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

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

There have been some changes to the group of children since the last full inspection, with two young people being discharged, two admitted and a further planned admission imminent. The changes to the group have had a positive impact on the children. The children moving on had been in placement for a significant amount of time and were ready to move and the new admissions have settled in very well, resulting in a settled and happy home where the children are making good progress.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Transitions into and out of placement are generally managed with detailed thought and planning. This practice, alongside careful preparation for young people moving onto foster care or to return home to their parents, maximises their chances of success. For young people entering the home, great efforts are made to ensure they feel welcome and settle quickly. Examples of this, include other children in the home writing cards to welcome the new child, children being encouraged to remember how it felt when they were new and show empathy and the child’s bedroom being decorated with their interests in mind, in advance of them coming to live at the home. The one exception to the very good transition planning, was a placement breakdown. This occurred unexpectedly for one young person, following a sharp increase in his challenging behaviours and disengagement with the placement. A complaint was made to the home about the handling of the

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

placement termination, which was investigated and no concerns were noted. The placement was ended at short notice in order to protect both the young person leaving and the children in placement.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Although the children in the home are relatively young, they are helped to understand their past in order to assist them in making sense out of their histories. Information is provided to children in an interesting and age appropriate way about the area of the country/world they come from and the cultures associated with that area. They are provided with maps so they can see where they live now in relation to where they have previously lived. They also have picture albums documenting their time in the home from when they arrive, to when they leave which provides positive memories for them. For some children, life story work is being completed and this is undertaken in conjunction with their social workers. The work is age appropriate and enables the child to have a better understanding of why they are looked after in a children’s home. The registered manager has undertaken training in life story work to support this process.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There is a strong focus on positive reinforcement and developing children’s positive self-view. As such, the use of consequences is kept to an absolute minimum. Staff use reflection sheets with children in place of consequences and this helps them better understand their emotions and behaviour and how this may make other people feel, it also helps them to develop strategies to self-regulate. One example being a child writing a letter of apology after upsetting another child, another example is a child learning to say an alternative nonsense word when he feels he is going to swear.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Some children in the home continue to have relatively high levels of physical management although there is a general downward trend for this. Very good work is completed by the registered manager alongside the school senior teacher to analyse the frequency, time, location and staff involved to try to identify any triggers or patterns. For those with higher levels of physical management, action plans are developed to help reduce the frequency and children are praised and rewarded for managing their own behaviours. Some young people have made excellent progress in their ability to self-regulate and their numbers of holds have significantly reduced.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Due to the age of the children in placement they are supervised closely and there are no concerns in respect of missing from home, child sexual exploitation, e- safety, criminality or drug and alcohol misuse. Risk assessment is robust and covers areas specific to each child as well as actions and strategies to manage and reduce the risks.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Children at this home are healthy. They engage well in health appointments, many attend therapy, they are involved in healthy activities and have a healthy diet prepared by an on-site chef. Children are involved in a wide variety of activities both inside and outside the home including games, Scouts, skate parks, museums, gym and fell running. They are encouraged, via activity feedback forms, to think of new activities and day trips they would like to experience.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staffing levels were identified as an issue at the previous inspection. Since this time a new deputy manager has been appointed and two new staff have been recruited who are a positive addition to the team. The children now benefit from a stable and consistent staff team and the home is sufficiently staffed to ensure children can go out on all planned activities. Additional staff are used during the holidays and when children require support and supervision at contact visits, which ensures there are always sufficient staff to meet the children’s needs.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The management of the home continues to be strong with an emphasis on development and progression. The children’s needs and progress are clearly prioritised and managers and staff work hard to achieve the best for them in all areas.

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Information about this children's home

This is a privately owned residential special school, which is also registered as a children’s home. It provides a service for up to eight children between the ages of six and 12 years, who experience emotional or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

11/02/2015 Interim improved effectiveness

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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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