Children's Home run by Liverpool City Council in Liverpool

Unique reference number SC035969 Inspector Denise Jolly Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

p.1

Registered person Liverpool City Council Registered person address Liverpool City Council, Municipal Buildings Dale Street LIVERPOOL L2 2DH Responsible individual Bernadette Brown Registered manager Michael John Nagle Date of last inspection 30/05/2014 2 of 7 Inspection date 11/11/2014

p.1

Previous inspection good Enforcement action since last inspection There has been no enforcement action since the last inspection.

p.2

This inspection

This home was judged good at the last full inspection. At this interim inspection Ofsted judge that it has sustained effectiveness .

p.2

This inspection

The home received a judgement of good at the last inspection in May 2014. The home has sustained effectiveness, because outcomes for the majority of young people have continued to be good despite some setbacks in the conduct of the home. Managers have detailed plans in place, to effect positive change in most of the shortfalls identified in this inspection. Shortfalls identified relate to the records, and the effectiveness of monitoring the conduct of the home. They do not affect the safety and welfare of children and young people.

p.2

This inspection

Children and young people have increasing opportunities to communicate their views and wishes. Staff have increased their knowledge and understanding of how to support the communication needs of children with disabilities. Children use visual aids, such as photographs of staff, picture menus and activity planners to request their choices. Improvements, such as a new garden play area and easy to use computer controls, further enhances opportunities for young people to occupy themselves in enjoyable and constructive activity. One young person told me that staff had encouraged him to write a letter to his local football team, to ask them to visit him at the home. Another young person was delighted to choose his favourite pudding for desert. He told me that his ‘tummy was very full’, because he had eaten a nice tea. This promotes children’s independence, confidence and self- determination because staff respond positively to their choices.

p.2

This inspection

Most recent initiatives have included a ‘my views’ document, that young people complete after their short break. This enables staff to plan to meet individual preferences such as the food young people like. About half of the parents whose children attend the setting have responded to a quality review questionnaire. This has contributed to the development of the home. Managers have reviewed the paperwork that parents complete at the start of each stay, to make it less 3 of 7 complicated. Staff also supported a family to access better transport for their child to attend the home. Parents say that the open and responsive nature of staff is a key strength of the home. This instils confidence in the quality of provision.

p.2

This inspection

Children and young people are supported by staff who are enthusiastic and committed to help them to enjoy their short break. They offer an improved, activity- based programme so that young people can explore a wide variety of community and leisure venues in confidence that will meet their needs. This increases their knowledge and understanding of the world.

p.3

This inspection

Young people’s behaviour support needs are identified in clear risk management plans. Staff are trained in suitable approaches that enable them to intervene effectively in the majority of situations, to ensure the safety and welfare of all. Managers help staff to regularly reflect on incidents and interventions. Together they identify ways to improve the support they offer young people. Managers review the welfare of young people following any physical intervention, and interpret their feelings about the incident. Their views and discussions are not consistently recorded in the records of restraint. While this has not affected the safety of young people, it has caused delays when independent persons assess the appropriateness of the restraint, because some information is kept elsewhere, such as within incident reports, or in messages to staff.

p.3

This inspection

The Registered Manager has created a detailed and progressive development plan that includes actions to improve staff’s professional competence. Managers have identified the need to improve staff recording skills. Audits of children’s files have shown that some keyworkers did not ensure that minutes of all reviews of children’s multidisciplinary plans were available, and some did not ensure that they regularly updated the placement plan in line with outcomes from those meetings in a timely way. Managers have requested missing documents from social workers. Supervisors now monitor progress and set clear targets for improvement in the records. As a result, keyworkers have significantly improved the quality and content of childcare planning records.

p.3

This inspection

Staff are engaging in many opportunities for training and reflective practice sessions that improve their ability to deliver competent and effective direct work. This programme of learning arose from the manager’s monitoring of incident reports. This has led to a significant reduction in incidents. Staff diverting the behaviour of young people, to avoid the need for restraint, has achieved specific positive impact. This has improved many young people’s experiences, because staff are usually successful in helping them to sustain a baseline of calm and anxiety-free emotional stability.

