Children's Home, Residential special school run by Cambian Whinfell School Limited in Westmorland and Furness

Unique reference number SC066821 Inspection date 05/12/2012 Inspector Anne Bannister Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Residential special school (>295 days/year)

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Date of last inspection 20/03/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

This privately owned children's home provides accommodation, care and education for a maximum of 14 young people with learning disabilities, including complex needs and autistic spectrum disorders.

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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

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Overall effectiveness

The overall effectiveness is judged to be outstanding .

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Overall effectiveness

Young people live in a safe, caring and extremely supportive environment that enables them to make excellent progress from their starting points as they are supported to develop and gain confidence. Staff understand the needs of young people and are well motivated to ensure that their needs are met. There is a very strong emphasis on promoting positive relationships and this helps young people to develop positive behaviour. One young person commented: 'I used to overreact to little things. Now I manage my anger and can understand things from different angles.’

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Overall effectiveness

All aspects of care planning and practice continue to be highly personalised and tailored to comprehensively meet the individual needs of each young person. Staff work in a coordinated way with young people, their family and key professionals to ensure young people get the right help, support and guidance they need to engage positively with important people in their lives. A parent shared that their family had been at breaking point prior to the young person's admission to the home, due to the verbal and physical aggression their child presented. Since admission they see: 'A massive difference. We can do normal things as a family when he comes home. The staff have been really good at helping us learn how to handle his behaviours consistently. His last review was a celebration of his success and achievements. We are delighted with the progress he has made.'

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Overall effectiveness

Young people are kept safe and made to feel safe. Staff have a very good understanding of safe working practices and this promotes young people's welfare. Staff are focused on achieving positive outcomes for young people. They have an excellent knowledge and understanding of young people's vulnerabilities and the risks they may face. They manage these risks well, encouraging young people to keep themselves safe without limiting their opportunity to have experiences appropriate to their age and understanding. Comprehensive reviewing of the 24-hour curriculum approach to working with the young people, and consistent care practice, ensure the welfare and safety of young people are very well promoted at all times.

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Overall effectiveness

There is a strong senior management presence and a commitment to improvement, and this goes some way to promoting young people's well-being. There were no actions made at the last inspection and this continues with no requirements and recommendations made during this visit.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for children and young people are outstanding .

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people are achieving positive outcomes in all aspects of their lives. They receive very good levels of care that allow them to prosper socially and educationally. The ethos and practices of the home are supportive and encourage young people towards setting and achieving personal goals. Young people’s individual needs are identified and these are reflected in the plans and strategies in place for them.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people benefit from contact with family, friends and other appropriate adults. Families feel well supported by staff who encourage and support young people to maintain appropriate contacts. As a result, young people’s needs are well met.

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Outcomes for children and young people

The staff team works proactively with other agencies to promote and support young people's social and educational achievements. For example, the strong links developed by the home with local employers means young people gain access to relevant work experience. A high level of input from staff at appropriate times is designed to support young people in their respective educational placements. This level of support, coupled with an expectation from staff that young people will engage positively in their education, gives young people the opportunity to achieve outstanding educational outcomes.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people enjoy good health and their health needs are positively promoted. Detailed health plans ensure individual needs are assessed and met. All young people are registered with community-based health services to access day-to-day health support. The home has fostered excellent links with more specialised services, which are available for young people to access when required. Young people are encouraged to improve their lifestyles through diet and exercise. They are provided with information and given every encouragement and practical support to modify certain aspects of their lifestyle, such as safe relationships and healthy lifestyles. As a result, most young people enjoy improvements in their general health and fitness levels.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Young people actively contribute to certain aspects of the home’s daily operation. For example, they willingly share shopping and cooking experiences with staff as part of the daily routine. This and more targeted areas of work and development, underpinned by effective planning, promote young people towards taking more responsibility for their own actions and move towards a more independent lifestyle.

