Children's Home, Residential special school run by SES Turnstone Limited in Norfolk

Inspection report for children’s home: SC452461 1 SC452461 Registered provider: SES Turnstone Limited

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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 privately owned home offers a therapeutic model of care. The home provides long- term placements for up to 10 children who have traumatic backgrounds and may have experienced neglect or emotional abuse.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a school on site that is also run by the organisation. The inspectors only inspected the social care provision.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 2024.

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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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

Date of last inspection: 24 September 2024

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC452461 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/09/2024 Full Good 17/10/2023 Full Good 02/08/2022 Full Good 07/12/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC452461 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Since the last inspection, one child has moved out and two children have moved in. At the time of this inspection, nine children were living at the home. Five children were on a residential trip and four of the children were seen.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children achieve an unmistakeable sense of belonging at the home. One child has lived at the home for seven years and several other children have been living there for over three years. Leaders and managers remain committed to children at times of challenge. This provides children with long-term stability. The staff maintain relationships with children long after they move on. This provides children with lifelong connections.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff are highly sensitive to children’s moves in and out of the home. One child was supported to move to the provider’s sister home in a planned way. This allowed the child to maintain connections with staff and receive the right care in a different home. Leaders and managers meticulously explore children’s needs before they move into the home. They consult the children living at the home and carefully plan introductions before a new child moves in. This supports successful moves for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Leaders think ahead to incorporate children’s changing needs. Since the last inspection, they have extended the home with a new building next to the main house. This offers children a private space as part of their plans for independence. Two children live there supported by staff. This provides additional space for all children and gives those living there the opportunity to build life skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children are provided with an excellent package of care and education tailored to their needs. The learning centre is on site. Each child’s care plan is built around their specific learning needs. Children benefit from externally commissioned forest school sessions. They make use of the extensive grounds, which fully supports outdoor learning. The staff and the school staff work very closely together, offering children a model of 24-hour learning opportunities. Children who were previously not accessing any education now access a full-time bespoke curriculum. This is significant progress from their starting points.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff create exceptional experiences for children. Children undertake a variety of adventure-based opportunities to help build their self-esteem, including sailing trips, hiking and camping. Children go on holidays and have a wide variety of days out to countrywide attractions. Staff have supported one child to visit all the football stadiums in England to support the child’s specific interests. Staff build traditions with children through repeated annual events. Summer and winter activities, such as a festival in the summer, are repeated each year. These wide-ranging and creative opportunities build memories for children to cherish. Inspection report for children’s home: SC452461 4 Staff are highly skilled at supporting children to build relationships with their families. Some children have been supported to rebuild important family connections after not spending any time together. Staff plan this at a pace that is suited to each child’s needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Some children have frequent overnight stays with their families. A social worker said that the staff ‘went above and beyond’ to support a child to spend time with their family in a safe way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff support children to explore their identity and culture. Children have taken part in days out to areas in the country that have cultural significance to them. Staff create a safe environment for children to express their individual identity. A social worker said that their child has been able to flourish because staff have embraced their individuality.

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

This inspection was brought forward to address specific concerns or allegations received by Ofsted.

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

Since the last inspection, there have been several reported incidents between the children. Leaders and managers have taken these concerns seriously. They have worked closely with each child’s local authority and have agreed safety plans in place. Children receive good care that supports them to stay safer.

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

Children rarely go missing from the home. When children do go missing, staff immediately look for children and encourage them to return home. Children are usually away from the home for short periods of time and therefore this rarely involves the need for any police support. Staff welcome children home and help them to settle when they do return. The manager advocates for return home interviews to help understand why children may have gone missing.

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

Leaders and managers commission specialist support from a therapeutic team, including a psychiatrist and systemic family therapist. These professionals are experts in their field. This input provides clinical support to children, families and staff. Leaders use guidance from the psychiatrist to inform specialist care plans for children.

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

Staff are helping children to understand their life history through sensitively planned life- story work. This work is complex and specific. The staff undertake this work with children to provide consistency. This is overseen by the clinical psychiatrist to ensure this is safe, effective and meeting the needs of the children.

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

Staff help children to learn from their behaviours by having regular conversations about making good choices. Staff use these restorative conversations in place of consequences whenever possible, to help children learn about their behaviours. This is helping children to think about their thoughts, feelings and actions.

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

Staff work closely with school staff to ensure that children are helped to understand healthy relationships. Children can identify trusted adults they would rather speak to Inspection report for children’s home: SC452461 5 about these issues who may either be school staff or home staff. This collaborative work means children are spoken with by the best suited member of staff to help them explore sensitive subjects.

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

Leaders, managers and staff understand children’s vulnerabilities and the steps they need to take to keep them safe. Staff help children live together as safely as possible. However, for two of the children, their individual risk assessments lack detailed information about specific risks. This does not help the staff who are caring for children understand how to reduce risks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is managed by an experienced and qualified manager who is highly ambitious for children. Leaders and managers have high aspirations for children. The manager is dedicated to providing an excellent service to the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager’s oversight of the home is exceptional. She uses a variety of meetings and tracking tools to ensure that children’s experiences are evaluated and their progress is tracked over time. Leaders and managers have comprehensive review mechanisms for monitoring incidents, such as when the staff use physical interventions. This helps leaders to extensively review the effectiveness of these interventions and ensure they are necessary and proportionate for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is keen to learn and improve her practice. She has attended a national conference event for children’s homes. Leaders and managers facilitate their own care conference and invited a well-known care-experienced author and trainer to deliver training to the whole team. Having this approach to learning helps to inspire staff to continue to progress with their development and provide well-informed care to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff speak highly of the manager. She provides them with considerable support to help them meet children’s needs. Staff receive regular supervision sessions and training, as well as specialist sessions with the systemic family therapist and psychiatrist.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is consistent communication between the manager, staff and the on-site school staff about children’s needs. This joined-up working is highly effective in supporting the overall team to meet children’s needs in a flexible way.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers are aspirational for children. They nominated children for national awards in youth engagement and three children received commendations for different contributions that they have made to their community. These children attended a national awards ceremony to receive their certificates. This helps children to feel highly valued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Feedback from several social workers highlighted the excellent progress that their children have made because of living at the home. Inspection report for children’s home: SC452461 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. In particular, ensure that all relevant information is recorded across children’s plans and shared with staff. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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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: SC452461 7

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Children’s home details

Provision sub-type: Residential special school

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: SES Turnstone Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Old Vicarage, School Lane, Heckingham, Norwich NR14 6QP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Victoria Collings

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Inspectors

Rebecca Hannell, Social Care Inspector Mary Costello, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC452461 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

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Inspectors

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