Children's home run by Hertfordshire County Council

Inspection report for children’s home: 2748259 1 Registered provider: Hertfordshire County Council

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority home provides care for up to four children. Children live at the home for 12 weeks. The children may have social, emotional and mental health difficulties and complex trauma.

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Information about this children’s home

This the homes first inspection since registration.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in November 2023.

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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

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: 2748259 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, there were three children living at the home. Four children have moved into the home since the last inspection. One child has left to move back to live with a parent.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy the company of staff, who show affection and care for them. This is reciprocated by the children and makes the home feel warm and friendly. Staff respond to the views and wishes of the children, which helps them to feel supported and listened to. Staff acknowledge what the children say, which helps them to feel valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy living in the large and well-decorated home. The garden has been landscaped to provide quiet areas for contemplation. There is a large garden room where children can practise yoga, use gym equipment and spend quality time with their families.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to continue with their education during their stays at the home. The staff advocate for the best outcomes for each of the children. One child will stay at the home until they have finished their A levels, before starting university.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from an integrated model of care in which nursing staff and social care staff work as a team. The staff all receive the same therapeutic training. This ensures that children are provided with consistent care. All the children love the therapy dog that comes to the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities, supported by staff who encourage them to try new sports or opportunities in the local community. Children attend a local youth coffee shop and one child likes to go to a local bible study group.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff from diverse cultural backgrounds support children to understand their own identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are not provided with memory books when they move on from the home. Therefore, activities and experiences during their time at the home are not captured for future reference.

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

The manager and staff understand how trauma influences children’s reaction to adults. Therapeutic support helps the staff to apply strategies that address concerning behaviours. Staff quickly identify and respond to children’s low mood, which helps children to develop their emotional resilience.

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

There has been one missing-from-home incident. Staff implemented the correct safeguarding procedures, including holding a therapeutic conversation when the child returned to explore why they left the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2748259 3 When children have prolonged stays in hospital their education can be disrupted and records lost. Staff have gained access to the children’s combined education and medical history through a dedicated support worker. This has been invaluable in providing a holistic approach to the children’s overall care.

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

Staff work with children to support them in moving towards independence. They use key-worker sessions to explore topics that the children may have missed due to being out of school. Children seek out staff to discuss their difficult emotions.

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

Staff talk to children about friendships and relationships. Being a good friend is a topic that staff return to when children struggle with peer relationships. Restorative conversations are used to help children repair their relationships.

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

One child is subject to a deprivation of liberty (DoL) order. Staff support the child to understand the need for rules about going out unaccompanied and handing in their phone overnight. Staff understand the DoL order and talk through actions with the child so that any distress is minimised.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably qualified and highly experienced in working with children with complex behaviours. She models a high standard of leadership and management and is clearly committed to the development of this innovative service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager spends a lot of time with the children. They seek her out when they have completed tasks or have something to share.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff value the opportunities to attend training that supports their work. Staff said that they love using the therapeutic approach as it supports children to make big changes in their lives. The manager also encourages staff to help parents understand the therapeutic model and how it makes a difference to their children’s lives. One child’s parents have attended training to support them to understand how staff work with their child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are extremely positive about the manager. They said that supervision sessions are useful to them, not just in terms of their work but also personally. They value the opportunity to discuss theory and practice with a manager. Staff said that the work-life balance is good, and they have a well-structured rota that enables them to plan ahead in their lives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals working with the children value the knowledge of the leaders. Communication between the leaders and the professional network is praised for supporting strong relationships. A social worker said, ‘We could get a picture of [name of child]’s life just by talking to one person.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2748259 4 Leaders are starting to identify patterns and trends in children’s behaviours. There are monitoring systems in place which are being extended with a new computer system. Oversight of incidents is good and solutions are identified and quickly put into practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Progress is measurable, despite the short time children spend at the home. A grandparent described the progress their child has made. She said in the past the child would try to please everyone. This has now stopped and she is proud the child is becoming more independent. The child also refers to the residential home as ‘going home’ and likes staff. The grandparent described being able to talk to the staff about the difficult things in the child’s life, which helped her to understand the impact of the child’s past trauma. Inspection report for children’s home: 2748259 5

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure the home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. Staff should keep appropriate memorabilia of the child’s time spent living at the home and help them record significant life events, in particular, by providing children with a memory book. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)

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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: 2748259 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hertfordshire County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Farnham House, Six Hills Way, Stevenage SG1 2ST

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Inspector

Trudy Potter, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2748259 7 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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