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Outcomes for children and young people

The home is well established within the community and actively encourages young people to take full advantage of the resources available. Individual activities as well as those shared with staff and other young people form part of the evening and weekend routines. Photographs displayed around the home give an insight into the range of activities taking place.

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Quality of care

The quality of the care is outstanding .

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Quality of care

Young people in the home are appropriately placed there. Careful consideration of the impact of any new admission on the current resident group ensures that the needs of each individual are considered before any new placement is agreed. Young people's needs are assessed during the application process, and on arrival risk assessments and placement plans are developed. These reflect how their needs are met and provide good guidance to staff. Staff continually update these documents to reflect the progress made by young people and any changes to levels of support needed; this ensures there is a focus on continual development.

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Quality of care

Communication between staff, young people and their parents, social workers and other professionals is highly effective. Key people in young people's lives report that information is shared with them in a manner that promotes positive relationships, celebrates young people's achievements, and informs them of the best way of promoting a positive response from young people. All parties indicate that there has been an increase in young people's self-esteem, self-confidence and resilience since their admission to the home. One professional stated: 'Staff provide an excellent service that results in a significant improvement in young people's behaviours and strategies for everyday life. They have gone back to the start with him, putting in boundaries, helping him by breaking things down into very small steps. Care of young people is very person centred and his day is planned around his needs.’ Another commented: 'The use of social stories has helped him to take control for his

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Quality of care

behaviours. He now functions well in social situations, which he wouldn't previously engage in. Staff promote all changes in a very positive way, constantly reviewing their approach to him in order to achieve the best outcome for him.’

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Quality of care

Young people enjoy excellent relationships with staff which enable them to engage positively and make good choices, for example, keeping themselves safe and getting the best from their education programme. Staff are highly skilled and show great insight into and understanding of young people’s needs. Young people benefit from staff practice which gives them consistency, structure and routine. As a result young people feel very settled and have a strong sense of belonging. They appreciate and value the efforts of staff and work closely with them to plan their futures. Developing educational potential forms a clear part of the home's philosophy of care. Close involvement with the on-site education provision ensures young people are supported by all staff to reach their academic and social potential. Young people are enthusiastic about their individually planned education programme and many have aspirations to complete GCSE examinations and go on to college courses. This is a

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Quality of care

tremendous achievement considering many of them have had limited or disjointed education experiences in the past.

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Quality of care

The young people are consulted with and fully involved in life at the home. They make a clear contribution to the development of services. Young people know how to make a complaint and have access to information about how to raise issues with the home. Alternatively they seek support from a range of independent organisations that champion young people's rights. Young people are very confident that if they raise issues with staff they are generally sorted out informally. House meetings, beginning and end-of-day reviews and key worker sessions also provide young people with venues to raise issues and give their views about how the home is run. Staff work openly, transparently and communicate positively with young people. As a result young people enjoy a relaxed, trusting environment where they engage positively with adults.

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Quality of care

Young people's physical, emotional and psychological health outcomes are very good. Young people receive a very high standard of health care with the involvement of health-related professionals when appropriate. Administration of any medicines is sound, delivered by staff who have undertaken appropriate training. Policies and procedures of a high standard ensure the delivery of safe health care. All aspects of health care are individual to each young person. Staff promote access to health services and will support young people at appointments if requested.

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Quality of care

Staff engage young people in a range of activities to develop their individual potential and enhance learning opportunities. Young people's aspirations are supported and a suitable budget enables them to pursue their hobbies and interests. Each young person is given the opportunity to enjoy a full range of activities. The service makes full use of the local area, both its natural and commercial facilities. Staff are creative and adventurous in the type and duration of activities they provide. The approach to activities is totally inclusive. Young people have choice and are enabled to be included in all activities whatever their needs and abilities.

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Quality of care

The registration of the home covers two individual houses. The main house accommodates 10 young people. Both living areas are warm, welcoming and homely. They are furnished, decorated and maintained to a very good standard, which ensures the environment is conducive to the positive care of young people. Young people are given the opportunity to personalise their rooms with posters and pictures. A good balance is maintained of ensuring that the living areas are safe and secure as well as being comfortable and homely.

