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Every child deserves a chance

The past is something that’s gone forever The future is something we will work on together

Statement of Purpose

Serenity

June 2015

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Content

Page no.

Quality and purpose of care 3

1. Statement of intent 3

2. The homes ethos, the outcomes that the home seeks to achieve and approach to achieving them.

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3. A description of the accommodation offered by the children’s home 4

4. A description of the home location 4

5. The arrangements for supporting the cultural, linguistic and religious needs of the girls accommodated in the home.

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6. Details of who to contact if a person has a complaint about the home and how that person can access the homes complaint policy.

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7. Details of how a person, body or organisation involved in the care or protection of a child can access the homes child protection policies or the behaviour management policy.

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Views, wishes and feelings 7

8. A description of the homes policy and approach to consulting children about the quality of their care.

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9. Anti-discriminatory practise in respect of children and their families and Children’s rights. 7-8

Education

10. Details of the provision to support children with special educational needs. 8

Enjoy and achievement

11. The arrangements for enabling children to take part in and benefit from variety of activities that meet their strengths and needs.

8-9

Health

12. Details of any healthcare or therapy provided 9-10

Positive relationships

13. The arrangements for promoting contact between children and their families and friends. 10-11

Protection of children

14. Consulting girls about the quality of their care. 11

15. Behavioural support, including information about – 12

a) Safeguarding; 12

b) Missing from home 12

c) Bullying 13

d) Rewards and Sanctions 13

e) The homes approach to restraint and in relation to children 14

f) How the persons working in the home are trained in restraint and how their competence is assessed.

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Leadership and management

16. The name and work address of: a) The registered provider (including details of the company owning the children’s

home ); b) If nominated, the responsible individual; c) If appointed, the registered manager.

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17. Details of the experience and qualifications of staff working at the children’s home, including any staff commissioned to provide education and health care.

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18. Details of the management and staffing structure of the children’s home, including arrangements for the professional supervision of staff employed at the Serendipity Centre

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19. Staff gender mix 17

Care Planning 20. Any criteria used for the admission of children to the home, including any policies and

procedures for emergency admission.

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Quality and purpose of care

1. Statement of intent

Serenity is one of three registered children’s home owned and run by the company trading

under the name of The Serendipity Centre Ltd. We also have The Serendipity School, which

is rated outstanding by Ofsted to support our young people with their educational needs.

Girls placed at Serenity are between the ages of 9-18 years old. They may have experienced

emotional and/or physical trauma as the result of abuse or have a mental health diagnosis.

The needs of the girls vary according to their cognitive ability and understanding. Some of

our girls have a diagnosis such as Global Learning Delay, Asperger’s, Autism, Post-

traumatic Stress Disorder, Attachment Disorder, and ADHD (this list is not exhaustive); they

may also have dual diagnosis. The objective is to support each girl individually within our

therapeutic approach. Serenity is not equipped for girls with physical disabilities, although

each girl is looked at individually at referral. Consideration to adapting to meet the girls needs

would be considered, if our team felt we could achieve outstanding outcomes for the girl.

Serenity prides itself on the safeguarding of the girls, having explicit plans to protect them

from sexual exploitation and other high risk situations they may find themselves in.

2. The homes ethos

“The past is something that is gone forever. The future is something we will work on

together.”

Our mission at Serenity is to ensure that every girl is safe and free from harm. We aim to

make a positive difference to the lives of the girls, who may have experienced significant

trauma in their lives, resulting in emotional, behavioural and social difficulty.

The girls may display emotional and behavioural difficulties in a range of forms, verbal and

physical aggression, and bullying, absconding, self-harm, inappropriate sexual behaviour,

criminal and challenging behaviour. Serenity recognises that each girl is unique and of equal

worth, each one of them having their own individual combination of needs and ability.

The staff upholds the right of each girl to access the same experience as others, irrespective

of age, gender, and ethnicity.

We seek to build self–esteem and confidence so that each girl is steered and prepared for

a life of happiness, purpose, self-autonomy and independence.

