Children's Home run by Appletree Treatment Centre Limited in Westmorland and Furness

Unique reference number SC033268 Inspection date 27/02/2014 Inspector Gillian Walters Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Residential special school (>295 days/year)

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Date of last inspection 11/09/2013 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

The home accommodates up to 12 young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties. It is provided by a private company.

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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 full inspection on 11 September 2013 this home was judged as adequate overall. There were three requirements and two recommendations made to promote improvement in the service. These have been satisfactorily addressed by the provider. However, two further recommendations have been made as a result of this inspection to secure sustained improvement in relation to shortfalls identified at the last inspection. These relate to the homeliness of the environment and fire evacuation drills.

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Progress

The home is structurally well maintained and good arrangements exist for the monitoring and timely completion of repairs and general maintenance. This ensures that the home continues to provide a safe and healthy environment for the young people that live there. The décor in a few areas of the home appears somewhat tired and grubby, with graffiti on some of the young people’s bedroom furniture detracting from the general homeliness of their environment.

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Progress

There have been no new admissions to the home since the last inspection. However, the home has updated its programme to ensure that evacuation drills are planned quickly following any new admission. This ensure that the young people coming into the home are familiar with the routes of escape and have an early opportunity to practice this. Young people have continued to practice the procedure for evacuating the home in the event of an emergency. However, recent practice evacuations have only occurred during daylight hours. This means that not all young people will be sufficiently familiar or practiced in leaving the home during hours of darkness should they be required to do so. This increases their vulnerability should there be a genuine need to leave the premises at night.

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Progress

Young people are currently settled in their placements and say that they enjoy living at the home. Although young people do at times engage in risk-taking behaviour that increases their vulnerability, they say that they feel safe in this home and that staff take good care of them. Young people consistently identify the wide range of activities that are on offer as one of the best features of the home. Young people's individual interests are well catered for and their equality promoted. For example, sporting activities such as rugby and football are enjoyed by young people regardless of their sex. One young person commented, 'Staff care for us. They look after us really well. I know I'm a girl, but I really like rugby and I am going to play rugby too.'

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Progress

The home has improved the quality of its recording of disciplinary measures ensuring that a full and comprehensive record is available in relation to occasions when young people are physically managed. Individual records provide sufficient detail of any injuries sustained as a result of a physical intervention and the action taken to ensure young people have access to prompt medical attention and advice. This means that young people's health and well-being is appropriately promoted and their welfare safeguarded.

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Progress

The Registered Manager and the provider have been active in evaluating practice in relation to a significant number of physical interventions that have resulted in young people sustaining minor injuries such as scratches and small bruises. The provider has appropriately engaged with Ofsted and the local authority to address concerns in relation to the number of such injuries occurring over recent months. Staff have benefited from further behaviour management training to refresh their skill and knowledge and the provider is in the process of re-assessing the quality and appropriateness of the home's whole behaviour management programme. As a result of this action, there has been a recent sharp decline in the number of reported injuries. This is an early indication that the provider is making some positive progress in ensuring that young people do not accidently suffer injury as a result of staff intervention.

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Progress

Staff benefit from regular supervision and frequent meetings with a visiting psychologist and play therapists. These arrangements provided staff with good opportunities to receive advice and professional support, ensuring that consistent guidance is shared in relation to the emotional needs and behaviour management of individual young people. Young people are encouraged to contribute their views about their keyworkers as part of the supervision process. This enables young people a good opportunity to contribute their ideas and express their views and feelings. Young people appreciate that their views are important and that by voicing their views they are able to influence the quality of care they receive.

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Progress

The Registered Manager has revised and implemented a rolling programme to ensure that all staff receive an annual appraisal. This means that the home is able to identify individual strengths within the staff team and areas for professional development. The home has a well-developed training programme that ensures staff have sufficient opportunity to increase their knowledge and develop their skills in working with young people. A number of staff have recently benefited from training specific to supervising young people during family contact. For those staff there is greater awareness of their role and responsibilities in safeguarding young people during this activity.

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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

 ensure the home provides a comfortable and homely environment and is well maintained and decorated, this relates most specifically to damage in young people’s bedrooms (NMS 10.3)  ensure there is an emergency escape plan that all staff and young people are familiar with and have practiced so they know what to do in an emergency, such as undertaking fire drills of a night. (NMS 10.9)

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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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