Ofsted Report: 'Outstanding' home strives to maintain Ofsted rating

Minster View Children's Home in Nottinghamshire might have been rated "outstanding" by Ofsted for three years in a row, but that's no reason for staff to rest on their laurels, says manager Rob Taylor. "We're constantly striving to do better," he asserts.

The children's home, run by Nottinghamshire County Council, is one of just 35 to achieve the top rating for three years running and features in Ofsted's recent report Outstanding Children's Homes. The 12-bed facility comprises an eight-bed residential unit and a four-bed unit for short breaks or respite care.

It caters for young people with severe learning disabilities ranging in age from six to 18. Most are on the autism spectrum. One char-acteristic shared by all children's homes that consistently excelled was "highly effective leadership", according to the report.

Attention to detail

Taylor, who has a diploma in social work, admits to "an almost obsessive attention to detail". "I suppose I am quite a hard task-master," he adds. "But the results are there to be seen." His team includes a deputy, five assistant care managers and 30 residential social care workers, plus admin and other support staff.

Ensuring you have the right staff is crucial, says Taylor, something highlighted in the Ofsted report.

"It's about building a team of the right people," he says. "So right from the start you're recruiting people who are passionate about their work and making a difference to these children."

A comprehensive induction programme is essential. "It's important staff know my expectations in terms of performance and professional conduct right from day one — and I have high expectations," he says.

Staff also get regular supervision and there are fortnightly team meetings, which are a chance to share successes and discuss issues.

"I try to make sure that every day I speak to every member of staff in the building, including those doing the cleaning or making the food, to show I'm interested in what they're doing and that what they bring to the home is important," says Taylor.

When it comes to caring for the children and young people, the aim is to offer support carefully tailored to their individual needs. Each young person has a residential action plan and there is plenty of planning beforehand.

"We aim to build positive relationships with key stakeholders before children come to us," says Taylor. "That might include parents, carers, social workers — so we get to know as much about that young person as possible."

Caring for this group of children means understanding their communication needs - whether that's using Makaton, sign language or pictures and symbols — and their sensory needs.

Children on the autism spectrum can be sensitive to the environment around them including light, noise and temperature, so each child has a sensory plan clearly setting out their particular likes and dislikes. It is vital that staff understand the triggers that might make a child upset and result in difficult behaviour, says Taylor.

Although children at Minster View have severe learning difficulties, it is important to have high expectations of them. "A child might know 10 symbols and that's great, but we'll want to increase that to 20 symbols and so on."

Challenges include coping with staff sickness, maintaining the high child-to-staff ratios and managing funding. "It's about making sure the young people have the best possible opportunities and activities within our budget," he says.

Key to success

Catherine Street, one of the home's residential social care workers, believes the home's focus on "person-centred planning" is key to success. "It's about building services around a young person and looking at how best to meet their needs," she says. "We're open-minded to new ways of working because the needs of young people are constantly changing."

One of the hardest parts of her job is dealing with challenging behaviour. "It can be hard, but at the same time it pushes you to look for new ways to meet a young person's needs," she says. "So even a negative turns into a positive."

She values the emphasis on training — with access to a wide range of courses - and the regular supervision. "It's really rewarding working with the young people, especially when you see a plan you've been part of working and the benefits to a young person," she concludes.

"We're proud of our 'outstanding' and want to keep it, so we are always pushing to do a bit more."

KEY POINTS

• Minster View has been rated "outstanding" by Ofsted since July 2007. Before that, it achieved top ratings from the Commission for Social Care Inspection
• The children's home is one of 12 featured in the recent Outstanding Children's Homes report published by Ofsted and available at www.ofsted.gov.uk
• Of more than 1,400 children's homes inspected by Ofsted, only 35 have achieved an "outstanding" rating each year for three consecutive years. Of those, 22 are privately run, 12 are run by local authorities and one is run by a voluntary sector provider.