Children's Home run by Pathway Care Solutions Ltd in Nottinghamshire

SC051739 Unique reference number 24 September 2009 Inspection date Joanne Vyas Inspector Random Type of 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 7 Inspection Report: SC051739

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Brief description of the service

This is a large detached house situated in a residential area on the outskirts of a city. It is within easy access to local community resources. Although registered for three young people with learning disabilities, the home currently only has two young people’s bedrooms as the third room is being used as a sensory room/sleeping in room. The home also has a bathroom, two toilets, a lounge, a resource room, a kitchen, a staff office and a garden. The home is part of an organisation, which has several homes within the area. At the time of this inspection, one young person is accommodated in this home and they were present towards the end of the inspection.

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Summary

This unannounced interim inspection focussed on the progress the service has made with the actions and recommendations made at the last inspection as well as reviewing all the key standards under the outcome area of Staying Safe. The outcome area of being healthy was not looked at during this inspection.

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Summary

Some improvements have been made following the last inspection. However, staff continue to litter the garden with cigarette butts. Additionally further actions and recommendations have been made relating to records of restraints and complaints, where staff sleep when they stay over night, maintenance, monitoring and the registration of the manager. The overall quality rating is satisfactory. This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The registered person has made satisfactory progress towards complying with the recommendations made at the last inspection. Records of staff on shift are accurate. Reviews of placement plans and care plans accurately reflect practice. Young people have comprehensive activity plans. However, the action made at the previous inspection has not been complied with. Cigarette butts continue to litter the patio area in the back garden even though an appropriate bin has been supplied.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. The safety and rights of both staff and young people are protected. Staff are concerned about keeping young people safe and are competent in their knowledge of protecting them. Staff receive training on safeguarding young people as part of their induction and then at regular intervals. Staff have a good knowledge of the bullying policy although they feel that bullying does not occur in the home due to the nature of the young people and the high staffing levels. There are few incidents of young people going missing from the home. There are comprehensive risk assessments in place for children who are likely to go missing and incidents have been appropriately managed. 4 of 7 Inspection Report: SC051739 Some concerns have been raised by parents and procedures are in place to ensure they are appropriately and swiftly resolved. However, not all complaints are recorded in the complaints

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

log and the outcome of the complaint is not clearly stated.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The privacy of young people is respected by staff. The living arrangements provide space where they can relax and easily find privacy away from others if they wish. Staff ensure the privacy and dignity of the young people, such as by keeping bedroom doors shut when young people are receiving personal care. All records are kept confidentially.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Staff view young people positively and young people are relaxed around staff. Staff are given training, which includes de-escalation as well as physical intervention. Physical intervention is used as a last resort. There is a minimal amount of physical intervention carried out in this home. However, not all restraints have been recorded in the central log as per regulation, although they are comprehensively detailed on separate incident forms. The behaviour management plans are comprehensive. Sanctions are not currently used due to the lack of understanding by the young people. Staff effectively manage challenging behaviour in a calm and professional manner.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The home has comprehensive risk assessments for all aspects of safety of the premises and grounds including fire and young people’s behaviour and activities. These assessments have taken into account the daily activities in and outside the home. All staff are given fire safety training and fire drills are carried out regularly. Fire safety equipment is checked as appropriate and a detailed record kept. However, the rear garden is littered with cigarette butts from staff taking their cigarette breaks. This is potentially a hazard to young people as they may pick up the cigarette butts and eat them. Young people are not fully protected by the home's health and safety procedures.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is outstanding. Staff are positive in their approach to education and its value for young people. It is an intrinsic part of life at the home. The home and school staff work closely together to ensure consistency of practice and to enhance the quality of care provided. This includes supporting young people in school where appropriate.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Staff provide a good standard of care to young people and meet their individual needs with the knowledge and understanding they have of them. A comprehensive assessment of need, placement plan, care plans and risk assessments are in place for each young person. Parents and social workers are consulted about the care plans and subsequent reviews. Any changes to the care plans are effectively communicated to the team. A record is made throughout the day for each young person documenting their mood, activities, behaviour and other relevant information.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Statutory reviews take place within the required timescale. A report of the young person's progress is written by the home's staff for each review. 5 of 7 Inspection Report: SC051739

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The provision is satisfactory. Young people live in a homely environment with satisfactory furnishings. The communal space includes a lounge, a resource room and a sensory room. There is currently no staff sleep-in room which means staff sleep either in the lounge or the sensory room, which is unacceptable as young people access these rooms while staff are asleep. The young people have good facilities. Their bedrooms are personalised to ensure they meet their individual needs and communal areas are personalised with photographs of young people. The home is adequately clean and tidy. The home is currently being decorated and maintenance issues appear to be resolved in a timely fashion. However, the bathroom is looking old and tired and the tiles are falling off the wall and therefore require attention.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. There are good staffing levels most of the time in order to meet the needs of young people. Staff regularly work alone for short periods of time for which there is a comprehensive risk assessment in place. A record of staff shifts is maintained on the home's rota and this shows there is a balance of gender and cultural backgrounds of staff wherever this is possible.

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Organisation

There is currently no Registered Manager in post at this home. A person has been appointed to the post of manager but has not yet put forward an application to Ofsted.

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Organisation

It is clear that the manager has made progress with their responsibilities towards the monitoring of the home. However, not all records, as specified in Schedule 6, have been signed on a monthly basis and the report completed does not cover all aspects of Schedule 6, specifically restraints. Furthermore, several restraints have not been recorded in the home's central log which the manager has failed to address. A senior member of the organisation also visits the home on a monthly basis and reports on the conduct of the home. However, these reports have also failed to address the missing restraint log entries.

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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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Due date Action Standard

30 September 2009 ensure that all parts of the home to which children have access are so far as reasonably practicable free from hazards to their safety. This specifically refers to cigarette butts littering the garden (Regulation 23) 30 September 2009 ensure that within 24 hours of the use of any measure of control, restraint or discipline in a children's home, a written record is made in a volume kept for the purpose (Regulation 17) 6 of 7 Inspection Report: SC051739 30 November 2009 submit an application to Ofsted for the purposes of registering a manager for the children's home (Regulation 7) 30 September 2009 establish and maintain a system for monitoring the matters set out in Schedule 6 at appropriate intervals(Regulation 34).

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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 there is a written record of all complaints made to the home, which includes the name of the person making the complaint, date of the complaint, nature of the complaint, action taken and the outcome of the complaint (NMS 16.3) • ensure staff sleep-in rooms are not part of the communal living areas (NMS 24.16) • ensure the interior and exterior of the home are maintained in a good state of structural and decorative repair (NMS 24.3) • ensure visits by the Regulation 33 visitor check on disciplinary measures and restraint records and complete an accurate report including actions to be followed up (NMS 32.2). 7 of 7 Inspection Report: SC051739

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