The staff team recognise that children learn by ‘modelling’ and will ensure they are good role

models so they assist the girls in forming good strong attachments and build positive

relationships. Through these attachments the staff team will provide a consistent approach

allowing them opportunities for positive new experiences, using the community around them

as much as possible.

The staff team will keep the girls safe by helping them to understand the risks they may

expose themselves to, giving those strategies and tools to be able to communicate, verbally,

visually, and through written word. Serenity team will ensure that the girls have a part in the

planning of their daily lives and to plan for their future.

Serendipity has a saying “If it is good enough for our own children then it is good enough for

our girls”. The staff use this as a foundation for decision-making and always seek what is

best for the girls in their care.

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3. Accommodation

Serenity offers a homely environment that is comfortable and has been adapted to meet the

standards required for a children’s home and meets all health and safety and fire regulations.

Lower ground floor

Large lounge area with television, large settees, patio doors looking out on to the

garden which consists of approximately 9 acres.

Open plan kitchen/dining/living room with large dining room table so the girls and staff

team can eat meals together

Play area, television, cooking and kitchen area,

Patio doors looking out on to beautiful gardens which include paddock housing 3

alpacas and a number of horses.

Utility room, washing machine tumble dryer, second fridge, large freezer, Cleaning

cupboard (securely locked) sink and draining area. Cupboard space.

Hallway for front door.

Small chill-out room housing the computer which is for the young people.

Easy access toilet

First floor

Landing leading to

3 identical girl’s bedrooms all with on-suite facilities

2 Staff sleep in rooms with en-suite and office space

Second floor

3 girl’s bedrooms all with on-suite facilities

All girls have their own bedroom and at no time will they share a bedroom. Serenity is

decorated to the highest standard and any damage is quickly repaired by the maintenance

team.

4. Location.

Serenity is located in the village of Hedge End area which is on the outskirts of the city of

Southampton in Hampshire. It is perfectly placed to access the beauty spots of the south

coast and the New Forest both only being a short drive away. The village of Hedge End is a

short walk away and allows for the girls to gain independence skills due to the proximity of

the home.

We have good links within the community and is walking distance from the local swimming

pool and parks.

The Doctors surgery and opticians are in the village, the specialist dentist we use for the

girls is only a short drive away.

The location ensures easy access to the train service and other public transport.

5. Cultural, linguistic and religious needs

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The cultural, linguistic and religious beliefs of the girls accommodated in the home are

supported by the staff team. All girls are encouraged to follow their own culture and the

religious beliefs of their culture and any requirements specific to their religion (e.g. prayer

books, prayer mats or halal meat) are provided for within the homes’ budgets. Serenity have

community contact with local churches and the local mosque. The staff team believe that it

is important to have an understanding of culture, diversity ethnicity, and sexual orientation

and value each girl’s individuality.

6. The arrangements for dealing with complaints.

Our philosophy and working practise is based on equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory

living and practise. Our girls and staff team are supported in such a way that if they feel they

are not being treated fairly they have the right to complain.

Due to the cognitive ability of some of our girls we encourage the use of ‘worry forms.’ These

allow for pictures and visuals to support what the girl is saying. Serenity has a child-friendly

flow chart that shows the girls what a complaint/worry is and what happens when you raise

one. The girls guide booklet shows them how and who they can make a complaint to. Staff

will support the girls filling in the forms as needed.

The girls have many opportunities to voice if they are unhappy, such as their weekly 1-1, key

work sessions, house meetings, reviews and professional network meetings.

The home displays the number for Ofsted and child line and advocacy service for the girls.

The independent Regulation 44 visits, independent reviewing officers, social workers visits,

are also times when the girls voice can be heard.

All girls can make a private phone call in the office, or use the house mobile ensuring that

if they need to make a complaint about a staff member or their care, they have a confidential

opportunity to do so.

If the girls do not want to complain to staff they can write to the responsible person;

Sue Tinson

The Serendipity centre

1st Floor, Goodland’s House

St Luke’s close

Hedge End

Southampton

S030 2US

Phone number; 02380 422255

Ofsted can be called directly on: 0300 123 1231 or at enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk

The staff hand book contains details on how to complain; all staff have a copy given to

them at their induction.

