Children's Home run by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council in Blackburn with Darwen

Unique reference number SC372511 Inspection date 28/02/2014 Inspector Jacqueline Malcolm Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 17/10/2013 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Brief description of the service

This local authority home provides short breaks care for up to five young people at any one time, who have a range of 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

At the last full inspection in October 2013, Ofsted judged the overall effectiveness of this short breaks service to be good. One requirement and two recommendations were made to drive further improvement. These were in respect of the administration of medication, the recording of the effectiveness of physical interventions in Regulation 33 reports and increased storage space in residents’ bedrooms.

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Progress

Since this time, the majority of shortfalls have been fully addressed. As a result, robust monitoring arrangements have been implemented to improve the administration of medication. This promotes children and young people's safety and welfare. There is a clear commitment from senior management to ensure that in the event of any future sanctions or physical interventions the effectiveness of them will be made clear in Regulation 33 reports. This confirms that the visitor has read the documents and is satisfied that the home has an effective approach to behaviour management. Funding to install additional storage space in the children and young people’s bedrooms has only recently been agreed, therefore this recommendation is repeated. Young people experience safe, nurturing care in a homely environment. They continue to make good progress during their short breaks. Since the last inspection, the home has made further improvements to children and young people’s quality of

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Progress

care. For example, the team away day was a positive event, which resulted in staff taking on some additional responsibilities, such as developing children and young people’s files. This helps staff to be more accountable in their roles and feel involved in service developments. The home has made good links with a local authority. This helps them to share ideas and implement good practice models in the home. For example, the introduction of communication passports for all children and young people who use the service. The purpose of this document is to inform key people about individual children and young people's needs. The extension to the building is progressing well. It is intended that children and young people will benefit from the additional resources during their short breaks when this is completed.

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Progress

Although parents retain responsibility for their children's educational and health needs, the home has maintained close relationships with parents and professionals from education and health services. This ensures that children and young people continue to receive consistent care with minimal disruption. Parents are happy with the services that their children receive during their short breaks. They say, 'I don’t have the words, they are brilliant. I can tell the difference when he comes here, he is excited about coming' and 'they have always been here during hard times'. 'Staff are softly spoken' and ‘x always has a smile when he comes here' and ‘staff are very helpful’.

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Progress

Children and young people continue to enjoy many opportunities to engage in social activities both home and away. This has included members of the girls group attending a pop tribute act, which was enjoyed by all who attended. Children and young people have visited the theatre and have ventured out on day trips. A group of young people successfully completed the Duke of Edinburgh Award. This is an excellent achievement and serves to promote the young people's confidence in their abilities. Home based activities provide children and young people with hours of entertainment. This includes listening to music, playing electronic console games, pamper sessions, doing arts and crafts, developing cooking skills and spending time in the sensory room.

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Progress

Consultation with children and young people remains an important feature of care practices in the home. Listening to children and young people has resulted in visits to the cinema, shopping centres, they have assisted with the weekly food shopping and have been involved in cooking. This demonstrates that children and young people's views are acted on. Parents are regularly consulted and their suggestions help to develop the service. They have been involved in the new medication arrangements and their input at children in need reviews enable any changes to their children’s circumstances to be made known. An area of good practice is the parent’s forum that recently voted to take over chairing the disability steering group. This is a strong example of how the home has empowered parent’s through consultation to influence services delivered to children and young people.

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Progress

The home is efficiently and effectively managed by a motivated and committed Registered Manager who leads by example. Staff are well retained and they are supported through supervision, appraisal, team meetings and training opportunities. This ensures their continued development and competence to ensure that children and young people receive the best possible childcare.

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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 a homely environment is provided in relation to young people's bedrooms. Also that there are suitable storage facilities for equipment in the home (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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