Children's Home run by Courtyard Care Limited in Bolton

Unique reference number SC389823 Inspection date 27/02/2014 Inspector Valerie Shephard Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 17/06/2013 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

This privately run children's home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to five young people who have learning and/or physical disabilities.

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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 good progress .

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Progress

This interim inspection has focused on the progress made by the home since the last inspection when the overall judgement was good. One requirement and three recommendations were made at the previous inspection. The home has made good progress in all areas, improving the quality of care and outcomes for young people.

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Progress

The one requirement related to information on young people’s files and these now contain all necessary information in accordance with regulations. This provides young people with an accurate record of their history and enables staff to support their care needs effectively. There is evidence of active follow up with placing authorities when information is missing.

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Progress

The three recommendations previously set relate to checks, induction for new staff, and records of measures of control, discipline or restraint. The manager ensures the verification of references in all cases and this upholds good safeguarding practice. New staff are provided with appropriate induction training which equips them with the basic knowledge to care for young people effectively. The home has improved the systems and record keeping in relation to measures of control used with young people. There is competent completion of log sheets. Evaluation and sign off by a senior member of staff ensures there is continual analysis of the effectiveness of the methods of control used in the home.

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Progress

Placements are stable and the home is able to demonstrate overall improvements in behaviour and outcomes for young people. For example speech has improved with some of the young people now linking words together and forming sentences. Overall communication is much better as a result of further development of the Picture Exchange Communication System (pecs). The enhanced use of pecs has enabled more active involvement by young people in meal and activity choices. The pictorial display in the hall enables the young people to see which staff members are on duty each day. This serves to offer the young people reassurance about their routines and this assists in their sense of well-being.

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Progress

Overall, there is an improvement in young people’s behaviour as they learn to calm themselves more effectively and better manage their emotions. Staff are skilled in de-escalating potentially difficult situations by giving young people space to calm themselves. Young people often choose to withdraw to a designated quiet area to reflect on their behaviour. As young people have been empowered to take control of their behaviour, incidents of restraint in the home have significantly reduced.

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Progress

The home benefits from an experienced and enthusiastic staff team who fully support the manager to run the home effectively. In turn, staff receive excellent support from seniors and managers and confirm they feel well supported to carry out their roles. High priority is given to training and staff benefit from the delivery of a range of mandatory and refresher courses. The provision of additional courses on topics such as autism awareness and attachment issues further increases their knowledge. Consequently staff are equipped with the skills they need to effectively care for young people. In addition the manager has enrolled on a management course which meets requirements under the new regulations.

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Progress

The newly Registered Manager has adopted an enthusiastic, positive and proactive approach to managing the home. She is well organised and effectively evaluates the quality of care, young people’s progress and the home’s records. The manager robustly resists the admission of new young people where evidence indicates the home cannot meet their needs. A strong determining factor is the impact of a new admission on the individual needs of the existing young people in the home. Young people and staff benefit from a strong leader whose mission is to drive forward improvements in the home.

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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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