7. Access to Protection Policies and Behaviour Management Policies`

Any person, body or organisation involved in the care or protection of a child can access

our child protection policy, our promoting positive behaviour policy, complaints policy and

bullying policy on our website.

Views, wishes and feelings

8. Consulting girls about the quality of their care.

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The views of the girls placed at Serenity are regularly sought and acted upon. This is

achieved through weekly house meetings and the girls’ views are then fed into the staff

team meetings. On several occasions during the year the home will have a joint meeting

so staff and girls can discuss any issues as a whole group and all views are shared. These

meetings encourage the girls to voice their views on the daily running of the home. The

house rules are always discussed at the house meeting and decided together.

The girls all make choices for their own bedrooms picking their own colour scheme and

picking bedding and a rug to match. They are encouraged to make this their own space.

The time scale of this varies according to the girl’s individual needs, some girls feel

overwhelmed by having too much given at once on placement. This forms part of the

transition plan and the team settling the girl into Serenity.

Girls are encouraged to do group chores; they discuss the rota for chores at house

meetings. They are supported to keep their bedrooms clean; this again is individual to each

girl’s needs. The rational of starting very basic chores as part of group living leads into skills

for independence.

The girls complete an ‘All about Me’ with a member of staff, they have support from their

champion and it’s their voice on how they would like to be looked after, and what they want

from their care team, this then feeds into their support plan. All girls are asked if they are

happy to give consent for the independent regulation 44 visitor to have access to their files

as part of their role to ensure they are well looked after.

Rewards and sanctions

The aim of the Serenity team is to reward positive behaviour, wherever possible adding in

rewards, keeping behaviour positive, rather than taking away in the negative. Girls are

encouraged to be part of their sanction and rewards and sign to say they agree with what

has been put in place. Helping the girls to learn self-regulation through praise, feeling safe

and secure is paramount and staff will help the girls achieve this through;

Discussing the actions and consequence with the individual

Helping girls to take responsibility by helping them to ‘put things right’

Reward charts

Behaviour contracts

1-1 time at key times during the day to support positive behaviour e.g. settling at

bedtime, planning a clear bedtime routine.

Consulting the girls on what would they like or feel would help support them.

Sanctions are recognised as necessary where some behaviour is un- acceptable; the

sanction should always fit the behaviour and not become a punitive measure of control.

The girls should be consulted on all sanctions and encouraged to sign they agree with the

sanction.

Sanctions which are not permitted:

Corporal punishment

Deprivation of food and drink

Restriction of contact visits or communication

Withholding medication

The use of accommodation to physically restrict the liberty of any child

Intentional deprivation of sleep

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Intimate physical searches

Sending a girl to bed or bedroom.

9. Anti-discriminatory practice and children’s rights.

Serenity forms part of The Serendipity Centre Ltd which has an intranet to communicate to

the whole service. All policies and procedures can be found on the intranet and they are

updated in line with any legislation.

We believe that all girls, staff and families should be treated equally, with respect,

understanding and acknowledging the rights of the child, staff and family.

We believe all girls are equally entitled to have their needs met and to be free from abuse

and exploitation. Each girl has a champion who ensures that they understand their rights

and ensure that they are met. Within key work meetings the girls are encouraged to share

their views and to have an understanding of what their rights are; they are supported to

know they are listened to and treated equally and fairly.

We are an organisation that is committed to equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory

practise both in terms of the girls who are placed with us and staff team who work for us.

Education

10. Details of provision to support children with special educational needs.

Girls placed with us can attend The Serendipity School if this is part of their plan. All

Education needs are supported in line with the girls Education plan and girls are supported

wherever they access education. The staff will liaise with the school in regard to any

communication aids which will help the girls and will work in a manner which is sympathetic

with their learning style.

All girls are supported to do their homework and reading is often planned into the bedtime

routine. After school clubs and activities are supported and the main aim for any activity is

to have fun and enjoy the excitement of a new challenge; the emphases is always on lifting

self-esteem, social skills, trust, responsibility and awareness of others.

