Children's Home run by Lincolnshire County Council in Lincolnshire

SC042950 Unique reference number 1 June 2009 Inspection date Mick Walklin Inspector Key Type of Inspection

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13 January 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: SC042950

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Brief description of the service

The home is a six-bedded children's home run by the local authority. It caters for young people aged between 10 and under 18 years of age. The home aims to provide and develop physical, emotional and psychological care to young people so that they may return to their birth family, move to foster care or develop skills to live independently in the community. The home is situated close to the town centre and enjoys good access local facilities and public transport.

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Brief description of the service

Ground floor accommodation comprises of a kitchen, pantry, dining room, hall, lounge, toilet and shower and two offices. On the first floor are six bedrooms and two bathrooms. Outside there are large gardens to front and rear with car parking to the front and side of the building. Three young people were present during the inspection.

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Summary

At this unannounced full inspection, all key standards were inspected.

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Summary

This is a good service with good outcomes for young people. Young people receive good levels of individual support through an effective key worker system. The education of young people is actively promoted with all young people attending schools in the community. Young people's welfare is protected by good policies, procedures and staff training. They are actively supported to raise issues and concerns through the use of compliments and comments forms. Privacy and confidentiality is respected. Young people are assisted to maintain contact with families and friends. Young people receive care which helps them prepare for adulthood. The development of independent living skills takes a high priority with good links with external agencies such as Barnardo's, Connexions and the Leaving Care Team. Staff are well trained with the local authority having a strong commitment to staff attaining National Vocational Qualifications.

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Summary

The overall quality rating is good. This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Not applicable. There were no actions or recommendations from the last inspection.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Young people enjoy nutritious meals that meet their dietary needs. Menus are varied, healthy and balanced. They are discussed with young people as an ongoing process and changed to accommodate individual choices. Requests from young people to have more participation in menu planning have been acknowledged although comments included, 'There is not enough meat and we have salads too much'. Young people confirm that they are involved in meal preparation and can help themselves to snacks. Fruit is freely available.

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Helping children to be healthy

Young people's health is promoted and services are provided to meet their health needs. Staff support young people to attend medical appointments. Good links with Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services provide staff with support in dealing with young people's emotional and behavioural issues. Young people have the opportunity to attend the 'Speakeasy' course where they complete a portfolio covering sexual health, relationships and self-esteem. Staff 4 of 8 Inspection Report: SC042950 are registered with the C Card Scheme to provide contraceptive advice to young people. Smoking is discouraged. Staff receive first aid training in order to deal with minor accidents and illness. Exercise is encouraged through involvement in the local gym, dance and exercise classes, swimming, territorial army, golf and fishing clubs. Young people's welfare is safeguarded by the home's policies and procedures for administering medication. Storage facilities are secure

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Helping children to be healthy

