Children's homes inspection Full Inspection date 25/10/2016 Unique reference number Type of inspection Provision subtype Registered provider Registered provider address SC461275 Full Children's home Options BESD (1) Limited Turnpike Gate House, Alcester Heath, Alcester, Warwickshire B49 5JG Responsible individual Registered manager Inspector Richard Jones Stewart Hogg Paul Robinson 1
Inspection date 25/10/2016 Previous inspection judgement Enforcement action since last inspection This inspection The overall experiences and progress of children and young people living in the home are Sustained effectiveness None Good The children's home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good. How well children and young people are helped and protected The impact and effectiveness of leaders and managers Good Good 2
SC461275 Summary of findings The children's home provision is good because: Good staff planning helps young people to make positive progress educationally, emotionally and socially. The manager and staff create a relaxing and friendly atmosphere that enables young people to gain a sense of belonging. Staff work hard to respond to young people s initial challenging behaviours. Staff work hard to ensure that young people continue to attend full-time education and achieve academic success. Young people move on into foster care after well-planned transitions. Staff are knowledgeable over how to respond to safeguarding concerns. Young people become increasingly safe due to the support offered by staff. The registered manager uses staff supervision and team meetings to create a supportive environment in which staff are able to meet the needs of young people. Some areas of practice require improvement. Not all staff have completed the level 3 diploma in residential childcare, risk assessments are not always kept up to date and young people are not given sufficient support to stay safe online. 3
What does the children's home need to do to improve? Statutory Requirements This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person(s) meets the Care Standards Act 2000, 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. Requirement The registered provider must ensure that staff have the appropriate qualification for the work that they perform by the date which falls within two years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home. (Regulation 32 (4) and (5)) 12: The protection of children standard In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. This is with specific reference to the review of risk assessments. The registered person must ensure: (2) (a) (i) that staff assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child's relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. 11: The positive relationships standard In order to meet the positive relationships standard the registered person must ensure that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on: (2) (a) (vi) that staff help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child's age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful. This is with specific reference to online safety. Due date 10/12/2016 10/12/2016 10/12/2016 4
Full report Information about this children's home The home is registered to provide care for up to two young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is privately owned and forms part of a large social care organisation. Recent inspection history Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 22/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 23/09/2015 Full Good 26/03/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness 23/07/2014 Full Good 5
Inspection Judgements Judgement grade The overall experiences and progress of children and young people living in the home are Good Young people enjoy positive and effective relationships with staff, which enable them to make meaningful progress in their lives. Young people told the inspector that staff are nice and they know how to have fun. One young person said, It s not like other homes I have been to. I really like it here. This respectful relationship means that young people feel happy and are settled in the home. Staff provide young people with lots of opportunities to talk and share their views and opinions. For example, young people are able to talk to staff through regular key work sessions, house meetings and questionnaires. When speaking about key work sessions, one young person told the inspector, I like them. They check that I am doing OK and ask me how I am. As a result, young people feel that staff listen to them and understand how they feel. Staff plan young people s contact well. This includes considering community activities, which enable contacts to be fun, relaxed and memorable. This can include going out for a meal, bowling, go-karting or visiting a local shop. When families visit the home for the first time, staff make sure that everyone feels very welcome, even allowing them to bring along their family pet. This enables families to continue to feel involved in their child s life, and as a result, young people do not feel isolated from their family. Staff value young people s education. This includes developing strong links with school to ensure that good lines of communication are maintained. When issues emerge, staff attend meetings and when necessary attend school with young people to provide support, advice and reassurance. Staff use their partnership with the school to address any barriers to young people s learning. This coordinated approach enables the educational needs of young people to be well met. This has been particularly effective in ensuring that one young person has been able to maintain their placement at school despite some challenging behaviours being displayed. Consequently, young people have overcome their difficulties with school attendance and are making good progress in their learning. Particular health needs that may affect the outcome for young people are identified at the earliest opportunity by staff who actively seek out the services needed to address them. For example, staff work in partnership with the integrated clinical team in order to get guidance on how best to support young people. Staff say that the support that they get from the clinical team is fantastic and really helps them to understand how best to work with young people. This means that staff understand young people s emotional health needs and offer them all the necessary help required. Young people are given the opportunities by staff to engage in a range of positive 6
