Children's Home run by ROC Northwest Limited in Lancashire

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged Good at the full inspection. At this interim inspection Ofsted judge that it has improved effectiveness .

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home continues to offer a high level of individualised care to the young people in placement. Care is planned around the young people’s needs and staff are skilled at identifying the specific issues affecting each young person placed. The staff team continue to develop their diverse skills and apply them expertly to meet the wide range of needs of the young people. Training is provided in identified specialist areas to assist them and ensure they have the necessary skills. A particular strength of the home is their ability to integrate young people with a multitude of different issues into a cohesive home life.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The young people all have positive education plans in place and attendance at education is a further strength of the home. Young people are encouraged to achieve their educational potential and are supported by staff in the home to do so. Young people at the home are encouraged and supported to take qualifications and plan for their future careers.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There is a sharper focus on developing independence skills at varying levels for the young people to enable them to move on positively and be adequately prepared for adult life. The introduction of ‘Plan, shop, cook’ has allowed all of the young people to become increasingly involved in producing meals from the initial planning stages through to the serving of a meal for the other young people and staff.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Some young people are preparing to move on and transition into adult placements. The home prepares them well for this and also works closely alongside other agencies to ensure clear plans are in place. Where other agencies are not providing a good service to a young person to plan their move, the home challenges and advocates on their behalf.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Some young people have specific communication needs and the positive and trusting relationships developing between the young person and staff and other young people in the home have enabled them to communicate more freely and express their wishes and feelings in their own unique way. Young people who require therapeutic input benefit from a service provided by the organisation. The therapist helps a number of young people to deal with issues affecting them and make sense of their life experiences. Good quality key work also supports young people to develop understanding of their behaviours, reflect on things that have not gone well for them and celebrate their achievements.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Safeguarding issues are identified at an early stage and plans are put in place to ensure young people’s safety. The home recognise that young people need to develop and learn to manage their own risks and use an incremental approach to allowing young people greater freedoms within a structured and safe environment.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home has robust safeguarding procedures in place and has further developed these since the last full inspection. Management of allegations against staff is thorough and recording is detailed and provides a clear outcome which allows for transparency.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

For young people who go missing from home there is a co-ordinated response to returning the young person home safely. When young people have been missing on multiple occasions the home have met with other agencies involved to try to identify a plan to reduce the episodes. When this has not been successful, the home have recognised this and helped the young person to move on to a more suitable placement in a planned way.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people are protected from exploitation and on-line bullying through having restricted and monitored internet use. Discussion and work sheets raise their awareness of the risks. Bullying in the home is not an issue currently but staff have been trained, as have young people, in order to ensure they would recognise and act on any instances of bullying. The risk of sexual exploitation for some young people has dramatically reduced from their point of placement and this has been assisted by the extensive work undertaken with young people to enable them to better understand the risks.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home have developed close working relationships with a number of partner agencies involved in the young people’s lives and this ensures that the young people’s full range of needs are considered and met.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Managers at the home have clear knowledge of the home’s strengths and weaknesses and are keen to develop their staff to take additional responsibilities. Monitoring, both internal and external, is thorough and works well to identify any areas for improvement. Monitoring systems are in place on a number of different levels which reduces the risk of any issues going un-addressed.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home provides a calm, caring and nurturing environment. There is a genuinely homely feel and the young people are polite and respectful which reflects the way they themselves are cared for.

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Information about this children's home

The home is registered to accommodate up to five young people of either gender who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties, physical or learning disabilities, mental disorders or sensory impairment. The home provides accommodation for up to four young people in the main building and one young person in an annex attached to the building. This is designed as a semi-independent living space.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

16/03/2015 Interim sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

27/02/2014 Interim Satisfactory Progress

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What the inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspection 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.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people living in the children's home. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference adults make to the lives of children and young people. They read case files, watched how professional staff work with children, young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care given to children and young people. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people and their families. In addition the inspectors have tried to understand what the children's home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people who it is trying to help, protect and look after. This inspection focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This 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 Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. the guidance raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, workbased learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for looked after children and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Information about this inspection

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Information about this inspection

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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