Children's Home run by Sandcastle Care Limited in Blackpool

Unique reference number SC065313 Inspector Mark Kersh Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Registered person Sandcastle Care Limited Registered person address Sandcastle Care Ltd 18 Rossall Road THORNTON-CLEVELEYS Lancashire FY5 1DX Responsible individual Duncan Cowburn Registered manager Angela Elizabeth Farmer Date of last inspection 25/03/2014 2 of 11 Inspection date 18/06/2014

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Previous inspection satisfactory progress Enforcement action since last inspection none

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Overall effectiveness adequate

Outcomes for children and young people adequate Quality of care adequate Keeping children and young people safe good Leadership and management adequate

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Overall effectiveness

The judgement of adequate was made at this inspection as a result of the short length of time young people have been living in the home. At this time there was not enough evidence to judge what impact the home is having on young people or how well their outcomes are being promoted.

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Overall effectiveness

The home has continued to make steady progress since the last inspection. Young people are safe, protected and supported to develop. The quality of care offered to young people is improving. Young people have positive relationships with staff who clearly care about them. There are strong elements of well-planned care and there is some effective partnership working to ensure continuity of approach to the development of young people.

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Overall effectiveness

Young people have very positive views about their care, the staff and the home. They receive care and form trusting relationships with the dedicated staff team that look after them and who are positive role models to the young people.

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Overall effectiveness

Safeguarding young people is given a high priority. Staff recognise the diverse needs of young people and are proactive at safeguarding them at times when their behaviour become challenging or they engage in risk-taking behaviour. Health and safety policies, systems and risk assessments are effectively implemented in 3 of 11 practice.

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Overall effectiveness

The home has a strong management team, and this was commented on by a number of professionals consulted during the inspection. Managers offer a high level of support to this home. Staff are well trained and monitoring for improvement is effective.

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Overall effectiveness

Following this inspection two requirements have been made in relation to education and having a copy of the regulations in the home. One recommendation has been carried over from the previous inspection in relation to admissions. 4 of 11

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private organisation. It is registered to care for up to three young people of both genders with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/03/2014 Interim satisfactory progress 08/01/2014 Full adequate 19/02/2013 Interim satisfactory progress 01/08/2012 Full adequate

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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 the routine of the home is organised so as to further children's participation in education, including regular attendance at school and participation in school activities of children of compulsory school age (Regulation 18 (1)(b)) 18/07/2014

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Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure that a copy of these regulations (and any amendments to them) and of the statement of national minimum standards applicable to children's homes published by the Secretary of State under section 23(1) of the Act are kept in the home. (Regulation 35 (a-c)) 27/06/2014 5 of 11

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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 that the home only provides admission to young people whose assesse needs they can reasonably expect to meet. In particular, ensure that records decisions about admissions demonstrate robust matching of children's needs taking into account the skills of the staff team and the needs of children alrea in placement. (NMS 11.2) 6 of 11

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people are beginning to make some progress in every area of their lives. Their self-esteem, positive behaviour and resilience have increased and they are learning to develop more secure attachments.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people currently in the home are in good health and are registered with local healthcare professionals. They receive appropriate emotional and social support and commented that this had had a significant impact on their progress in addressing particular areas of their lives. Young people with specific needs in terms of their health receive dedicated and appropriate care, which is monitored for progress.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Staff promote education and learning, and for those young people without education provision some activities are educationally based. There is good communication between care and education staff to secure appropriate education provision for young people. However, progress is slow. Young people are not currently engaged in formal education provision and their previous attendance at school has been poor. As a result, they are at risk of not gaining any academic qualifications and thus limiting their life chances.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Supporting contact and building relationships is given high priority by the home. Young people have free leisure time when they meet with friends in the community. Contact arrangements are supported by staff who help young people to develop a positive personal identity and sustain attachments. Young people's friends are welcome to visit the home and stay for tea.

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Outcomes for children and young people adequate

Young people are supported to learn and develop age-appropriate life skills and knowledge through informal independence work. This supports and encourages greater independence and responsibility. They learn skills such as cooking, shopping, laundry and maintaining their own living space. These improved skills enable young people to take responsibility for their surroundings and develop their ability to care for themselves in later life.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people are making consistent progress in relation to developing secure and safe attachments with the staff who care for them. Young people who could not sustain relationships in their previous placement now relate well to the staff at the home. They engage well with staff, who help them to understand their history and background. Outcomes for young people improve because they receive stable care delivered by a skilled staff team. Young people comment positively about this home 7 of 11 and say they are 'happy and staff always listen to me and fix things for me, it's pure.'

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Quality of care adequate

Young people who have previously had very poor outcomes are managing to maintain a positive day-to-day routine and engage in the running of the home. Young people confirm they are consulted daily and that staff act on their feelings, wishes and views. While they still show inappropriate behaviour at times, these instances are lessening and young people are accepting the boundaries within the home. This demonstrates they are beginning to take more control of their lives.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people are well aware of how to raise a complaint, and feel able to do this. Young people have information about and access to outside agencies to raise concerns. There have been no complaints or concerns raised since the previous inspection.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people have detailed and clear individual placement plans which are monitored and updated as and when necessary. This ensures progress is captured and all staff are aware of daily living routines. Plans provide achievable targets for young people and detail their day-to-day care effectively. Young people have contributed to their care plans and signed them, showing their agreement to the goals they are aiming to meet. Needs relating to young people's cultural backgrounds and personal identities are positively addressed in both daily discussions and care planning records.

