Children's home run by Derbyshire County Council in Derbyshire Dales

Inspection report children's home: SC439882 1 SC439882 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

This local authority children’s home provides care for up to six children with physical disabilities and learning difficulties. The home provides long-term care and short breaks.

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Information about this children's home

The home is led by an experienced and registered manager.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: Outstanding

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

None Inspection report for children's home: SC439882 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/03/2023 Full Outstanding 05/01/2022 Full Outstanding 18/09/2019 Full Good 10/10/2018 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children's home: SC439882 3

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outstanding

The children receive outstanding care from dedicated and responsive staff. All the children are very much recognised for their own uniqueness and staff tailor their approach to each child that they are working with. This provides the children with high quality personalised care that meets their complex needs.

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outstanding

The children use various communication methods to convey their views and wishes. Staff allow the children time to convey their needs and actively listen to the children before responding. This creates a home where children are central to their own care. They share their voice and staff respond accordingly.

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outstanding

The children's complex needs do not hinder their access to opportunities comparable to those of their peers. Staff demonstrate creativity and actively work to dismantle any barriers within the community. For instance, when a child expressed a desire for friends, staff focused on the child’s love of music and located a group for music enthusiasts. The child has a genuine connection with the group attendees. They relish their time at group and take pride in having their own circle of friends.

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outstanding

The staff demonstrate genuine aspiration for the children's success and are committed to helping them reach their full potential. They engage directly with the children, assisting them in breaking down objectives into manageable tasks and then empowering them to acquire the necessary skills independently. Through consistent encouragement and praise, the children have made remarkable progress over time.

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outstanding

All children attend school that is on the same site as the home. Staff regularly co- ordinate with education colleagues to ensure that there is a partnership approach to the children achieving academic success.

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outstanding

Safeguarding is a key priority within the home. There are comprehensive risk assessments in place that contain a high level of detail regarding the needs of the children.

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outstanding

The risk associated with children with additional needs are very much recognised. Significant time has been spent trying to safeguard the children and this has meant that they have been protected and remained safe. Staff have arranged for one child to have some specialist support from the Police. It has been highly beneficial for the child to hear the perspective of the police. It reinforced to the child that the advice from staff was right and that they were trying to educate him about online risks. Inspection report for children's home: SC439882 4 There is a robust medication process in place. When medication errors have occurred, action has been taken to rectify the errors as soon as possible. Staff have been supported and received extra training and support. This has prevented further errors being made.

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outstanding

The children living in the home have differing complex needs and some children are wheelchair users. The home and garden areas have the appropriate adaptions in place and are accessible for all children. There is specific equipment in place that allows children to remain safe whilst having their needs met.

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outstanding

Proactive behaviour management strategies are extremely effective and over the period of 3 years, incidents have halved. Incidents are not reviewed in isolation. Rather they are reviewed through the bigger picture of the child’s current life. This has led to patterns and trends being identified and staff approaches have been altered. This improves the quality of life for the children. Furthermore, it highlights that the children have learnt skills to manage their own behaviour.

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outstanding

The personal evacuation plans for all the children are exceptionally detailed. They thoroughly outline each of the children needs and how staff need to support children in various circumstances. These plans are worthy of wider dissemination.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is managed by an excellent leadership team that is committed to improving outcomes for children. The leadership team are forward focused and always looking to the next aspect of care that can be improved for the overall wellbeing of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The leadership team are very proactive in their collaboration with external agencies and parents. There are a lot of individuals involved in the children's lives and time is taken to ensure that the children receive a coordinated and responsive service from all involved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff are overwhelmingly positive about the support they receive from the leadership team. One member of staff stated `it's an amazing place to work and wish I had come here early, everything is so child centred, I really am loving working here’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive regular good-quality supervision which gives them the opportunity to reflect on their practice and learning needs. Regular team meetings are purposeful and focus on ensuring that the staff consistently meet the child’s needs. The manager advocates for her staff to continually develop their skills and knowledge. This helps ensure that the child receives the best care possible.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

New starters receive a thorough induction and complete necessary training to equip them to undertake the work. Staff have been recruited who have a variety of knowledge and skills. This has benefited the children and been enriching for them, as they are supported by staff with different life experiences. Inspection report for children's home: SC439882 5 There is a variety of training that the team access to ensure that they continually build on their expertise and overall competence. It would further enhance the team’s skills and knowledge if they were provided with the opportunity to undertake some specialist training regarding a certain diagnosis of a child. Inspection report for children's home: SC439882 6

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Recommendations

 Where a registered person identifies gaps in skills or knowledge, they should act to ensure relevant training is completed in a timely manner at an appropriate level. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations, including the quality standards', page 68, paragraph 1.4)

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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: SC439882 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Derbyshire County Council, County Offices, Matlock, DE4 3AG

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Inspectors

Lizette Watts, social care inspector Zoey Lee, social care inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC439882 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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