Children's Home run by Oxfordshire County Council in Oxfordshire

Inspection report for children's home: 1244426 1 Registered provider: Oxfordshire County 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 run by a local authority. It cares for up to six children with social, emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home provides short-term care and accommodation on a shared-care basis for a period of assessment. Three children were living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children's home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2024.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account good

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Overall experiences and progress of

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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Overall experiences and progress of

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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Overall experiences and progress of

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

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Overall experiences and progress of

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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Overall experiences and progress of

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 1244426 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/07/2023 Full Good 15/11/2022 Full Good 04/10/2021 Full Good 31/07/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 1244426 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a purpose-built home that is welcoming, warm and homely. The communal areas are well decorated and comfortably furnished with children’s needs and wants firmly in mind. All children’s bedrooms are decorated to a good standard, and children are encouraged to personalise their bedrooms. For example, most children hang memorabilia on their walls.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive individualised care from staff who care about them and show sensitivity when attending to their needs. Staff know the children well. They are listened to, and staff spend valuable time with children. Staff protect children and promote their welfare. One child said that they felt safe in the home and would be able to speak to any staff member if they did not feel safe. Another child was observed to approach staff for hugs, which supported her to feel calm and supported. One professional said, ‘This may be their first experience of good adult role models.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to make good progress from their starting points. For example, staff put in place incentive plans for children to support them to make progress in key areas of their development. Where this is not effective, staff and leaders recognise this and change targets so that children's self-esteem is not damaged. This thoughtful approach shows a focus on children's development and well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are well supported when moving in or out of the home. There are well- considered, child-focused transitions in place. Staff include children in the plans when they move on, and keep them well informed. Children are aware that the home is somewhere that assessments are carried out to plan their next steps, and staff make sure that they understand what those steps are. For example, staff told one child about their next steps during the inspection and caringly discussed this with them. This meant that staff could support the child’s feelings and keep them safe. Children being clear on their transition plans helps them to feel ready and equipped for the next stage of their life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff attend to children’s health needs in a sensitive and supportive manner. Staff consult with medical professionals, which results in children having the support they need and clear progress in their mental and physical health. However, medical records are not always accurately completed, which leaves room for error and some risk to children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are ambitious for children and support them to take part in their learning. Children are engaged in educational activities. These may not be traditional paths, but they help children to learn in areas that are of interest to them. An education professional said, ‘The young person I work with has engaged more consistently with sessions and seems to be in better place than when we started.’ Inspection report for children's home: 1244426 4

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

Children who harm themselves are well supported by staff. There are clear risk assessments in place. If concerns escalate, the manager works closely with children’s networks. As a result, risk is managed by the multi-agency team. Staff know which children need additional vigilance and the strategies to support risks. Managers are acutely aware of the potential emotional toll on staff, and they make themselves available for support as needed.

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

Staff respond to children going missing well. They work with other professionals to consider the risk and formulate plans to reduce the missing episodes. A parent told inspectors that although there are times when their child goes missing from the home, these episodes have reduced significantly in comparison to when they lived at home. However, despite the manager making requests for independent return home interviews, there have been times when these have been delayed. This delays the opportunities for staff to learn about, understand and plan to reduce such incidents further.

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

When new children are referred to the home, managers carefully consider the context of the home and the children already living there. Where there may be competing or similar needs, managers identify mitigating factors. For example, when one child moved into the home, staffing was changed to make sure that comparable risks could be managed. A clear analysis and recommendation to senior managers are made, which are additional safeguards to ensuring that children in the home can be supported.

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

Staff physically intervene with children as a last resort. The manager oversees all records and there is reflection about how incidents happened and learning from them. There are additional safeguards, such as the physical intervention leads reviewing all records as well. This ensures that restraint is proportionate.

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

Managers and leaders have a good understanding of safe recruitment. They ensure that they have sufficient checks in place to be assured about staff's safety to work with children. If any concerns are raised about staff practice, leaders and the manager take these seriously and investigate them thoroughly. Where necessary, they also engage with external safeguarding professionals, such as the local authority designated officer.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a calm, knowledgeable manager who is supported by an experienced responsible individual and committed deputy manager. Staff are confident in their leaders and the support that they know is available.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision where children are the focus. Staff also attend regular team meetings and have access to a wide range of training. However, not all staff are trained in areas of significant concern about children. Staff do appear to have knowledge and guidance, but completing up-to-date training would help them to provide even safer care. Inspection report for children's home: 1244426 5 Managers and leaders actively challenge decisions made by other professionals if there are concerns that the decisions are not in children’s best interest. For example, the registered manager intervened when the police wanted to handcuff a child when they came to speak to them about an incident. The manager was clear that this was not necessary and would be a frightening and unnecessary experience for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers and leaders work well with other professionals to ensure that children receive consistent levels of care. They ensure that all staff and professionals work together so that children receive individual care in line with their care plans. In addition, managers and leaders support staff to focus on balancing the children’s safety with allowing them to take measured risk, as they understand that children need to have appropriate freedom to develop.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children participate fully in the work of the home. They take part in regular meetings where they are supported to share their views. The manager responds to all their ideas. As a result, children feel valued by staff. Inspection report for children's home: 1244426 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that medication records are accurately completed. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 35, paragraph 7.15)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 53 paragraph 10.11)

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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: 1244426 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Oxfordshire County Council, County Hall, New Road, Oxford OX1 1ND

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Inspectors

Ruth Okezie, Social Care Inspector Karol Keenan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1244426 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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

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