Children's Home run by Lancashire County Council in Lancashire

SC064735 Unique reference number 9 September 2009 Inspection date Monica Hargreaves Inspector Key Type of Inspection

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3 February 2009 Date of last inspection .

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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You can obtain copies of The Children Act 2004, Every Child Matters and The National Minimum Standards for Children's Services from: The Stationery Office (TSO) PO Box 29, St Cripins, Duke Street, Norwich, NR3 1GN. Tel: 0870 600 5522. Online ordering: www.tso.co.uk/bookshop

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About this inspection

The purpose of this inspection is to assure children and young people, parents, the public, local authorities and government of the quality and standard of the service provided. The inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcome for children set out in the Children Act 2004 and relevant National Minimum Standards for the establishment.

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The inspection judgements and what they mean

this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is strong Good: this aspect of the provision is sound Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is not good enough Inadequate: 3 of 8 Inspection Report: SC064735

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Brief description of the service

This local authority home provides care and accommodation for up to six young people, aged from 12 to 17 years old. It is located in a residential area and has good access to public transport links. It is a two storey building and has a lounge, dining room, computer room, kitchen, laundry and two staff offices on the ground floor. Bedrooms are all on the first floor and each young person has their own bedroom. There are shared bathrooms and toilets also on the first floor and a separate toilet for staff and visitors on the ground floor. There is an enclosed garden to the rear of the house, which has a grassed area and a range of vegetable plots.

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Brief description of the service

There were six young people living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Summary

This unannounced key inspection was undertaken to assess how well the home is meeting the young people's needs. All key standards in all outcome areas were considered.

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Summary

The home provides an outstanding standard of care to young people. They are looked after by a competent team of staff who work well together, so that they are consistent in their care. Staff are trained and qualified and are themselves supported very well by their managers. There is excellent management oversight of the work of the home, which ensures that young people are safe and that excellent standards are maintained.

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Summary

Robust systems and highly effective care practices, ensure that young people are cared for safely and their individual needs are met. They enjoy positive relationships with staff, which helps them to feel settled in the home and to make good progress.

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Summary

There are no actions or recommendations arising as a result of this inspection. The overall quality rating is outstanding. This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection.

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Improvements since the last inspection

There were no actions or recommendations made at the last inspection.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is outstanding. There are excellent systems in place to make sure that the good health of young people is promoted. Each young person has a clear health plan that identifies all their needs and shows how staff work to meet them. Plans are agreed with young people and are regularly reviewed to make sure that the information is up to date. Staff register young people with a doctor, dentist and optician when they are admitted and young people say that staff support them at all their appointments. Staff also work closely with the Looked After Children (LAC) nurse who visits the home regularly and has oversight of the health of young people. There are strong links with agencies outside the home, to ensure that young people have access to any additional service they may need. Young people say that staff look after them if they are ill and comment that staff give them good advice about issues that contribute to their good health, such as a

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Helping children to be healthy

4 of 8 Inspection Report: SC064735 healthy diet and exercise. Staff also make sure that young people have information about issues that may harm them, such as the use of drugs or smoking.

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Helping children to be healthy

The robust medication systems that are in place in the home, safeguard young people. There are clear procedures, which include a sound risk assessment process for young people who want to keep and administer their own medicines. All staff are trained in safe administration procedures, medicines are stored securely and clear records are kept. These include a written agreement with each young person's doctor about the types of homely remedies that staff can give to individual young people. This is excellent practice. All staff are trained in first aid procedures so that they can care for young people safely in an emergency.