We consider Education to be essential in the girl’s future, the staff team therefore place

emphasis on attendance and enjoyment. The staff team also see that opportunities outside

the school day can help increase learning and social independence skills, they use AQA

alongside the independence framework.

The staff team ensure they are in communication with all Education providers involved with

each individual girl and have regular meetings to ensure the best outcome for the girls is

achieved.

Parents evening and other appointments with the education facility are attended and any

after school clubs are promoted.

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Enjoyment and achievement

11. We aim to provide a broad range of community and leisure activities. These activities are

to give each girl a vast range of experience and to possibly find a talent that the girl can

exceed in and pursue. The girl will always be part of the decision in finding activities that

they want to try. Current activities are:

Stage coach (interact especially for young people with additional needs )

Varied youth clubs (so all abilities are catered for )

St Johns ambulance

Girls brigade

Girl Guides

Trampoline (including Just Jump an inclusive trampoline group)

Horse riding

Stable management

Pony club

Choir (varied different groups including church groups )

Dancing (varied clubs )

Army cadets

Swimming club

Football

Hockey

St John’s First Aid

This list is not exhaustive we will always look for anything that we feel a girl could excel in

and which will lift self-esteem.

Other leisure activities include;

The Farm

Walks

Cinema

Crafty Saturday

Theatre

Gym

Beach

Theme parks

Fair

Crabbing

Gardening

Again this list is not exhaustive and we will always look for different ways to help the girl

explore and discover enjoyment from any form of activity.

At Serenity we like our girls to find an activity that helps them to become part of the

community and build their self-worth. This activity will be a safe activity and will never be

withdrawn as a sanction; a girl may not attend if there is a safeguarding issue that prevents

this. At Serenity the girls are part of planning for their summer holiday. We want the girls to

have the opportunity to learn to play, have fun and feel safe enough to be children.

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Health

12. Health Care and Therapy

All staff are trained in first aid. All staff are aware of the opening times for the General

Practitioner, the local Walk-in Centre and local hospitals.

When a girl is placed with us she is registered with the local Doctors surgery, Dental

practice (including a specialist Dentist for young people with additional needs) and the

Optician. At Serenity we use the same health professionals as our sister homes to ensure

good communication and sharing of good practice; this supports our confidence in quality

of health care provided.

Serenity promotes a healthy life style; the girls are encouraged to exercise and have a

healthy diet, and the house menu is planned with the girls.

Sexual health and promotion is supported with the use of the teenage walk in centre at the

local Doctors surgery.

All girls have an individual health plan. This is discussed at placement and past medical

history is discussed and supports the plan. The girl’s views are part of the plan ensuring

they understand why they may need additional health services and is regularly reviewed.

The emotional and mental health of the girls can be supported by Child and Adolescent

Mental Health Services (CAMHS). We work very closely with CAMHS and our in house

therapeutic team who are based at Tranquillity house. Serenity are a committed team and

they want to create an environment where the girls can fulfil their full potential and have a

process and communication in place that meets the girl’s mental health needs.

The staff team have weekly therapeutic reflective space. This is provided by the therapy

team which consists of a Clinical Psychologist and drama therapist. We recognise the

importance of the direct therapeutic work the staff team are doing with the girls and the

assessment of the girls’ emotional wellbeing ensures the best plan is in place for that girl

to move forward.

An initial psychological assessment is conducted with each girl at Tranquillity House and

this forms the basis for an individualised therapeutic plan.

Any work that the therapeutic team do, is complemented by the therapeutic environment

provided by the residential team and educational staff.

Positive relationships

13. Contact between the girls’ family and friends.

Contact plans for the girls are agreed at placement and form part of their care plan and

support plan. These are reviewed at network meetings or Child Looked After reviews. The

girls’ views are always listened to and if they feel they are not being heard then an advocate

will be appointed to support this further. Families are encouraged to have contact but

usually this will not be in Serenity. However if necessary and appropriate a visit to the home

can be made. This is pre-planned with the other girls being on an activity, to minimise any

impact. The rationale for not having contact within the home on a regular basis is so that

the girls who have no family feel equal and the home stays a safe environment for all.

