Children's home run by Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council in Sefton

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

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

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager has taken action to meet the requirement from the previous inspection. Staff have now received an appraisal. They have also had opportunities to attend training appropriate to their developmental needs and relevant to the specific needs of young people.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home has continued to provide support and guidance for up to 46families. Managers and the majority of staff have all worked at the home for several years. They are clearly committed and dedicated to their roles and have a very good understanding of each young person’s particular vulnerabilities, relating to their age, understanding and disability. One staff member said: ‘I love the difference we can make. I get so proud when a young person achieves something, however small it may seem. It’s great to see young people happy to see us and it’s important that we make sure they have fun during their stay. Young people continue to enjoy their short-break stays at the home and have built up and maintained positive relationships with the staff who are caring for them. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of the needs of the young people and engage with them well during their stay. Young people were smiling, dancing and

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

laughing, and all spent individual time with staff. Professionals and parents are very complimentary about the service, and one parent had sent a thank-you card, saying: ‘Thank you for everything you have done for [Name of young person] and our family over the past 10 years. Being there through the highs and lows, you have been a second family to all of us. I know [Name of young person] will miss you. We have been lucky to be part of this amazing place and the amazing staff who always deliver love and dedication.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Individual person-centred plans and independence programmes are in place for young people. Managers reported that staff reviewed the plans on a regular basis. However, staff had not always dated and signed the documents and often the author of the record was unknown. Furthermore, records did not always provide a clear insight into the progress young people were making, or, when goals had been set, how staff would help young people to achieve them. For example, one goal stated: ‘Plan a meal and shopping list’. However, no further information was included. While this does not directly have an impact on the welfare of young people, managers were aware that all staff need to complete relevant documents and acknowledged that this was an area for improvement within the home. The use of sanctions and restraints in the home is minimal. For young people staying at the home, sanctions have little meaning due to their level of

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

understanding. Staff use distraction and other techniques to defuse situations. Restraint is only used as a last resort. At the last inspection, two recommendations were made with regard to restraints. These were that staff should gain a clear understanding of what a restraint is and of how incidents needed to be recorded. While managers did discuss this directly with staff, there continue to be some errors in the records. On occasions, staff had not recorded the correct date or time of the restraint or included details of methods used or steps taken by staff to avoid the need to use restraint. In addition, managers had not had an overview of all restraints used, within the required timescales. The present arrangements are not sufficiently robust to provide a clear, permanent record of all events.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people had been staying at the home without managers completing the admission and discharge book. On the day of the inspection, no young people had been recorded in the book since 15 February 2017. Managers confirmed that young people had been staying at the home, but records had not been updated. While this does not have an impact on the welfare of the young people, it fails to ensure that all required documentation is completed.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There were errors in the recording of controlled medication within the home, such as in the number of controlled drugs returned to parents, following a young person’s short-break stay. Some signatures and dates were also omitted from the records. This does not demonstrate that all staff are following the home’s own procedures, which state: All controlled drugs must be booked in and out via the black hard book. Any controlled drugs, which is administered, must be recorded at the back of the controlled medication book and the individual medication sheet. Best practice dictates that there should be 2 people to witness the above. 2 signatures are required in all recording documents.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staffing levels are sufficient and staff possess the competencies, skills and knowledge needed to look after young people. Staff feel supported by the manager but, although they reported that they had team meetings and received regular supervision, there were limited records to demonstrate this. Furthermore, new starters had not been provided with supervision as stipulated within the home’s own policies. This does not demonstrate that all staff are provided with opportunities to reflect critically on their practice and the needs of the young people. The registered manager is dedicated to her role. She has a competent deputy manager and they are both suitably qualified. They are fully aware of the strengths of the home and continually look at areas for improvement. Both managers recognised the shortfalls highlighted during the inspection and had already identified a plan for how they would address all areas of practice.

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority children’s home provides a short-break service for up to seven children at any time, who have multiple and/or complex disabilities, and/or complex health needs.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 14/09/2016 Full Good 30/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 08/12/2015 Full Good 17/03/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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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 (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home. (Regulation 23 (1)(2)(c) (3)(b)) 24/03/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child, which include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child. They must ensure that the records are kept up to date and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 24/03/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain in the home the records in schedule 4; and ensure that the records are kept up to date. (Regulation 37 (2)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the admission and discharge book is kept fully up to date. 24/03/2017

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  Ensure that records of restraint always include details of methods used or steps taken by staff to avoid the need to use restraint, to enable the registered manager and staff to review what happened to identify effective practice or change practice to ensure that it meets the needs of each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59)

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Recommendations

 Provide all staff with practice-related supervision that provides them with opportunities to reflect critically on their practice and the needs of the children. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2) In particular, ensure that staff are encouraged to use reflective practice to understand the effectiveness of their work, identify and share good practice, and inform their professional development needs.

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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 that 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 whom 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

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Information about this inspection

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Information about this inspection

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Information about this inspection

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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