Children's Home run by Lifetime Opportunities Limited in Lancashire

Unique reference number SC411046 Inspection date 27/09/2012 Inspector Monica Hargreaves Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

p.1

Date of last inspection 26/03/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.1

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.

p.2

Brief description of the service

The home is operated by a private company and is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three young people who have learning disabilities.

p.3

The inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding : a service of exceptional quality that significantly exceeds minimum requirements Good : a service of high quality that exceeds minimum requirements Adequate : a service that only meets minimum requirements Inadequate : a service that does not meet minimum requirements

p.3

Overall effectiveness

The overall effectiveness is judged to be good .

p.3

Overall effectiveness

Children and young people are well cared for in a nurturing environment and they make good progress overall. Their individual health needs are met and they have a healthy lifestyle. They achieve an excellent level of attendance at school and as a result they make steady progress in education and attain their individual targets.

p.3

Overall effectiveness

Care staff are well trained and competent. They have a very positive view of the children they look after and they understand how individual children make their views known. This enables them to help children to participate in decision making and helps children to form trusting relationships with staff and to feel settled in their home.

p.3

Overall effectiveness

Children and young people are safe and happy. This is confirmed by families and professionals who reported that they are confident that children are well cared for and are doing well. One relative commented 'staff are really concerned about the welfare of children' and a professional said 'since (name) has been in the home, his behaviour has greatly improved and he is much more settled.'

p.3

Overall effectiveness

The home is managed effectively. Care staff are supported in their work and there are robust arrangements in place to ensure that the care that is given to children is closely monitored. There is a clear development plan that is designed to improve the service for the benefit of children and young people.

p.3

Overall effectiveness

Two recommendations have been made as a result of this inspection. These relate to the supervisory experience of staff who deputise for the manager and details of staffing in both the Statement of Purpose and the children's guide to the service. These shortfalls do not have a negative impact on children and young people.

p.3

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):

p.4

Recommendations

 ensure that the current Statement of Purpose and children's guide to the service contain up-to-date information about staff (Volume 5 Statutory Guidance, paragraph 2.15)  ensure that all staff who are placed in charge of the home in the absence of the manager have at least one year's relevant supervisory experience. (NMS 17.4)

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for children and young people are good .

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Children and young people with complex needs make good progress over time in this home. They develop trusting relationships with staff which helps them to feel happy, safe and settled. They enjoy good health because their general and specific health needs are met. They eat healthily and exercise regularly and they are fully supported to attend routine and specialist health appointments. There are good systems in place for managing medication, which protect children and ensure that they have the medicines they need to promote their good health.

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Children and young people are helped to understand their particular circumstances and to make choices about every aspect of their care. Staff achieve this through the use of communication aids, such as pictures and simple signs, for those children who do not use speech. Children and young people are fully supported to gain some independence and life skills at a pace that is appropriate to their specific and individual needs and their level of understanding. For example they help staff to put away their clothes and keep their toys tidy; they help to make drinks and simple snacks and also to clear tables. Staff help children to experience using public transport, such as buses and trains. This supports children to gain confidence and to learn how to be more independent.

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Children and young people's school attendance is excellent. This enables them to progress towards their educational targets and attain their goals. Children benefit from involvement in a range of activities both inside and out of the home that they enjoy and that promote their general learning and development.

p.4

Outcomes for children and young people

Children and young people benefit emotionally from maintaining contact with their families. Staff work closely with families and professionals to ensure that children maintain positive links with their relatives by supporting contact visits both inside and out of the home. Relatives report that they are made to feel very welcome when they visit. One said that families are 'treated with massive respect' and another commented 'they are very nice to me.'

p.4

Quality of care

Children do well in this home because they are cared for by a team of staff who have a good understanding of their complex needs. Individualised plans, that are underpinned by robust risk assessments, ensure that children's assessed needs are met. Clear plans support consistency in the way staff work with children and young people and therefore enable staff to help them to achieve positive outcomes. Children and young people are consulted in ways that are appropriate to their individual level of understanding in order to enable them to contribute to their plans and to develop their understanding of their history. Staff have regular key work sessions with children which assist them in meeting their targets. Professionals and relatives report that they feel children are well cared for and that as a result they make good progress. For example, one professional said 'The change in (name) from going into the home is quite remarkable. It's a really positive placement' and a

p.5

Quality of care

relative said that the care is 'better than fantastic'.

p.5

Quality of care

The value of education is actively promoted in the home. Children attend school every day and make good progress. This is confirmed by comments from school. For example, '(name) has made excellent progress this year, both in terms of academic success and levels of maturity.' Staff liaise closely with schools and contribute fully to education meetings. They have a good understanding of children's individual education plans which enables them to give children appropriate support in the home to help them to achieve their goals. Education staff report that care staff communicate very well with them, for example, keeping them fully informed about issues in children's lives outside school that might affect them in the school environment.

p.5

Quality of care

Care staff ensure that children have the opportunity to be involved in activities that promote their learning and development. Children have access to a wide range of indoor and outdoor toys which they help to choose. They also go out with staff regularly; for example, for meals out and trips to local parks and theme parks and visits to the coast, to the local library and museums. These visits enable children to have enjoyable experiences in their local and wider community.

p.5

Quality of care

Staff help children to make their views known about all aspects of their care. Due to their complex needs, some children are unable to make complaints on their own behalf. However, staff are skilled at communicating with children and they know how individual children make their needs, wishes and feelings known. Consequently, care staff understand when children are unhappy about any aspect of their care. They take prompt action to address concerns in order to improve the care that is given to them. Care staff support children to behave appropriately and in socially acceptable ways, praising positive behaviour to encourage and reward them. Due to their complex needs, children do not always directly interact with one another. However, they generally respond well to the way staff care for them and behave well towards one another.