and there are procedures in place for the administration of household remedies with the appropriate consents in place.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Young people's privacy and dignity is respected and information is confidentially handled. Their confidential records are securely stored with staff having a good awareness of their data protection responsibilities and when it is appropriate to share information. Young people's personal space is respected when making private phone calls. They have use of a phone booth with phone cards which are periodically topped up with credit. They also have use of the office cordless phone to contact social workers and families. Staff respect bedrooms as personal space but young people complained, 'Some of the staff knock and wait for an answer before they come into our rooms; others just knock and come straight in'. Bedroom doors are lockable with young people having keys if they wish.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Young people are actively supported to raise issues and concerns. There is extensive use of 'compliments and comments' forms to enable young people to express their views. These are responded to promptly. The Regulation 33 visitor and a worker from the National Youth Advocacy Service visit regularly to enable young people to raise issues with people independent of the home. Young people are confident in speaking out with staff reinforcing a culture of openness.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Young people's welfare is protected by good policies, procedures and staff training. Young people commented, 'I feel safe here. We get on pretty well together and there is no bullying'. Awareness is raised during young people's meetings and issues would be dealt with through individual work with the perpetrator, support for the victim and referral on to other authorities if appropriate. Staff receive comprehensive safeguarding training and demonstrate a good knowledge of procedures. Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures are in place to deal with unauthorised absences with staff reacting according to young people's vulnerability and risk factors. Young people have good risk assessments and risk management plans.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Young people are assisted to develop socially acceptable behaviour. Staff are skilled at dealing with challenging behaviours and receive training in prevention and management. Each young person has an 'Individual Crisis Management Plan' which provides good guidance for staff. There is very little use of sanctions or physical interventions providing evidence that staff are effective in managing difficult behaviours using other positive strategies. Sanctions are discussed with young people with some, such as the removal of televisions from bedrooms, having been reviewed.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Young people are protected by good health and safety procedures. Regular fire checks are conducted by staff. Young people are fully aware of the fire procedure and participate in fire drills. Other servicing documentation is not held at the home and was not available for inspection. No new staff have been recruited since the last inspection but previous inspections have 5 of 8 Inspection Report: SC042950 demonstrated that there are robust procedures in place to ensure that staff are thoroughly checked. Visitors to the home are vetted to ensure the safety of young people.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Young people receive good levels of individual support through an effective key worker system. Staff work hard to ensure that young people are not socially isolated from the group. They endeavour to build positive relationships with young people and challenge prejudices. Staff receive training to support young people develop their individual identity, in relation to their gender, ethnic and cultural background and sexual orientation. Young people say that they are satisfied with the individual support provided. Staff are described by young people as 'very caring and supportive'. Comments included, 'They are all loving and I am glad that I am living here'. Specialist support is sought for any specific problems or issues that young people have. Risk assessments allow young people to take controlled risks appropriate to their age in order to develop independence skills.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The education of young people is actively promoted with all young people attending schools in the community. Existing education arrangement are maintained when young people move into the home to ensure continuity of education, although this can involve young people travelling considerable distances to school. Key workers have close contact with those schools that young people attend to ensure effective communication about attendance and disciplinary issues. These good links have lead to reduced school suspensions and the prevention of exclusions.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Young people have their needs assessed effectively. They have care plans in the form of statutory documentation prepared by placing social workers. Whilst this documentation identifies young people's needs, it does not present information in a concise format, such as quick reference profiles. Young people are supported to prepare for their reviews. They are helped by their key worker in completing pre-review questionnaires to ensure their views are represented. Key workers also prepare good monthly summaries outlining progress.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Young people are assisted to maintain contact with families and friends. Friends are welcome to visit the home and can stay for meals and sleepovers. They have also accompanied young people on holiday. Staff will facilitate contact with young people's families by providing transport and escorts where required and young people are assisted to travel independently using public transport. Comments from young people included, 'Rules are kind of fair but you can't see your family when you want' (because of the distance involved). A parent commented that communication with the home could be better.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Young people are introduced to the home in a planned and sensitive manner. The admissions procedure is explained in the Statement of Purpose and staff endeavour to make the procedure as smooth as possible. Young people are introduced to the home at a pace that suits them and they are encouraged to visit prior to admission to meet staff and residents.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Young people are encouraged and supported to make decisions about their lives and influence the way the home is run. Regular young people's meetings enable issues to be raised, which 6 of 8 Inspection Report: SC042950 are then discussed at staff meetings to ensure a prompt response. There is good informal consultation, for example through group discussions around the meal table. Young people are encouraged to raise agenda items with issues such as house rules and household issues being discussed.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The provision is good. Young people receive care which helps them prepare for adulthood. They are allocated a worker from Barnardo's prior to their 16th birthday to support and guide them into independent living. Staff work closely and intensively with leaving care services to focus on budgeting, household skills and other areas of independent living. Key worker sessions enable individual support to be provided in areas such as assertiveness and social skills. Pathway plans are in place as appropriate and there are links with Connexions workers to enable young people to explore entry to employment or further education opportunities. The service is very supportive of young people that have moved on and continues to provide ongoing support when needed.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

Young people enjoy spacious accommodation which is decorated and furnished to a very high standard. Young people confirm that they have chosen the décor of their bedrooms. There is ample communal space for the number of young people accommodated. Staff have separate sleep-in facilities.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. The provision of equality and diversity is good. Young people are encouraged to be part of and integrated into their local community. Staff strive to ensure that they have the same opportunities as others. Cultural, ethnic and religious needs are identified as part of the pre-admission assessment and relevant community services are identified to meet those needs.

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Organisation

The Statement of Purpose is generic to all the local authority's children's homes and provides basic general information about the services and facilities available. An appendix provides more specific information about the home and the staff group. The young person's guide is also generic and contains basic information.

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Organisation

Staffing levels are adequate with staff working flexibly and a small team of relief workers available for covering gaps in the rota. However, the home's staffing structure is not set out in the Statement of Purpose. Staff are well trained and supported. New staff receive a comprehensive induction to prepare them for their role. There is a strong commitment to staff gaining relevant qualifications with all staff having completed a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ). Senior staff have the opportunity of studying towards an NVQ at level 4. There is a comprehensive training programme to ensure that staff receive regular training updates. Clear management arrangements ensure that the assistant manager deputises in the manager's absence with shift leaders identified on rotas. There is adequate handover time to ensure effective communication between shifts. Procedures are in place for the manager to monitor

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Organisation

the operation of the home through monthly audits. Young people have permanent records of their history and progress which are securely stored. 7 of 8 Inspection Report: SC042950

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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

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • ensure that the home's staffing structure is set out in the Statement of Purpose (NMS 30). 8 of 8 Inspection Report: SC042950

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