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Contact is supported according to the plan that is individual to the girl and their family, and

can include many options such as fully supervised contact by staff, staff just drop off and

pick up, it may be supported in a contact centre by staff; it is very individual to the family.

The Serenity team encourage friendships outside of the home, supporting the girls to bring

friends back to the home for tea or to play. We support the girls with visiting friends, having

tea and leading up to a sleepover where appropriate and agreed at a network meetings.

Contact with family and friends is always risk assessed so the girl is supported to have a

positive experience.

Protection of children

14. Consulting girls about the quality of their care.

The views of the girls placed at Serenity are regularly sought and heard. This is achieved

through weekly house meetings, which are then fed into the staff team meetings. On several

occasions during the year the home will have a joint meeting so staff and girls can discuss

any issues as a whole group and all views are shared. These meetings encourage the girls

to share their views on the daily running of the home. The house rules are always discussed

at the house meeting and decided together.

The girls all make choices for their own bedrooms picking their own colour scheme and

picking bedding and rug to match. They are encouraged to make this their own space. The

time scale of this varies according to the girl’s individual needs; some girls feel overwhelmed

by having too much given at once on placement. This forms part of the transition plan for

the team settling the girl into Serenity.

Girls are encouraged to do chores; they discuss the rota for chores at house meetings. They

are supported to keep their bedrooms clean, this again is individual to each girl’s needs.

The rational of starting very basic chores as part of group living leads into skills for

independence.

15. Behavioural support, including information about;

Safe guarding

All staff in Serenity are trained and regularly refreshed in safeguarding and child sexual

exploitation. Each girl has an individual plan in terms of safe guarding and sexual

exploitation.

The designated safeguarding officer is Head of safeguarding

Jackie.smeeth@serendipity-education.com

The Registered Manager Sue Tinson and the Home Manager Jackie Crook are all part

of the safeguarding team.

The safeguarding team meet weekly and prioritise the cause for concerns. The sharing

of information is on a need to know basis and the team link closely with other agencies.

The safeguarding team ensure the staff team are aware of the whistle blowing policy

and complaints procedure; the team are supported to report concerns no matter how

small they seem. The number one priority is the girls and their safety.

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The priority of safeguarding is to ensure the girls feel comfortable within a safe guarding

plan and have at least one good attachment with a staff member who they feel will listen

to them, in any situation or worry.

Missing from home

We have a robust but individualised Missing Child Policy. Part of the care planning

includes assessment of risk to have appropriate individual plans in place to support the

prevention of sexual exploitation and continual absconding.

All girls have a strategy to minimise the risk of going missing, and an individual plan

agreed with the local police should they go missing. It includes a ‘grab sheet’ containing

all details vital to share with other agencies to support keeping the girls safe. The

purpose of the plan is to include all agencies, this is to reduce the risk of a girl

absconding, thus supporting the reduction in risk taking behaviours. This may also

involve outside 1-1 work with another agency (e.g. Barnados).

The plan can be altered to support a girl who continually absconds and may include a

safeguarding meeting with the police and social care, Head of safe guarding, Head of

care, House manager. The plan is in place to reduce absconding, this can involve

increased staffing, increased supervision, and monitoring of their mobile phone and

social media. All plans are shared with the girls, so they have a clear understanding of

what will happen if they leave the home without permission. Staff actively look for the

girls if they are missing.

If a girl is missing, their local authority, and families are updated as needed, this is by

telephone or email.

When a girl returns from being missing, a Safe and Well discussion is held with them. This

serves a dual purpose, they are encouraged to have something to eat and the staff team

make them feel welcome and cared for. All information gathered at this time is clearly

documented and shared to reduce the risk of future absconding. If needed, the police may

do a dual Safe and well, particularly if there is a suspicion of harm to the girl.

