Children's Home run by Care Afloat Ltd in Lancashire

Unique reference number SC006013 Inspection date 15/01/2013 Inspector Elaine Clare Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 28/06/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

This private company-run home provides care and accommodation for one young person with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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The inspection judgements and what they mean

Good progress The children’s home has demonstrated continued improvement in quality of care and outcomes for children and young people and where appropriate has addressed all requirements and the large majority of recommendations that were raised at the previous inspection. Satisfactory progress The children’s home has maintained quality of care and outcomes for children and young people and where appropriate has addressed all requirements and the majority of recommendations that were raised at the previous inspection. Inadequate progress The children’s home has failed to address one or more requirements and/or has not met the majority of recommendations and/or the quality of care and outcomes for children and young people have declined since the last full inspection.

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Progress

Since their previous inspection the service is judged to be making satisfactory progress .

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Progress

At the last inspection in June 2012, the overall effectiveness rating for the home was adequate. Two recommendations were made. Satisfactory progress has been made in addressing these. The Registered Manager has put in place strategies to improve the environment and culture which promote, model and support positive behaviour. Staff have understood and implemented these strategies and as a result, some progress has been made.

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Progress

The home has received six complaints since the last inspection. Most complaints are from within the immediate vicinity of the home and relate to alleged anti-social behaviour. The manager has visited and apologised for the behaviour. In most cases, this has resolved the issues. One complaint was of such a serious nature that it necessitated a notification to Ofsted. The manager failed to do this. At the present time, no children are in placement at the home. Therefore the complaints have subsided.

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Progress

The level of physical interventions reduced before the young people left the home and satisfactory progress has been made in that regard. However, the level of risk presented by the young people at time of initial placement did not improve. For example, young people were hanging out of the staff office window. This put them at risk of falling and injuring themselves. A further incident, which resulted in criminal damage and an assault on staff, involved the police arresting and charging the young people. This potentially leads to young people’s criminalisation.

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Progress

The home has recently supported young people to stay safe. Prior to admission into the home, young people had previously been behaving inappropriately in the local community and had been repeatedly reported to the police because of absences. Staff and managers acted quickly and worked in partnership with other professionals, including the police and social workers, to an agreed strategy. As a result, the number of times the young people went missing significantly reduced. Since the last inspection, there has been one episode.

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Progress

There has been some progress on the previous recommendation that the manager ensures that staff help children to achieve their educational goals. The manager implemented different strategies to improve attendance at education and prior to discharge, young people were successfully involved in a stone masonry course.

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Progress

Placement plans, risk assessments and health records have been archived since the young people have left the home. This means that they could not be examined during this inspection.

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Progress

A tour of the home and a review of the last Regulation 33 report found that some damage had occurred to the roof. It was hoped that this would have been fixed prior to the winter, but as yet it awaits repair. Following a risk assessment when young people still occupied the home, fire extinguishers were locked in the staff bedroom. They remain locked in the bedroom, even though no young people reside in the home. This lack of easy access to a fire extinguisher could put the premises at risk in the event of fire. The kitchen door and cupboards within the kitchen have locks on them. Again, this was as a result of a previous risk assessment to prevent items being damaged or stolen. However, the locks are unsightly and lead to an intuitional feel. With no young people in placement and no risk presenting itself, it is unclear why they remain in place.

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Progress

A social worker commented that in their opinion, young people did not achieve optimal outcomes in the home. When there were young people in the home, the Regulation 33 visitor did not consult with young people, staff, parents or social workers during their monthly visit and seek their opinions about the home. This lack of consultation means that the registered person cannot fully know what it is like for a young person to live at the home and as a consequence valuable information, for example from social workers, can be missed.

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Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person/s meets the Care Standards Act 2000, Children's Homes Regulations 2001 and the National Minimum Standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure that a Schedule 5 notification has been sent to Ofsted, with particular regards to serious complaints about persons working at the home (Regulation 30(1)) 28/02/2013

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment; in particular, this must be readily available in an emergency (Regulation 32 (1)(a)) 28/02/2013

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) interview, with their consent and in private, such of the children accommodated there, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as appears necessary in order to form an opinion of the standard of care provided in the home. (Regulation 33(4)(a)) 28/02/2013

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Recommendations

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

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Recommendations

 provide a comfortable and homely environment ensuing that risk reduction does not lead to an institutional feel; with particular regards to locks on the kitchen door and food cupboards (NMS 10.3)

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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 progress made by the provider since the last full inspection, identifies any further strengths, any areas for improvement and makes judgements as outlined in the Inspection of children’s homes – framework for inspection.

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