Children's home run by Hartlepool Borough Council

Inspection report for children’s home: 2710606 1 Registered provider: Hartlepool Borough Council

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home provides care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and operated by a local authority. The home was registered with Ofsted on 15 December 2022.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 26 September 2023

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2710606 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/09/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2710606 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to have well-planned and positive moves in and out of the home. Staff work positively with children and their families to ensure that they have the right information about the home before moving in. This very much helps children to settle when they arrive and, overall, supports children to have positive introductions to the home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Clear care planning documents help staff to have a sound understanding of the needs of the children. Staff know the children well, and positive relationships are a key feature in the home. Children clearly benefit from the consistent care given to them by staff. The result of this is that children to feel valued and have trusting relationships with staff.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have been supported to personalise their bedrooms, which reflect their likes and personalities. They are also encouraged to have a say in how the home looks. This helps children to develop a sense of belonging.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to attend school regularly and are doing well. When difficulties arise, staff are proactive in working with schools to explore ways of preventing absences. As a result, children have positive experiences at school.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to take part in new activities and holidays away from the home. Staff spend time organising the photos of these activities into well-presented memory books. This helps children to keep memories and look back on their time in the home when they move on.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to express their views and feelings both individually and in children’s meetings. However, children’s wishes are not always acted on by staff. One child’s request for a display shelf for toys was discussed in six children’s meetings. However, it is not clear in records why this was not followed up. This means that children do not always see the results of their views being listened to.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children cannot access laundry facilities without first asking staff. The laundry is in a locked external building. This prevents children being able to wash their own clothes independently. This could impact on children’s developing their independence and dignity.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Overall, the home is a welcoming and well-furnished environment. However, there are areas that are not in keeping with the rest of the home. For example, the home has tamper-proof television cabinets, which were used historically and are not currently needed. In addition, information displayed on notice boards takes away from the homely environment. This risks giving the home a more institutionalised feel and could impact on all children’s experiences of the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710606 4

p.3

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

Children’s risk assessments are detailed and provide staff with clear information about children’s vulnerabilities. Children are supported by staff to make safe choices alongside being encouraged to take age-appropriate risks. This helps children to make informed decisions about keeping themselves safe.

p.4

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

Children’s behaviour is well managed in the home. Physical restraint happens only as a last resort and is well recorded. Restraint is performed by staff who are trained to do so and for the shortest time necessary to keep children safe. The manager has effective oversight of these incidents and ensures that children are offered the opportunity to speak to an independent advocate.

p.4

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

Various health and safety measures and risk assessment are in place to ensure that the environment is as safe as it can be for children, staff and visitors. However, the fire exits are locked at night and only able to be opened with a key. This has not been fully explored as part of the fire risk assessment. Furthermore, this practice may restrict children from being able to escape in the event of an emergency.

p.4

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

Staff promote positive behaviour by giving rewards, including verbal praise, prizes and extra pocket money. There are few sanctions given to children in the home. When sanctions are used, they are considered, restorative in nature and fully discussed with the children. This helps children to make positive choices.

p.4

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

Children do not go missing from the home. However, the manager ensures that staff are up to date with policy, practice and training should this become an issue. This helps to ensure that staff have the tools they need to keep children safe in case of missing episodes.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a suitably experienced and qualified manager. The manager has a clear view of what is currently working well in the home and areas that she wants to develop. The manager has a strong presence in the home and ensures that she spends time with the children. This helps children to develop a trusting relationship with the manager.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers know the children well. They have a thorough understanding of children’s starting points and the progress they have made while living in the home. This helps the manager and staff to continually monitor children’s progress.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place regularly and focus on the care given to children. This gives staff the opportunity to reflect on practice and take learning forward. This helps staff to agree and provide a consistent approach to the care given to children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710606 5 The manager ensures that staff receive regular supervision sessions. Records of these sessions show a focus on reflective practice and staff well-being. Staff said that they feel valued and supported by the manager.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has effective monitoring systems in place. These help her to identify strengths and areas for development in the home. When shortfalls occur, the manager takes learning from these and supports staff to alter their approach and make improvements.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that staff have access to and are supported to complete a broad range of training which benefits them in their role. This means that children are given care by staff who know how to care for them. However, few staff hold the required qualification. Leaders and managers are aware of this and have plans in place to support all staff to achieve the qualification within required timescales. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710606 6

p.5

Statutory requirement

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

p.6

Requirement Due date

provide adequate means of escape from the home in the event of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(b)) 13 December 2024

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children are able to access all shared areas of their home. This includes laundry facilities, unless there are specific reasons why this would not meet a child’s needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)  The registered person should seek as far as possible to maintain a domestic rather than ‘institutional’ impression in the home. In particular, notices and the way that information is shared and displayed should be in keeping with a homely environment. (Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that children are able to see the results of their views being listened to and acted upon. (Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 22, 4.11)

p.6

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: 2710606 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hartlepool Borough Council, Civic Centre, Victoria Road, Hartlepool TS24 8AY

p.7

Inspectors

Mark Cryer, Social Care Inspector Lisa Gordon, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2710606 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.

p.7

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8