p.5

Quality of care

Children benefit from living in a homely environment that is maintained to a good standard and is kept safe. The home is comfortably furnished, clean and tidy and well decorated. Children have single bedrooms that give them privacy. Bedrooms are equipped with particular bedding, toys, games and posters that reflect their particular interests and are personalised with pictures of their friends and families. The home is suitably located in a semi-rural location with good public transport links to nearby towns and cities. This benefits children as they are able, with staff support, to use public transport and thereby to enhance their life skills.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

The service is good at keeping children and young people safe and feeling safe.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

Arrangements for safeguarding are robust and ensure that children and young people are cared for safely in the home. Staff are trained in safeguarding and safe care and they understand children's complex needs and vulnerabilities. This enables them to look after children in a way that keeps them safe. They have a good knowledge of the home's safeguarding policy and procedure, which means that they understand how to report and manage child protection concerns in order to protect children. Families and professionals report that they are confident that children are safe in the care of staff in the home.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

Individual and general risk assessments are robust and protect children and young people by ensuring that all potential risks and hazards are clearly identified and strategies put in place to minimise or eliminate them. Due to their young age, their vulnerability and complex needs, children are closely supervised and well supported at all times. This means that they do not leave the home without the knowledge of staff. Consequently, they do not go missing. These arrangements for the support and supervision of children also protect them from the risk of being bullied.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

Care staff encourage and support children to behave well and they manage difficult or challenging behaviour effectively. Placement plans and individual risk assessments identify the situations that children might find difficult and the strategies that staff put in place to distract and re-direct them in positive ways. Staff training in behaviour management techniques includes training in the use of physical restraint. Physical intervention is only ever used as a last resort when it is necessary to protect children and staff. This promotes the welfare and safety of all children in the home. The manager checks records of physical intervention in order to ensure that agreed procedures are followed and that the safety of children is assured.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

The home has robust procedures for recruiting staff. These ensure that all checks are completed and staff vetted and assessed as suitable, before they start work in the home. Visitors to the home are also checked before being allowed in and their whereabouts are monitored during their visit. These systems protect children from harm as they prevent unsuitable individuals gaining access to the home.

p.6

Safeguarding children and young people

Children benefit from living in a home that is kept safe. This is achieved by the routine checking of the environment and equipment and the implementation of risk assessments. Children and staff take part in regular evacuation drills. This enables children to learn how to leave the home safely in an emergency.

p.7

Leadership and management

The leadership and management of the children's home are good .

p.7

Leadership and management

The home is well managed which ensures that it runs smoothly and that children are well cared for and achieve positive outcomes. The manager is experienced and qualified and is registered with Ofsted. When the manager is not present, a shift leader is identified to take charge of the home. All staff left in charge are trained and have completed their probationary period, but it is not clear that all staff have the required supervisory experience to deputise. There is no evidence that the home does not continue to run smoothly in the absence of the manager.

p.7

Leadership and management

Children benefit from being cared for by a competent team of staff. Care staff are either qualified or working to complete a qualification. They undertake training to develop and maintain their knowledge and skills. The organisation also ensures that managers and staff are kept up to date with changes in legislation and practice developments. The training that is provided for staff supports them in their work with vulnerable children.

p.7

Leadership and management

Staff report that they are well supported. They have regular supervision which enables them to discuss the care of children as well as their own training and development needs. They also attend regular team meetings where the care of children and the routine of the home are discussed. There are written handovers of information at the start and end of each shift. These arrangements promote effective communication across the team and consequently support consistency of care for children and young people.

p.7

Leadership and management

Managers monitor the progress that children make and the care they are given. This is achieved through regular visits made by a manager who is independent of the home and also through the checks that are made by the home's own manager. Copies of the reports made of these checks are submitted to Ofsted. The manager takes action on any issue that is identified as a result of these regular checks and also on any requirement or recommendation that is made as part of the inspection process. This demonstrates a clear commitment to improving the service for the benefit of children and young people.

p.7

Leadership and management

There is regular consultation with children about their care, at a level that is appropriate to their individual and complex needs. Managers also consult regularly with their families and professionals involved with the home. Information that is gathered as a result of this consultation is used to inform the development of the service. The manager has put in place a plan for the future of the home which has achievable targets for continuous improvement.

p.7

Leadership and management

The home has a Statement of Purpose that has recently been reviewed. This gives detailed information about how the home works and how children are looked after. However, it does not accurately reflect the home's current staff details. The children and young person's guide is a colourful document that is produced in a format of simple language, symbols and pictures that are appropriate to the needs of children living in the home. It helps them to understand how children are looked after. However, the information about the staff team is not up to date.

p.8

Leadership and management

The home keeps detailed records about children which contain information about their history and their assessed needs. These records contribute to an understanding of their life. All information that is held about children is stored securely to protect confidentiality. Staff share information with children in a way that is appropriate to their individual needs and level of understanding, so that their views can be incorporated into their records and they can be supported to continue to learn about their history.

p.8

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 to assess the effectiveness of the service and to consider how well it complies with the relevant regulations and meets the national minimum standards.

p.9

About this inspection

The report details the main strengths, any areas for improvement, including any breaches of regulation, and any failure to meet national minimum standards. The judgements included in the report are made against the Inspections of children’s homes – framework for inspection (March 2011) and the evaluation schedule for children's homes.

p.9