p.3

This inspection

Not all staff are making sufficient progress to ensure that they provide clear and helpful detail about incidents and restraints. The Registered Manager oversees all records, to assess their quality. He ensures staff make improvements when necessary, although this means there are occasional delays in providing clear 4 of 7 information to external professionals and parents. The monitoring of this aspect of professional practice is not consistently carried through to staff supervision sessions, and this delays the progress some staff make.

p.3

This inspection

Due to improved multi-disciplinary working, health and education records are included in information gathered about young people. This informs and supports individual placement plans. Keyworkers identify strategies to support identified need such as epilepsy care or communication support, to enhance the quality of care provided. If children are receiving support for their mental health needs, staff include the relevant information in their plans of care. Staff respond effectively to emergency health situations that arise, seek appropriate medical support, and keep parents well informed of the situation. When necessary, staff accompany children to hospital, to ensure they get the best treatment for their ill health.

p.4

This inspection

Independent visitors provide reports on the conduct of the home, and review the quality of care provided. They examine relevant records, and talk to staff and parents about the home. Less frequently, their visits coincide with children being present. This limits their ability to assess young people’s experiences independently, because they rely on the reports of others for the majority of visits. The Registered Manager has recognised the importance of visitors consulting directly with young people, and has encouraged them to visit at times when children are present. Not all reports are sent to Ofsted in good time, and this hinders the ability of the regulator to assess the conduct of the home.

p.4

This inspection

Managers notify Ofsted promptly about all serious incidents that occur. This includes any child protection referral or serious illness suffered by children. The home offers open and transparent communication with all parties, to ensure that independent persons, including child protection professionals, can assess the quality of care provided. Any such review has concluded that staff keep children and young people safe, and protect their welfare. Managers take action arising from child protection investigations. This includes continuing to improve the quality of record keeping, and assessing the suitability of staffing ratios.

p.4

This inspection

Not all actions are suitably prioritised to effect immediate change. For example, managers acknowledged the need to review the statement of purpose, to ensure staff and parents understood and implemented appropriate child admission procedures. This has been discussed as part of a review of incidents that occurred, and staff have identified improvements. However, the Registered Manager did not amend the statement of purpose. This may cause confusion about how staff manage the admission of children to the short breaks service. 5 of 7

p.4

Information about this children’s home

The children's home is managed by a local authority, providing short-term breaks for up to seven children and young people at any one time. Children and young people with learning disabilities and physical disabilities are cared for.

p.5

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/05/2014 Full good 23/01/2014 Interim good progress 20/06/2013 Full adequate 29/10/2012 Interim satisfactory progress

p.5

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.

p.5

Reg. Requirement Due date

5 (2001) ensure the registered person shall revise the statement of purpose to include detailed procedures to support the positive admission of young people to the short break (Regulation 5(a)) 12/12/2014

p.5

Reg. Requirement Due date

17B (2001) ensure that within 24 hours of the use of any measure of control or restraint, the record confirms that the authorised person has spoken to the child and staff using the measure about the use of the measure (Regulation 17B (3h)) 12/12/2014

p.5

Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure that all persons employed receive appropriate supervision that identifies and monitors for improvement, shortfalls in professional practice such as effective recording skills (Regulation 27 (4a)) 12/12/2014

p.5

Reg. Requirement Due date

33 ensure the independent visitor shall interview such 26/12/2014 6 of 7 (2001) of the children accommodated there as appears necessary to from an opinion as to whether children are effectively safeguarded (Regulation 33 (8a))

p.5

Reg. Requirement Due date

(2001) ensure the independent person shall provide a copy of the written report about their visit to HMCI. (Regulation 33 (9a)) 26/12/2014

p.6

Recommendations

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

p.6

Recommendations

 ensure the manager takes immediate action to address all issues raised by the monitoring of the home, particularly with regard to any review of the Statement of Purpose, and individual staff development needs (NMS 21.2)  ensure the registered person works with the responsible authority to ensure effective sharing of information held in the responsible authorities records, in particular minutes of all reviews of placement plans. (NMS 22.7) Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.6

Recommendations

This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

p.7

What inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspections we make a judgement on whether the home has improved in effectiveness, sustained effectiveness, or declined in effectiveness since the previous full inspection. This is in line with the Inspection of children’s homes: framework for inspection.

p.7

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.

p.7

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.

p.7