social and recreational activities. For example, young people have opportunities to attend scouts, cadets, and a youth club and skate board parks. A young person told the inspector, The activities are great. We get to do all sorts. When a young person s motivation dips, staff are quick to identify an alternative activity. As a result, young people remain engaged and receive the help to make progress in respect of their self-esteem, confidence and social skills. Staff prepare young people well for moving into the home. For example, the registered manager actively encourages young people to visit for tea and attend for a recreational activity with existing young people. The registered manager described to the inspector how one young person was excited about being invited to tea, and subsequently was keen to move in. This helps young people to have a well-informed transition to their new home. As a result, young people settle into the home quickly. Staff equally prepare young people in readiness for leaving the home. For example, staff work closely with the local authority fostering team to ensure that the right support is put in place in preparation for any potential move to foster care. This well-coordinated partnership working ensures that the right support continues to be in place following a young person s discharge from the home. Judgement grade How well children and young people are helped and protected Good Young people say that they feel safe. For example, one young person said that they would score 10 out of 10 for how safe they feel. Young people s engagement with therapeutic intervention helps them to reduce self-harming behaviour. Because of this support, young people have learned the skills that they need to regulate their emotions more safely. When young people go missing, staff take decisive action to ensure that they minimise the potential risk to young people. Staff reflect on these incidents in order to understand the young people s triggers. Because of this preventative work, young people s risk-taking behaviour reduces. Some of the strategies used by staff include offering young people a range of positive activities in school holidays to keep them occupied. As a result, young people significantly reduce the number of episodes where they go missing. Good staff relationships with young people help to reduce the frequency of conflict in the home. One member of staff told the inspector, Physical interventions are a last resort. We try to de-escalate situations, talk to them, calm them down, use humour or talk about something else. Young people also told the inspector that, There are rules but they are fair. As a result of staff support, young people develop the skills to learn how to regulate their emotions. Staff praise and reward young people for good behaviour. Rewards vary from trips 7
out, breakfast in bed, treats or extra computer and console time. When young people s behaviour is not acceptable, staff discuss with them in a calm way helping young people to reflect and learn. A staff member told the inspector, You need to get them when they are calm, then you can really talk through what happened and why. You then go back to them later to offer them reassurance and see if there is anything else that is bothering them. While young people do no present as being at risk of exploitation, staff do not always use their strong relationships with young people to help them develop an increased awareness of how to keep themselves safe when using social media. The registered manager has ensured that there are risk assessments in place to enable staff to understand how to support young people to stay safe. However, these assessments are not actively reviewed by staff and therefore do not consistently reflect the changing risk profiles of young people. This means that staff do not have up-to-date information that enables them to make sure that their strategies remain effective. Judgement grade The impact and effectiveness of leaders and managers Good The registered manager has a number of years experience in residential care. He has been in his current post since February 2013. The registered manager has completed the national vocational qualification level 4 in health and social care. Out of the seven staff employed by the home, the majority either have completed or are working towards their level 3 diploma in residential childcare within the required period. However, one member of staff has not completed the qualification within two years of them starting in post. The registered manager s diligent checks have ensured that only suitably vetted staff work with young people. This means that only appropriate staff get to care for young people. The registered manager ensures that the statement of purpose is clear in setting out what care the home will provide and how this will be provided. The registered manager uses supervision and team meetings as a means of ensuring that staff have a supportive environment that promotes good practice. As a result, staff say that they enjoy their work and are happy. The registered manager recognises the strengths and weaknesses of the home. He is receptive to new ideas and is willing to adapt practice to ensure that the home achieves good outcomes for young people. The registered manager makes sure that all staff attend a good range of training. This includes training in safeguarding, behaviour management, therapeutic support and attachment. This helps to promotes staff s ability to care for young people. The registered manager and staff have developed effective working relationships with partner agencies including the police, placing authorities and school. An 8
independent reviewing officer told the inspector, Where behaviours have been risky, the home has liaised with the authority on how to manage this. This coordinated approach means that young people get the best possible all round support that they need to thrive. 9
What the inspection judgements mean The experiences and progress of children and young people are at the centre of the inspection. Inspectors will use their professional judgement to determine the weight and significance of their findings in this respect. The judgements included in the report are made against Inspection of children's homes: framework for inspection. An outstanding children's home provides highly effective services that contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help and protection and care. Their progress exceeds expectations and is sustained over time. A good children's home provides effective services that help, protect and care for children and young people and have their welfare safeguarded and promoted. In a children's home that requires improvement, there are no widespread or serious failures that create or leave children being harmed or at risk of harm. The welfare of looked after children is safeguarded and promoted. Minimum requirements are in place. However, the children's home is not yet delivering good protection, help and care for children and young people. A children's home that is inadequate is providing services where there are widespread or serious failures that create or leave children and young people being harmed or at risk of harm or that result in children looked after not having their welfare safeguarded and promoted. 10
Information about this inspection Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people living in the children's home. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference adults make to the lives of children and young people. They read case files, watched how professional staff work with children, young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care given to children and young people. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people and their families. In addition, the inspectors have tried to understand what the children's home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people who it is trying to help, protect and look after. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service 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. 11
Any complaints about the inspection or the report should be made following the procedures set out in the guidance raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) regulates and inspects to 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, workbased learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for looked after children and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, 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. This publication is available at www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted. Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/itrdn. Piccadilly Gate Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted Crown copyright 2016 12