Children's Home run by Keys Care Limited in Buckinghamshire

Inspection report for children's home: 2543427 1 Registered provider: Keys Care Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is one of a group of homes that make up the Cross Regional Project, which has been set up between Keys Group and four local authorities: Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes. The home is registered to provide care for up to four children who may experience social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Four children were living at 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 October 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2543427 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/04/2023 Full Good 14/06/2022 Full Good 09/08/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2543427 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are able to make progress because of the positive relationships that they have with staff. They say that they feel safe, they can talk to staff when they need to and they want to spend time with them. One child said, ‘It’s cool here, it’s like a normal family home.’ The home is decorated and furnished to a high standard and children’s bedrooms reflect their personalities. As a result, children are growing up in a positive environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to express themselves. Children’s individuality is celebrated, and they are accepted for who they are. Staff help children to better understand each other’s differences. This has enabled the children to become more confident.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are accessing education that is suitable for their needs. They are encouraged to attend school full time, and staff work with schools to make alternative arrangements when this is not possible due to children’s needs. When new children move into the home, plans are already in place for them to access school promptly, to minimise disruption to their education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to stay in touch with people who are important to them. Children’s friends visit them at the home, and children are helped to learn the skills required to be able to visit friends independently. Managers have worked alongside families to help them to better understand children’s needs. This has helped children to build positive relationships with their families.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to learn important life skills such as cooking, cleaning and maintaining good self-care. This helps children to prepare for their futures. One young person had a well-planned move into semi-independent provision, in line with their wishes. Since they have left the home, staff and managers have remained in touch to provide informal advice and support. This practice helps children by maintaining important relationships while they move on to the next stage of their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

However, preparation for when children move into the home has been inconsistent. For example, one child’s bedroom had not been prepared before they moved in. In addition, when one child moved into the home, information about them had not been made available to all staff beforehand. As a result, staff are not always confident in the approach that they should take to meet the children’s identified needs.

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

Staff understand how to respond to safeguarding issues relating to children. They work closely with the children and help them to understand any actions which have put them and others at risk. As a result, the number of high-risk incidents is reducing. Inspection report for children's home: 2543427 4 When children are unhappy about the care that they have received, managers respond appropriately to investigate their concerns. Children are kept up to date and receive a written reply and a clear explanation of any actions that have been taken. Managers work closely with the professional network to share information about concerns.

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

When children go missing, staff respond quickly to help make sure that children return safely. They notify other agencies, such as the police, and help to locate children to bring them home. Because of their relationships with staff, children have stayed in touch when away from the home to tell them that they are safe. When children return, staff seek to understand the child’s motivations, so that they can try to prevent recurrence. For one child, this has resulted in a significant reduction in the frequency of episodes of going missing.

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

When children experience feelings of distress, staff are skilled in helping them to become safer and find more positive strategies to express themselves. Staff have used monitoring systems to recognise patterns of behaviour and have sought the views of children to change staff’s approach. On occasions when staff have needed to use physical intervention, this has been done appropriately and for the least amount of time needed to keep children and others safe.

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

Health and safety is well managed in the home. When maintenance issues arise, these are quickly rectified. Children live in a well-maintained and safe environment. Staff help children to understand what action to take in emergencies.

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

Processes to ensure that staff are recruited safely are robust and are supported by the wider organisation. Relevant checks are made to minimise the risks of children being cared for by inappropriate adults.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders are passionate about delivering high-quality care to children. They are ambitious about children’s outcomes and advocate for them strongly. They encourage children to take positive and reasonable risks to develop their independence. This means that children are being prepared for challenges that they may face in future.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive frequent practice-related supervision and appraisal. This allows them to reflect on their performance and adapt their approach as required. When new staff join the home, they receive a high-quality induction, and a period of probation is used to ensure that they are suitable to work in the home. As a result, children receive consistent care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff say that they are well supported and speak positively about the manager. They feel confident to raise any issues with the leadership team. Staff describe an inclusive working environment in which they feel valued. This approach to acceptance is role modelled to children. Inspection report for children's home: 2543427 5 Managers confidently explain the progress that children have made since coming into their care. When this progress has been impeded, they have used effective monitoring systems to identify trends and barriers and have involved specialists to create plans, which allow children to continue to develop their own self-help skills.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Strong networking by managers ensures that children have the support that they need. Managers work closely with education providers and advocate for children when required. Feedback from external professionals about the home is positive. One said, ‘It’s a really incredible home, and they work well with us. They have such a commitment to young people.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children are positive about the how the home is managed. Managers listen to children, and their views are clearly demonstrated in the development plans for the home. Children say that when they make suggestions or want to influence change, they are listened to. Inspection report for children's home: 2543427 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that there are procedures in place for welcoming and introducing each child to the home. They should ensure that children’s bedrooms are prepared and that staff confidently understand how to meet the identified needs of children new to the home as set out in their relevant plans. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 57, paragraph 11.7)

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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: 2543427 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: C/o Pinsent Masons LLP, The Soloist Building, 1 Lanyon Place, Belfast, Northern Ireland BT1 3LP

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Inspector

Glen Strowbridge, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2543427 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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