The team want to provide a safe and comfortable environment, with staff that the girls feel

they can talk to about their worries and frustrations. The team want Serenity to be a safe

haven they do not want to run away from. Serenity team want the girls to have an activity

plan that will motivate and lift self–esteem so the girls become pre-occupied to reduce the

risk of absconding.

The girl’s receive 1-1 keep safe work to support them in the understanding of sexual

exploitation and the risks they pose to themselves, if they run away from home.

Bullying

We have a zero tolerance to bullying. The girls are encouraged to keep the home free from

bullying. The team achieve this through key working, house meetings, encouraging worries

and complaints to be shared and acting on any issues raised.

The girls are encouraged to fill in worry forms; if they have concerns they are supported to

speak out within the house meeting. The relationship and attachment the girls build with the

staff team is vital to allow the girls to be open about bullying.

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Serenity team ensure both the bullies and the victims of bullying have support to understand

the situation. Continual 1-1 work and group work support the group living to ensure the zero

tolerance of bullying. Bullying forms part of the safeguarding training.

Rewards and sanctions

We aim to reward positive behaviour, wherever possible, keeping behaviour positive, rather

than taking away in the negative. Girls are encouraged to be part of their sanctions and

rewards and sign to say they agree with what has been put in place. Helping the girls to

learn self-regulation through praise, feeling safe and secure is paramount. Staff will help the

girls achieve this through:

Talking through actions and consequences

Helping girls to take responsibility by helping them to ‘put things right ‘

Reward charts

Behaviour contracts

1-1 time at key times during the day to support positive behaviour e.g settling at

bedtime, planning a clear bedtime routine.

Consulting the girls what would they like or feel would help support them.

Sanctions are recognised as necessary where some behaviour is un-acceptable and the

sanction should always fit the behaviour and not become a punitive measure of control. The

girls should be consulted on all sanctions and asked to sign they agree with the sanction

wherever possible.

None permitted sanctions;

Corporal punishment

Deprivation of food and drink

Restriction of contact visits or communication

With holding medication

The use of accommodation to physically restrict the liberty of any child

Intentional deprivation of sleep

Intimate physical searches

Sending a girl to bed or bedroom.

Physical Intervention

The Serendipity centre aims to be a no-hold company when managing aggressive behaviour.

All staff are trained on a two day Team Teach course as a preventive and safety measure to

ensure if needed then the right techniques are used, to keep staff and girls safe from harm.

The Team Teach physical intervention is only used as the last resort; all other techniques are

used first.

Team teach is a two yearly course with small refresher courses on a regular basis to keep staff

updated. The Serendipity Centre has its own instructors in team teach. All positive handling is

logged in the bound book and then sent to the safeguarding team. The antecedents are

important for reviewing that the response was in line with the girl’s behaviour plan and risk

assessment. The home Manager ensures that after any positive handling then the staff

members and girl involved are de-briefed.

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Leadership and management

16. Registered Persons

Registered provider Responsible individual Registered Manager

The Serendipity centre Ltd 1st Floor, Goodland’s House St Luke’s close Hedge End Southampton SO30 2US 02380422255

Sue Tinson The Serendipity centre Ltd 1st Floor, Goodland’s House St Luke’s close Hedge End Southampton Hants S030 2US 02380422255

Sue Tinson The Serendipity centre 1st Floor, Goodland’s House St Luke’s close Hedge End Southampton Hants SO30 3US 02380422255

17. Experience and qualifications of staff

Sue Tinson is the Director and the Responsible Person for Serenity. Sue Tinson holds the

NPQH, a MEd with distinction and has worked with children with social and emotional

behavioural difficulties for 20 years. Sue Tinson was a looked after child so offers a unique

perspective on the needs of the girls.

Sue Vaughan the Head of Care has worked in child health for 24 years before joining The

Serendipity Centre Ltd. Sue holds the Diploma 5 Residential Managers Award, has worked

within a CAMHS residential unit for 6 years gaining the diploma 4 in play therapy and has

good knowledge of the emotional and behaviour needs of the girls.

