Children's home run by Peterborough City Council

Inspection report for children’s home: SC058778 1 SC058778 Registered provider: Peterborough City Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a local authority and provides short breaks for up to five children at any one time and long-term care for a further three children. The home provides specialist care for children with physical disabilities and/or learning disabilities and/or sensory impairments. At the time of this inspection, five children were at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a school on the same site as the home. Only the social care provision was inspected.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2007.

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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: 12 September 2023

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC058778 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/09/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 04/07/2022 Full Good 13/07/2021 Full Good 04/02/2020 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC058778 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home currently supports 20 children for short breaks and shared care. One child permanently lives at the home. Three children have started to have short breaks at the home since the last inspection. The children have a range of needs, and most have limited verbal communication.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

During this inspection, three children chose to communicate with the inspector. All five children spent time with the inspector.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have complex communication needs. Staff use creative ways to enable communication and to give children the opportunity to make choices. Staff show understanding, kindness and patience when supporting the children. They build trusting relationships with them. The children feel valued, respected and safe.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is spacious and vibrant, and there are several communal rooms for children to relax in. There is a sensory room and tactile sensory boards in communal areas. Children’s photos are displayed. Children’s bedrooms meet a range of different needs. The children enjoy using accessible outdoor play equipment. The home provides a welcoming and positive environment for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children attend education placements that meet their individual needs. Some children attend the school that is situated on the same site as the home. An education professional said that they have an excellent, open and transparent relationship with the manager and staff at the home. The manager works closely with schools, and the home’s staff attend education meetings. Children have good educational outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff have built positive relationships with the children’s parents, providing practical and emotional support. Parents feel supported and say that communication from the staff is good. One parent said, ‘It means so much to us and is a lifeline for me and my family.’ Parents are confident in the care that their children receive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in a range of activities, including day trips, visits to parks, and activities at the home such as arts and crafts. Staff monitor children’s enjoyment of these to help plan further activities for children to enjoy. The children benefit from these enjoyable and enriching experiences.

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

Children are safeguarded and feel safe at the home. The manager has ensured that the staff have the appropriate training and that they understand the safeguarding procedures. Staff are confident and equipped to manage safeguarding incidents, which helps to keep the children safe. Inspection report for children’s home: SC058778 4 Children do not go missing from the home. There are high staffing levels, and children are constantly supervised due to their individual needs. Staff understand children’s vulnerabilities and take effective action to keep them safe.

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

Children’s behaviour support plans are individualised and include guidance with strategies for staff to help children to safely manage their emotions. The plans include input from a behaviour specialist, parents, staff and school staff. The home’s staff have attended training in positive behaviour support with the in-house specialist behaviour management trainer. Staff understand how to support children and what children need to manage their feelings. Consequently, there has been no use of physical intervention techniques in the home.

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

Staff follow clear and effective medication administration routines. The manager provides comprehensive oversight of medication. The medication processes have been reviewed by a medication trainer and have been improved. There has been one medication error. When the error occurred, it was dealt with efficiently and effectively, reducing the risk of reoccurrence.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is very experienced, has a wealth of knowledge and holds a relevant managerial qualification. She is an excellent role model to the staff. She is dedicated to ensuring that children receive excellent care. She is supported by a competent deputy manager. Staff are enthusiastic and caring and provide child-centred care. The children have good experiences during their short breaks at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are provided with good training that meets the children’s individual needs. Staff have specific training from health specialists. The staff are confident and capable in supporting children with complex needs. Most members of staff have a relevant level 3 diploma or are working towards the qualification within the necessary time frame. Some of the staff are working towards a level 5 diploma. Staff are skilled, knowledgeable and meet children’s health needs. Staff have good personal development opportunities.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff are excellent advocates for children. The manager has ensured that children have regular access to an independent advocate. The advocate has developed meaningful relationships with the children. They supported the manager to advocate for a child to receive crucial dental treatment. Without this level of advocacy, children and families would not get access to the specialist services that the children need.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Two social workers and an independent reviewing officer were spoken with during the inspection. They spoke positively about the relationships and communication that they have with the manager and staff. Social workers said that staff have positive relationships with the children and that children are happy and safe at the home. The independent reviewing officer said, ‘I am so impressed with the manager and staff. Their dedication to the children is exemplary.’ Inspection report for children’s home: SC058778 5 The independent person’s monthly reports are of good quality and include feedback from children, parents and professionals. The independent person makes appropriate recommendations that help the manager to make improvements to the quality of care that children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have implemented new management oversight systems, which are still being developed. Managers have made some improvements to monitoring. However, learning from incidents and debriefs with staff are not clear or recorded. One child’s records do not contain all relevant information about the child and the good care that she receives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has met two of the three requirements that were raised at the last inspection. These are in relation to recruitment checks and a six-monthly managerial report. One requirement is restated in respect of managerial monitoring. Inspection report for children’s home: SC058778 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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that: managers have oversight of incidents in the home by reviewing them and identifying any lessons learned; care plans and risk assessments include up-to-date and relevant information.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was raised at the last inspection and is restated. 11 September 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: SC058778 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Sand Martin House, Bittern Way, Peterborough PE2 8TY

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Inspector

Amy Miles, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC058778 8 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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