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Safeguarding children and young people

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

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Safeguarding children and young people

There are very good child protection procedures in place. Staff are confident and demonstrate that they know what to do and who to inform in the event that they have concerns about a young person's well-being. All members of staff receive training in child protection and safeguarding procedures. The Registered Manager ensures that appropriate action is taken and all the relevant agencies are informed of any safeguarding issues. The setting has strong links with the Local Authority Designated Officer and other professionals involved in safeguarding young people.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people say that they feel safe and are kept safe and are protected from harm. A parent commented on how well the staff keep their child safe. Each young person has a plan of care that clearly identifies any risks and how they can be reduced or safely managed. These risk assessments are kept under regular review and this helps to ensure that changing needs can be addressed in order to promote young people's safety. Young people do not feel bullying is an issue. On occasions when it does occur they feel staff respond immediately and work with the perpetrator to help them understand the impact of their behaviours on others.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Staff know and implement the procedure when young people go missing. Such occasions rarely occur but when they do there is effective liaison with the local police. Staff respond appropriately using specific risk assessments that detail when to alert the police; this is dependent on the particular vulnerabilities of each young person. Risk assessments for very vulnerable young people detailed agreed response times by the police.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people's behaviours improve significantly as a result of incentives, consistent behaviour management strategies and consistently applied boundaries. Staff are regularly trained to physically intervene but only do so as a last resort. Staff also undertake regular refresher training to ensure young people are only restrained appropriately. Positive and proactive behaviour management strategies are consistently applied. When young people are struggling, staff will offer them support to help them take control of their behaviours. Following any incident young people and staff look together at the issues that led up to the incident and the impact it has had on others. The use of social stories enhances the effectiveness of this approach. Together, staff and young people develop positive strategies for how young people can respond in future similar situations. This approach enables staff to understand

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Safeguarding children and young people

why young people are upset and identify the best ways to help them manage their behaviour.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Young people live in a physically safe environment. They are protected by a good range of health and safety procedures and risk assessments. Staff carry out regular health and safety checks, including fire drills, to ensure the premises are safe and secure and young people know what to do in case of an emergency.

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Safeguarding children and young people

The procedures for the recruitment and selection of people working at the home are very thorough to make sure young people are protected. The manager ensures that staff have the skills and competencies to meet the needs of individual young people. Also there are suitable systems in place to ensure that visitors to the home are suitably checked and supervised to protect young people.

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Leadership and management

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

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Leadership and management

Young people live in a home that is efficiently and effectively managed by an experienced Registered Manager who is supported by a strong and stable staff team. Overall, the leadership and management of the home are consistently strong. The manager oversees the home's development plan and regularly reviews its contents in order to monitor the progress made. The manager has a clear understanding of the home’s many strengths and areas for further development and can demonstrate plans in place to further develop the strengths of the service.

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Leadership and management

Young people receive excellent care from a well-supported and balanced staff team. The team comprises members of each gender and reflects a range of experience and service with the organisation. Staff have plenty of opportunities for training throughout the year and are well supported through formal supervision and annual appraisal. There are also frequent opportunities and instances where informal discussion takes place with managers on care-related issues. There is a free flow of information and ideas between staff and managers across care and education. Staff are encouraged to be resourceful and innovative in their approach to care.

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Leadership and management

The Registered Manager and the staff team are suitably qualified and trained to fulfil their roles and as a result have a positive impact on the young people in their care. The home employs sufficient staff representing a range of ages and both genders to meet young people’s needs.

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Leadership and management

The Registered Manager regularly monitors the operation of the home and the progress young people make. Reports of monitoring by the provider and the manager are completed monthly. Reports indicate that the home is being very effectively and efficiently managed. The staff team are proud of the difference the home is making for young people.

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

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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 and the evaluation schedule for children's homes.

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