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Quality of care adequate

All staff have received training in the administration of medication and first aid. The home has robust arrangements for receiving and disposing of medication. There are clear recording procedures for young people who have allergies to a certain type of medicine, and this ensures the safety and well-being of young people. All medication brought into the home is audited and accounted for.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people are encouraged to be part of the local community and take advantage of local facilities. Activity planners are in place which take account of young people's preferred hobbies and interests. Young people benefit from a staff team who are committed to supporting them in meaningful pursuits, some of which are educational. This builds young people's self-esteem and gives a sense of engagement with the wider society.

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Quality of care adequate

Young people live in a comfortable environment that reflects a welcoming and homely family setting. There are pictures displayed of the staff team at a time when they were much younger along with pictures of young people. Young people are able to personalise their bedrooms and their belongings are safe. They are consulted about new furnishings and décor and can have their bedrooms redecorated to reflect changing preferences.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

8 of 11 Young people feel safe and are protected from potential harm. This is because staff are knowledgeable and clear about their roles and responsibilities. Staff work in partnership with other professionals to share information to promote young people’s welfare and safety. One stakeholder said: 'Staff are very good at informing me of all events in the home relating to young people, the communication is excellent.' Young people are actively encouraged to improve their awareness and understanding of how to keep safe. Young people demonstrate that they feel safe through their open communication and interaction with staff. As a result, levels of criminal activity and risk-taking behaviours have significantly decreased.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

The home has effective locally-agreed strategies for responding to young people who go missing, and staff search proactively for them. Young people are responded to warmly on their return to the home and de-briefed so that they and staff can learn from the experience. There have been six episodes of young people going missing since the previous inspection, although these episodes are related to young people who have moved on from the home. There are currently no issues with young people being missing from the home.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

There is very little use of physical restraint in this home. Records show four low level restraints have occurred with a previous resident and clearly reflect the reasons and need for its use. Staff have all received appropriate training and attend regular refresher training on the use of restraint. The Registered Manager monitors the use of restraints and discussions follow with staff in order to learn lessons and identify triggers for young people's behaviour. Sanctions are fair and understood by young people. They are mainly used as reparation for misspent monies, and this is to enable young people to take responsibility for their actions.

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Keeping children and young people safe good

Regular fire drills mean young people know what to do in an emergency. There are regular and frequent checks on all electrical equipment clearly recorded. This provides young people with a physically safe environment to live in. Checks are in place to ensure that only suitable people are recruited to work with young people.

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Leadership and management adequate

The home had experienced an unstable six month period without a manager before the new manager took up her post in December 2013. The new manager registered with Ofsted on 04 March 2014. The Registered Manager is providing strong management and leadership and is committed to continuing to support the staff team and raising the standards of the home. The manager holds a level 3 qualification and is working towards a level 5 Diploma. She has a number of years' experience of working with children and young people meaning she is well experienced to provide residential care.

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Leadership and management adequate

There have been no reported complaints or concerns raised since the last inspection. The home has good systems in place to ascertain the views of professionals, 9 of 11 stakeholders and family and friends. Feedback received has been positive and used to develop the home and the staff.

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Leadership and management adequate

The home's statement of purpose clearly describes the home's aims and objectives and was updated in April 2014 in line with new regulations. Young people receive a detailed information booklet which describes the services they can expect the home to provide them with. The home has a copy of the national minimum standards for children's home's available, however the children's home's regulations 2001 were not available in the home during this inspection.

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Leadership and management adequate

There was one requirement made at the last inspection in relation to the record kept by the home for restraints. This has been met and the restraint record clearly shows all of the information as specified in regulation.

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Leadership and management adequate

Three of the four recommendations made at the last inspection have been met. These were in relation to recruitment records for agency staff, the qualifications and experiences of agency staff and the supervision of all staff. The home does not use agency staff although should this need arise systems are in place to ensure full and factual information is kept about them within the home. Records show and staff confirm that they receive consistent monthly supervision from the Registered Manager.

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Leadership and management adequate

The fourth recommendation has been carried forward following this inspection. This is in relation to admissions of young people and ensuring the home can meet their assessed needs. Some work has been done around the pre-admission assessment reports on young people. However, the home did not have any young people admitted since 9 May 2014 until a single admission made on 6 June 2014. As a result it is too early to test the impact these assessments have had. This will be looked at during the next inspection.

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Leadership and management adequate

The home is visited every month by an independent person. The independent person considers all records relating to the care provided to young people and produces detailed reports to assist managers in their monitoring processes. The independent visitor spends time with the young people and seeks their wishes and feelings where possible. Reports from these visits are returned to Ofsted in a timely manner each month for consideration. The Registered Manager also monitors the records and the care that staff provide to young people and will address any shortfalls either individually with staff or through team meetings. There is a development plan in place with clear targets to improve the quality of the service.

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Leadership and management adequate

Current staffing levels ensure good levels of support and all of the staff are suitably trained, meeting the needs of the home and the young people in placement. Agency staff have been used previously as a result of a placing authority requesting an all- male staff team. This is no longer the case as the young person has moved out of the home. The management team provides reliable cover, offering support on shifts and an on-call service. 10 of 11 The Registered Manager ensures that all post-admission planning meetings and reviews are well recorded and that staff prepare reports in advance of such meetings. This ensures clear plans can be discussed and agreed with young people about their expectations while living in the home.

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Leadership and management adequate

Records are stored securely and kept confidential. Case files cover all matters required by the regulations. Staff respond promptly and know who to contact should a significant event occur, and this further safeguards young people living in the home. Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Leadership and management adequate

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Judgement Description

Outstanding A service of exceptional quality that significantly exceeds minimum requirements.

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Judgement Description

Good A service of high quality that exceeds minimum requirements.

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Judgement Description

Adequate A service that only meets minimum requirements.

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Judgement Description

Inadequate A service that does not meet minimum requirements.

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Information 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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Information 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 framework of inspection for children's homes.

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