Children's Home run by Dorset Council in Dorset

Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 1 Registered provider: Dorset Council

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is located in a seaside town and is close to local amenities. The home provides care for up to three children between the ages of 12 and 18. These children may have emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/04/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from a home that is furnished and decorated to a high standard. Action to address some minor maintenance requirements was taken during the inspection. The child living in the home has had input into the decoration of their living areas. This has resulted in a homely space for them to use. Outdoor space is well used, featuring items that the child has requested, such as a pool.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Despite efforts from carers to support two children who previously lived in the home, they made limited progress. This led to children moving out of the home in an unplanned way. Learning stemming from this has been extensive. Planning for a child to move into the home has been thorough.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Carers work with children and other professionals to identify the right learning opportunities for children. When children have not had an education provision, carers consistently consider the available options and attempt to engage children in them. However, children are not consistently provided with educational activities and routine.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Carers understand the importance of meeting children’s health needs. Support for a child to attend appointments led to a diagnosis being given. This is seen to be positive for the child and accessing the support that they require. Carers are proactive in disrupting a child’s attempts to purchase and use cannabis and vapes. Concerns about children’s self-harm are promptly addressed and children’s emotional needs are met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with bright and fun life-story books. Carers find imaginative ways to document aspects of children’s lives while understanding that some children do not wish to have their photo taken. They have recognised the need for one child to be provided with in-depth life- story work and have advocated for this to take place.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to develop positive relationships. Children gain good-quality advice and support by actively seeking out carers. Carers are reactive to children’s needs and respond appropriately. This shows the strength of relationships that are developed within the home. Carers recognise the importance of family relationships. However, they recognise that these are not always positive for children. Safety measures designed to reduce risk are implemented for the benefit of children.

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

The child living in the home has told their social worker that they feel safe and like living in the home. One social worker said that carers understand risk and manage it well, putting children first. They reported that communication and multi-agency working are strengths of the home.

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

Carers have a good knowledge and understanding of risk. They are committed to keeping children safe. They have access to comprehensive risk management and support plans. Restrictions within the home environment are assessed and proportionate. The Philomena protocol is a well-written document. However, essential information is missing from some Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 4 sections. The team works very closely with other professionals. This leads to robust and up-to- date responses to concerns and feeds into care planning for children.

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

Incidents occur frequently. However, they are managed well. Carers respond to concerns about children promptly and appropriately with the aim of keeping children safe. Recordings of children’s and carers’ actions provide a good narrative of events. Children and carers are spoken to following incidents, providing them with the opportunity to reflect and learn from their own actions and those of others.

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

Carers talk to children about risk. They let them know why they are concerned about certain behaviours or actions. Conversations between carers and children are sensitive and focused. Children’s views are gained and included in their care planning.

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

Members of staff build positive relationships with other professionals. Multi-agency working and communication to share concerns is prioritised. Carers request and attend meetings about children and work closely with in-house and external professionals to develop care planning for children. The potential benefits of therapeutic relationships and ongoing therapeutic work with children are recognised. When need is identified, support sessions with the in-house therapist are arranged promptly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection a new manager is in place, having stepped up from the deputy manager role. She has submitted her application to be registered with Ofsted. She is committed and passionate in her aim to achieve the best for children who live there. Relationships within the wider management team are positive. They all have good knowledge of the children that they care for and a joint vision to make ongoing improvements to the home. These improvements are clearly documented within a clear and regularly updated development plan.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The responsible individual and manager consistently and robustly raise and escalate concerns. They are confident in challenging others, placing children at the forefront of their practice. They have developed informative chronologies and presented strong cases in relation to the need for change and improvements to outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers complete regular, extensive reviews of incidents and practice. They are proactive in documenting learning and implementing required changes. The formulation of good-quality, child-focused plans support carers to perform their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Concerns in relation to the practice of carers are managed appropriately. Where necessary, concerns are shared with external professionals and additional guidance and advice on how to deal with concerns is gained and followed. The home regularly uses agency workers. Checks are completed to ensure that they are safe and have the skills necessary to work in the home. Information is shared with the agency and requests made that any worker coming to the home has access to this in advance of their initial shift. Induction processes are not always fully completed, which could lead to agency workers not being fully aware of up-to-date information.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings are held regularly. The agenda and any actions arising from the meeting are clearly set out. However, details of discussion and reflection during the meeting, particularly safeguarding and lessons learned, are not recorded. Similar to this are the recordings of Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 5 supervision with carers. This does not fully document the safeguarding, learning and developmental culture within the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 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 education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally. (Regulation 8(1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(v))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children are provided with informal learning opportunities. That this is structured in a way that supports the overall development of the child, including having routine and boundaries within their daily life. 5 August 2024

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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

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 5 August 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 7 protect and promote each child’s welfare;

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Requirement Due date

provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop resilience and skills that prepare the child to return home, to live in a new placement or to live independently as an adult;

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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)(b) (2)(ii)(iv)(vi)(ix))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children make progress and that their overall needs can be met while living in the home.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person should ensure that endings for children where possible are planned.

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all necessary information is included in documents that support carers to manage risk. 05 August 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 8 In addition, the registered person must ensure that team meetings and carers’ supervision cover safeguarding within the home and show reflection and learning. This should be clearly documented within records to allow carers to reflect back where necessary.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction. (Regulation 33 (1)(a)) 5 August 2024

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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: 2682502 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, Colliton Park, Dorchester DT1 1XJ

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Inspectors

Carla Simkiss, Social Care Inspector Emma Fryer, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2682502 10 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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Inspectors

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