home: 2723795 1 Registered provider: Darlington Borough Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted in June 2023 and is owned and managed by a local authority. It provides care for up to three children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Three children were living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is led by a suitably qualified and experienced manager.

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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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2723795 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff provide a safe, homely and clean environment for children to live in. The children and staff take pride in the home. Staff help children to personalise their bedrooms with items that are meaningful to them. Photos of children and the activities they take part in are displayed in the communal areas of the home. The home looks and feels like a family home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Relationships between staff and children are good. Children enjoy living in the home and have trusted relationships with staff. One child said that they get on with all the staff and do not have a bad word to say about them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to be involved in the daily running of the home by helping to plan menus, activities and holidays. This helps children to have ownership of their home and promotes their sense of belonging and permanence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to make progress with their emotional and physical health, independent living skills and education. In addition, children are helped by staff to take part in activities that support them to enjoy and achieve. This has enabled children to discover new skills and talents in fishing, cricket and charity work.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff promote and monitor children’s progress through the home’s tracking system. However, more could be done to help children to review the progress they have made and agree to new goals in collaboration with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s care plans are detailed and focus on their individual needs and vulnerabilities. The plans are forward-thinking, are reviewed in line with the children’s changing needs and help them to make continued progress in all areas of their lives. However, the plans do not consistently demonstrate how children have contributed to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

External professionals and a family member spoke positively about the relationships they have with the registered manager and staff. They said that communication and partnerships are good and that the quality of care provided is helping each child to make progress from their starting point.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff help the children to build memories of their time in the home. The communal memory box in the living room gives children easy access to photos and mementoes of activities they have taken part in together. Each child has a personalised memory book that is full of photos and captures their achievements and important milestones. However, the photos have no accompanying narrative. This does not help to tell the child’s story and does not assist children to fully understand their time in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2723795 3 The registered manager and staff ensure that children’s cultural, religious and linguistic needs are met. When a child speaks English as an additional language, staff use a translator and have translation apps on their mobile phones. All documents are transcribed into the child’s home language to promote their understanding and participation in their day-to-day life. Children’s heritage is

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

promoted through access to appropriate places of worship and developing links with suitable people who speak the same language. In addition, staff support children to become part of the local community by helping them to join local clubs that cater for their interests.

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

Children feel safe in the home. One child said that they feel safe because they know that staff are always available if they need them.

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

The registered manager and staff know the children well. They have a good understanding of each child’s needs and vulnerabilities. Children’s individual risk assessments are thorough, easy to understand and accurately reflect their needs. The risk assessments support staff to understand what to do to keep the children safe.

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

Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding procedures and immediately follow them when they have concerns about a child’s safety and welfare. Feedback from professionals is positive about the safeguarding practices of the registered manager and staff.

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

Staff have conversations with the children to support them to make safer choices. For one child, such conversations have helped to significantly reduce the number of times they have gone missing from the home. However, records of such conversations are not always legible. This does not support children to understand how they have been helped.

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

When children go missing from home, staff promptly follow the child’s individual missing-from-home plan. They take every measure to try to find the child by contacting them, their family members and friends. Staff search the local area and areas which the child is known to frequent. When children return, staff warmly welcome them home and offer them the opportunity to talk about why they went missing. Staff also ensure that return home interviews are offered to children by an independent person.

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

The registered manager and staff promote positive behaviour in the home by forming trusting relationships with the children and providing clear and consistent boundaries. They take time to understand what a child is communicating through their behaviour and respond accordingly. Staff are confident in supporting children when they are in distress. This approach means that children have not had to be held by staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2723795 4 Where children are in the criminal justice system, the registered manager and staff work in partnership with relevant professionals to reduce the risk of them re- offending. This has helped one child to end their involvement in the criminal justice system.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is managed by an experienced and qualified registered manager. He is supported by an experienced deputy manager. The registered manager and deputy are passionate about, committed to, and ambitious for children. They have high expectations of themselves and staff and have excellent oversight of staff practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers are visible in the home and enjoy spending time with the children and building positive relationships with them. They show a genuine interest in the children and are proud of them. One member of staff said that senior managers are visible and will visit the home and ‘touch base’ with the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has a clear vision for the home, which is underpinned by research-informed practice. He has been instrumental in supporting staff to take a different approach to caring for children to make a significant difference to their lives. The registered manager has the support of senior managers, and his staff have confidence in him.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff morale is high. They enjoy helping children to be safe and do well in life. They feel very supported by the registered manager and have access to relevant training which enables them to meet the individual needs of the children living in the home. Staff receive regular practice-based supervision, which they value as it gives them protected time to reflect on and continually develop their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Team meetings take place every month and staff attendance is good. Staff say that they appreciate team meetings as they are informative. Team meetings allow staff to come together to discuss children’s needs. This helps to promote the consistency of care that the children receive and supports the staff team to continually develop.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager, deputy and staff have excellent working relationships with external professionals, which ensures the best possible care, experiences and outcomes for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2723795 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children are encouraged by staff to see the home’s records as ‘living documents’ and are supported to contribute to them in a way that reflects their voice regularly. Children should be supported to directly contribute to their individual plans and progress reports. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 58, paragraph 11.19)  The registered person should ensure that information about the child is recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. Handwritten records should be easy for the child to read and understand. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that the home’s records about each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. Staff should understand their important role in encouraging the child to reflect on and understand their

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Recommendations

history, according to their age and understanding. Life-story materials should include information which will help children to understand their time in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5) Inspection report for children’s home: 2723795 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: 2723795 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Darlington Borough Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Town Hall, Feethams, Darlington DL1 5QT

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Christopher Bell

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Inspector

Shirin Khan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2723795 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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