The staffing structure to the home:

Home Manager full time

Deputy Manager full time

4x senior residential care workers full time

4 x times residential care workers full time

2 x times part time residential care workers

Appendix A staff qualifications including Therapeutic team, safeguarding team, and

Education team. (Please ask for this on request)

Appendix B staff work pattern

There are always 2 staff sleeping in at Serenity.

The staff team is equipped to increase staffing to accommodate any needs of the girls.

There is always a senior to lead the shift and the on-call rota is 3 tier, ensuring that the

home has full support for any level of incident or safeguarding issue 24 hours a day.

Staff training

All staff receive;

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CWDC within 7 days of starting in post

Safe guarding level 3

Fire safety

Food hygiene

First aid

Sexual exploitation

Mars (boots medication)

Team teach

Mental health awareness

Epilepsy

Diploma 3 within 3 months if they do not have it

Regular Supervision

Manager’s diploma 5

Staff recruitment

In line with safer recruitment practise we have a very robust procedure.

Application form

Interview

Observation visit with a requirement for the applicant and the home to furnish a written

report

Trial shift with feedback from the team and girls and a written report from applicant.

Reviewed

Taken on or declined

1 week review

1 month review

3 month review

6 month probation

Monthly supervision (minimum )

We pride ourselves on the diversity of the team which represents a wide area of society for the

girls.

At Serendipity we believe staff are our best resource and we invest in both support and training,

to further their individual developments and professional practise to ensure their welfare.

18. Management and staffing structure

Serenity staff support and supervision are in line with NMS.

All contracted staff have monthly supervision

Home manager and registered Manager have an open door policy, to support the team.

Both Home Manager and registered Manager will support and supervise from the floor

as needed.

Supervisions are supported to create an open and relaxed environment so that

positives and negatives can be addressed in the right way.

Supervision is not a supervision if more than two disturbances

Managers ensure that supervisee are aware of their role and are able to raise queries

and concerns and know who they are accountable to.

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Senior and residential care workers will take on the direct care of the girls, they will be

allocated roles as champions to individual girls. They will be delegated organisational

responsibilities for the home as part of their personal development and they will conduct

their role in line with good practice, following company policies and procedures.

19. Staff Gender Mix

The recruitment process ensures that Serenity staff team have a good skill mix of care

workers. We encourage applications from male care workers to ensure the girls see good

male role models. The shift pattern ensures that we do not have an un-balanced skill mix

or too many male workers on any one shift. We always have at least one female care

worker sleeping in.

The home ethos is to provide, support, nurture and good parenting.

Care planning

20. Admission to Serenity

Serenity admission criteria is to take all girls on a planned transition; we do not take

emergency placements. The transition is very individual to each girl.

Pre-admission is by referral, from the placing authority, this could initially be a telephone

call. From this we ask for more information and then we fill in our referral paper work. This

is shared with the Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT).

The pre-admission analysis and referral paper work are completed and there is further

discussion with the MDT. We collate as much information as we can so we can look at how

the girl’s needs will be met at Serenity, taking into consideration how the impact on the girls

currently living there.

Once we feel we can meet the needs of the girl alongside our other girls we arrange a

meeting with the placing authority and social worker.

We then arrange to meet the girl.

House manager and staff member visit girl in placement.

A visit to Serenity and lunch, meet some girls, bring some of their own belongings.

If the girl is attending The Serendipity School then a visit to school.

A visit to Tranquillity House (therapy centre).

An overnight visit bring some more belongings, meet all girls.

Arrange date to move in.

This is the basic transition and can be adapted to meet the needs of the girl, we can do

outreach if a longer transition is needed and to support the current placement to ensure a

transition that is as smooth as possible for a placement into Serenity.

When a girl is placed, all paper work is to be signed and care plan agreed at planning

meeting. The social worker must visit the girl at least once a month as is statutory and the

first review takes place within 20 days post placement, then four months post placement

and every six months after this.

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We hold network meetings 6 weekly and more often if needed; these will involve any

agencies needed to ensure the safety and continual partnership working, wrapping around

the girls. the Serenity team have a commitment to work in partnership with families, placing

authorities, education, and all other agencies for the best interest of the girls.