Children's home run by Keys KIN Ltd in Adur

Inspection report for children’s home: 1226266 1 Registered provider: Keys KIN Ltd

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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 home is privately owned by a national provider. It provides care for up to six children with social and/or emotional difficulties. Five children were living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 2016.

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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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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1226266 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/06/2023 Full Outstanding 26/09/2022 Full Good 08/06/2021 Full Good 03/12/2019 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 1226266 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children enjoy highly individualised care and support from staff who are genuine in their approach to care and build trusting relationships with the children. Children make exceptional progress because of these relationships. Their individual personalities are nurtured and they can flourish and be themselves.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children are confident in approaching staff and see the home as their own. When inspectors visited, one child was decorating the home ready for Christmas with the help of staff. The child was enjoying directing staff, detailing what else they would like to be put up around the home and in the garden. The interaction was a typical example of the positive relationships in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children’s views are taken into account regarding all aspects of how the home functions on a day-to-day basis. Children know about the home’s ‘review book’, which is used to make requests about the home, their care and any changes that they would like. This is discussed weekly by the staff team, recorded and actioned as appropriate. This means that children have a consistent approach from staff in how they are supported. Children know that they can request changes, and that they will be listened to, even if these changes cannot be made. Furthermore, the review book provides a space for staff to be able to note the progress that children have made, by the nature of the changes to their plans over time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff form strong professional working relationships with parents, carers and partner agencies. These lead to positive outcomes for children. When children reach adulthood, they are supported through the links that staff have with a specialist housing project. This helps children to seek their own rented homes post-18. Staff make sure that young people move on with furniture and white goods to make their new accommodation as homely as possible.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Young people who have moved on from the home remain in regular contact with the staff, who provide comfort and support when needed, or a general chat. A young person who has recently moved out spoke enthusiastically about how amazing the staff and the home are. Some young people return to the home for Christmas celebrations, including staying on Christmas Eve where appropriate. The approach to holding young people in mind who have moved on is exemplary.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children have excellent support networks with regard to their emotional and physical well-being. The wider organisation has a variety of professionals with expertise in supporting children with their emotional well-being, or other areas where they are vulnerable. The organisation’s approach to care provides a secure base for children, including regular reviews of their progress and formulating approaches for how the staff will continue to care for and look after them. Inspection report for children’s home: 1226266 4

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

Children’s actions show that they are confident and feel safe in their home. They know that staff will listen to them and take their concerns and disclosures seriously. All safeguarding concerns are meticulously recorded to demonstrate the actions that have been taken. The records are clear, they demonstrate excellent joint working and are an exemplar of good practice.

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

Staff have an excellent understanding of all children’s vulnerabilities and risks. They know how to respond should there be a concern for a child’s welfare, and how to report this within the organisation. Staff support children to minimise risk through a caring and supportive approach, building their confidence and ability to say no or recognise when they could be at risk of harm.

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

Children do not go missing from home regularly, but when they do, staff respond swiftly and consistently. They search for them, often travelling many miles to look for the children and collect them once they know where they are. Joint working with the police and other partner agencies means that there is a cohesive approach to supporting children who have been at significant risk while they have been missing from home. Staff recognise the signs of exploitation, and actively promote and support children to keep safe. Staff reflect with children and explore if anything can be changed to stop them from going missing from home. Staff help them to understand the risks and increase their confidence to make different choices and not feel pressured by those around them.

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

Staff recognise all behaviour as a form of communication. They are thoughtful in their approach when supporting children who show behaviours of distress. Physical intervention is rarely used, and follow-up discussions after an incident allow all involved to reflect and repair the relationships. Consequences are reflective of the child’s understanding, with positive rewards far outnumbering negative consequences. The manager scrutinises all incidents, interventions and consequences to ensure that they are suitable, consistent and supportive for the children to develop and learn from their actions.

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

Children are protected from avoidable risk through regular monitoring of health and safety and fire protection systems. The home is warm and welcoming and well maintained. Safer recruitment practices are followed, meaning that children are cared for by suitable adults.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is supported by two skilled and experienced deputies. The managers have extremely high aspirations for the children who live there. They lead by example and this is disseminated to the staff, who also encourage children to be ambitious, and they support them to have confidence in their skills and abilities. Inspection report for children’s home: 1226266 5 The management team is thorough in monitoring children’s plans, including one-to-one sessions with the children to review the progress that they make. This means that the children’s care is constantly evolving to meet their changing needs and staff ensure that children are still supported to reach their goals, even when there are some issues along the way. The staff team is passionate about ensuring that children have a positive experience and have the same opportunities as their peers in the community. Should it be necessary, they actively challenge partner agencies and services to make sure that

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

children have the support they need to succeed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff are highly complimentary about the support that they receive from the management team. They feel valued and that they are genuinely one team working together to provide the best possible outcomes for the children. Staff say that they are all involved in the decisions that impact children’s lives, which leads to the cohesion in the team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff have access to training, including how to implement the organisation’s therapeutic approach on a day-to-day basis. As a result, this comes naturally to their practice in how they care for the children. Should staff want training in a specific area, they are able to request this to further their development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The strong links with partner agencies lead to the excellent outcomes for children. Managers will appropriately challenge professionals to ensure that the right decisions are made for children. As a result, of these professional relationships children benefit from staff being able to contact and work directly with the placing authority to ensure that they have the appropriate education that meets their needs, and other services that the local authority provides.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The management team has an excellent understanding of the home and how it functions, including the areas that require further development. Development plans for staff, the care of children and the building are ambitious, yet realistic. These plans are regularly reviewed and link in with the statement of purpose to ensure that they remain relevant and aspirational. Managers make excellent use of the monthly monitoring reports completed by the independent person. They value their comments and insights as they are keen to constantly improve the experiences of children. Inspection report for children’s home: 1226266 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: 1226266 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Third Floor, Queensway, Halesowen, West Midlands B63 4AH

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Michelle Callard

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Inspector

Jennie Christopher, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1226266 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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