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Helping children to be healthy

Staff help young people to understand the importance of health eating and exercise to their general well being. The home has a trained and experienced cook who provides young people with a varied and healthy diet. Meals are chosen in consultation with young people and reflect their individual preferences and cultural requirements. Records of what young people have eaten are kept, so that staff can monitor their diet. Staff and young people together grow vegetables in the home's organic garden. This helps young people to understand about how their food is produced as well as providing them with a healthy range of vegetables. Young people are also encouraged to learn to cook, which helps them to learn skills that will benefit them later in life. Staff and young people eat all their meals together and meal times are pleasant social occasions.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is outstanding. Safeguarding is a clear priority in the home. Young people are protected from abuse because staff have an excellent understanding of the individual needs of the young people and are trained to recognise the signs and symptoms of abuse. There is a sound procedure which staff follow if they have concerns and they are clear about their responsibilities in relation to reporting those concerns. There is evidence that incidents are managed very effectively, so that young people are kept safe and the manager makes sure that significant events within the home are notified promptly to relevant agencies, so that information is shared appropriately and agencies can work together to protect young people.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Robust individual risk assessments and support plans ensure that staff have appropriate strategies in place to protect young people. Young people say that they feel they are safe in the home, that they do not think there is a lot of bullying and that staff deal with any incidents quickly. Staff help young people to understand the impact of bullying on victims and to consider the rights of others in the home. They assess the risks that young people may be at if they go missing and have effective risk management strategies in place for each young person. These systems protect the group and young people individually and promote their welfare.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Young people say that they feel confident about letting staff know if they are unhappy with any aspect of their care. Issues that they raise are dealt with promptly. None of the young people at the home have found it necessary to make a formal complaint and the home has received compliments and positive feedback from social workers, parents and young people themselves. Young people are also confident that staff respect their right to privacy and confidentiality. They have access to a phone they can use in private and individual keys to their bedroom doors, so that they can keep their personal possessions safe. Information that is confidential is stored securely in the staff office. 5 of 8 Inspection Report: SC064735 Staff help young people to learn to behave in a way that is socially acceptable. They provide positive role models for young people, develop good relationships with them and encourage young people to respect the rights of others. Staff are trained to respond positively to behaviour

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

that is challenging and demonstrate a sound understanding of how to defuse difficult situations that arise between young people. This means that young people are cared for in a safe way.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Health and safety matters are managed very well in the home, which protects the welfare of young people. Effective assessments enable staff to identify possible hazards, both in the home and on activities and also the risks that individual young people may pose to themselves or others. This enables staff to put in place appropriate plans to minimise the risk of harm. Equipment and installations are safe because they are regularly checked and serviced and fire drills take place at appropriate intervals, so that young people understand what to do in an emergency.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Young people are further protected by the home's staff recruitment and selection procedures, which ensure that all staff are thoroughly vetted before they start work at the home and are assessed as safe to work with children and young people. The identity of all visitors is checked and the house itself is kept appropriately secure, to prevent unauthorised individuals gaining access to young people in the home.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is outstanding. Young people receive excellent individual support that meets their specific needs. Staff have a very good understanding of the diverse needs of the young people they look after and have strong links with agencies outside the home, so that they can refer young people for additional support when a need is identified. Individual care and support plans enable staff to make sure that the work they do with young people helps them to achieve identified outcomes. Young people have a key worker who takes a lead role in ensuring that the care that is given to young people meets their needs, but all staff take equal responsibility for the care and welfare of young people. Young people themselves comment that they feel they are well looked after and that they can talk to staff.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff work hard to help young people achieve the best educational outcomes they can. They promote the value of education and ensure that daily attendance at school or college is seen as very much a part of the life of the home. They advocate on behalf of young people if there are difficulties at school and provide practical and emotional support to help them to maintain their attendance. They work closely with schools and with the authority's dedicated team who support young people who are looked after in their education. There are facilities in the home to promote study, such as a computer room, books and other equipment. When young people have completed their secondary education, they are supported into further education or training.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The home encourages young people to engage in a range of leisure activities and to develop their own interests. They are consulted about their preferences with regard to holidays and other activities, which encourages their social and emotional well-being. Staff also encourage young people to take an interest in issues within the local and wider community and help them to make a contribution to their own environment and the wider community. A recent example of this was when young people raised money for a local charity by making and selling cards. 6 of 8 Inspection Report: SC064735

