A specialist children’s home in Doncaster has been recognised nationally for its excellent standards of practice.
Dickson House Children’s Home, managed by Doncaster Deaf Trust, has been involved in some national research by Ofsted into how to create the environment for excellence in residential practice.
The subsequent social commentary report by Yvette Stanley, national director for social care at Ofsted, gives an insight into what a sample of consistently good and outstanding children’s homes, including Dickon House, do to maintain their success. It looked at areas such as leadership, the support provided for staff, the admissions process and how children’s progress is monitored.
Dickson House, which has been rated outstanding by Ofsted for the last three years, provides residential care 52 weeks of the year for school children needing weekly or term-time accommodation while they study at Doncaster School for the Deaf if its too far for them to travel from home daily.
The children and young people, who are aged between 9 and 16 but can stay until 18 if with the school full time, come from all over the country with current students from places as far as London and Wales.
Kate Warner, registered care manager at Dickson House, said: “It can be hard for families to decide that residential care away from home is the best option for their child to ensure their full needs are met but our ethos is all about giving each young person the best childhood that they can have, providing them with opportunities and enabling them to achieve their dreams and ambitions. We aim to give each of them an individually designed care programme, so they can develop skills and maximise their potential by getting involved in a range of activities in a stimulating, positive and safe environment.
“Parents and carers tell us that they like the homely and friendly feel to our home and our staff team is a mixture of deaf and hearing people who can communicate effectively with Deaf people. They all go above and beyond to give the children a home from home.
“The recent social commentary article by Ofsted that we took part in is a brilliant reflection of the outstanding standards generally in children’s homes across the country but for Dickson House to actively contribute to this work is a real compliment in itself and demonstrates the high standards we are achieving for our children in partnership with their parents. We also undergo independent monthly inspections, as required by Ofsted, which are always positive and show how well our young people are developing, both educationally, socially and emotionally.”
The Dickson House accommodation has space for up to nine deaf children who sometimes also have other sensory impairments. The house is a large six bedded family home in the grounds of Doncaster Deaf Trust, with an additional three-bed flat also available. Dickson House has a variety of spacious communal areas including a playroom with access to computers and games, a TV lounge, dining room, kitchen and a garden.
The young residents also have access to a wide range of facilities that are available on site such as six acres of playing fields, as well as football pitches, tennis courts and a sports hall.
Doncaster Deaf Trust, on Leger Way, also manages Little Learners Day Nursery, Doncaster School for the Deaf and Communication Specialist College Doncaster as well as Specialist Employment Services.
For more information or to donate to Doncaster Deaf Trust, please visit www.deaf-trust.co.uk.
The full social commentary report by Ofsted can be found here: http://bit.ly/2TmYx8B