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is outstanding. Individual placement plans are based on the detailed assessments that are completed before a young person is admitted to the home. These plans are holistic, easy to read and clearly set out how staff work to support young people, which encourages consistency of care. All areas of the young people's lives are discussed with them, which makes them feel that their views are listened to. Placement and care plans are reviewed in the home every six weeks, in meetings that include social workers and staff from other services, such as health and education. This robust system ensures that plans are kept up to date. Formal reviews take place at the required intervals, to ensure that the placement is meeting the needs of the young person.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Positive contact with family and friends is actively promoted, in line with placement plans for each young person. Staff do this by providing young people with practical and emotional support to make sure that contact can take place. Families are welcomed into the home and staff make sure that they have good communication with parents and other family members. This ensures that young people can maintain links with people outside the home who are important to them.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The home provides short term and emergency care for young people and many young people are admitted in an emergency. There are clear systems in place to make sure that young people's needs are properly assessed before they come into the home and that their individual needs are considered in conjunction with those of the other young people already in the home. Staff work closely with other agencies to make sure that young people are supported to move on from the home in as planned a way as possible, either into another placement or into a more independent setting. Occasionally, young people who have moved on into independent accommodation keep in touch with staff at the home, which demonstrates the supportive nature of the relationships that staff develop with them.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

There is very good and regular consultation with young people, which enables them to have a say in how the home is run and ensures that they are fully involved in all the decisions that are made about their care. This happens during informal discussions between staff and young through the course of the day, as well as in formal key worker meetings and group house meetings. Young people feel that they are listened to and that their opinions are valued.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The provision is good. Staff are good at encouraging young people to develop their life skills and ensuring that they understand they are part of a wider, diverse, community. The structure of the home helps young people to learn the practical and emotional skills they will need in later life. For example, they are encouraged to take part in routine tasks, such as cooking, cleaning and laundry, and staff also help them to look at the wider issues of living independently in the community. Staff work closely with placing social workers and the leaving care team to develop pathway plans with individual young people, so that they can prepare for transition to independence.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

Young people live in a comfortable home, that is furnished to a good standard and is well maintained, internally and externally. They are encouraged to help to choose furnishings and colour schemes in the home and to contribute to the quality of their environment, for example, 7 of 8 Inspection Report: SC064735 by helping with gardening or keeping outside areas tidy. The manager ensures that any damage to the house is quickly responded to, which encourages young to take a pride in their home.

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Organisation

The organisation is outstanding. The statement of purpose and young person's guide to the service contain clear and detailed information about how the home works, so that young people, their families and others involved with the home, can understand how young people are looked after.

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Organisation

The home is organised in a way that delivers an excellent standard of care to young people. The manager and assistant managers are experienced and qualified. The staff team is competent, qualified and trained to understand and meet the needs of the young people they look after. They are well supported by managers and their work is monitored through regular supervision, appraisals and team meetings. There is a wide range of experience within the staff team and their skills are well matched to the needs of the young people they look after. Staffing levels are appropriate for the needs of young people and in keeping with the home's statement of purpose. The staff team work well together to provide consistency of care to young people.

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Organisation

Management systems are robust. Records are monitored by the home's manager and by an independent person, who visits the home every month and spends time with young people and staff. Detailed reports of the findings of this monitoring activity are provided to senior managers within the authority, so that there is close scrutiny of the work of the home and the way that young people are cared for. There is clear evidence that issues that are identified through monitoring are responded to promptly. This ensures that excellent standards are maintained.

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Organisation

Young people's files contain all the information required by the standards and regulations. Information from other records held in the home is appropriately cross referenced into these individual files. This gives young people a clear record of their history in the home. Files are in good order and are stored securely, to protect confidentiality.

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Organisation

The promotion of equality and diversity is outstanding. The home makes sure that young people's individual and specific needs are well met through thorough assessments and careful planning. Staff encourage young people to learn about and respect their community and other cultures. The authority has clear policies that address issues of equality and diversity and all staff are trained in these areas of their work. Within the team, there is a good balance in terms of gender, age and ethnicity, which reinforces positive role models for young people.

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions, which must be taken so that the registered person meets the Care Standards Act 2000, The Childrens Homes Regulations 2001 and the National Minimum Standards. The Registered Provider must comply with the given timescales.

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Recommendations

There are no recommendations. 8 of 8 Inspection Report: SC064735

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