Children's home run by North Lakes Children’s Services Limited in Cumberland

experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

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

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

Although all the young people who currently live in the home have continued to make good progress since the last inspection, and the current young people are engaging well with staff and each other, and experience good outcomes in many areas of their lives, the home has been judged as having declined in effectiveness due to poor safeguarding practice at the home.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

One young person has left the home since the last inspection, moving to semi- independent living in their home area. This young person had some difficulties prior to leaving the home and a decision was made, in partnership with the young person’s social worker, that the placement was no longer meeting his needs. It is evident that the manager and staff tried hard to support this young person in an attempt to save his placement.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

All the current young people are engaging well in their education. Their attendance is good and they are achieving, and in some cases exceeding, their individual target grades. For one young person, it is the first time he has attended school on a regular basis. Since he moved into the home, his attendance has been at 100%, and he regularly receives awards and certificates for good achievements.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

Young people’s interests are recognised and encouraged. One young person has a particular interest in script-writing and film-making. To support this, arrangements have been made to purchase some equipment to assist the young person in his hobby.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

One young person has moved on to further education and is in the process of considering his future plans. Staff are positively supporting him to learn about his options, which include university or an advanced apprenticeship. Staff are liaising with external professionals to help ensure that the young person receives appropriate support to fulfil his ambitions.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

Staff continue to support young people to maintain important relationships. One young person has benefited from a much improved relationship with family members, which is, in part, due to support provided by staff. Positive friendships are also supported and encouraged. For example, arrangements have been made for some college friends of one young person to join staff and young people for a day out to a theme park.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

One young person hopes to move towards semi-independent living in the near future. There is a clear pathway plan in place and an individualised programme is under way to assist the young person in gaining skills to help him succeed in a more independent setting. Areas such as budgeting, meal preparation, banking and daily living skills are included in the programme, which is regularly reviewed.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

The home has a manager in place who has submitted an application to Ofsted for registration. The manager reports a good level of support from the director of care and confirmed that regular supervision, support and guidance is provided.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

A recommendation made at the last inspection in relation to staff supervision has been addressed. The manager has ensured that all staff receive supervision regularly, and is now working towards completing annual appraisals for all staff; the manager was able to demonstrate work that has been completed to achieve this. The staff team has remained stable at the home since the last inspection, resulting in a good level of consistency for young people.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

Further recommendations in relation to the quality of direct work carried out with young people and individual behaviour support planning were also confirmed as being addressed. Records of direct work demonstrate that this is now more of a two-way process, which young people are encouraged to be fully involved in. Behaviour support plans are more detailed and provide clearer guidance for staff about young people’s individual needs. This helps to ensure that they receive the right level and type of support.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

A concern was identified in this inspection in relation to a complaint recently raised by a young person. The young person raised concerns about an incident that he said had taken place at school. The nature of the concern raised meant that it should have been treated as a safeguarding matter and referred to the relevant authorities. This did not happen, and as a result there was no external oversight of the investigation. Failure to follow safeguarding procedures means that the safety and well-being of young people is not adequately protected. Because of this, a requirement is raised in relation to this matter.

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experiences of children and young people since the most recent full

There have been some changes in the management structure of the organisation in recent months, which have led to changes in some registered individuals. It has been established that some of the changes are not suitable and do not support a robust senior management structure. Evidence has not been provided to confirm that the current responsible individual has the necessary experience and skills to supervise the management of the home. Therefore, a requirement is raised.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to five children of the same gender. It is owned and operated by a private company. It is registered to care for children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 16/11/2016 Full Good 03/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 10/11/2015 Full Good 23/03/2015 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 within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

26 (7)(b) A responsible individual must have the capacity, experience and skills to supervise the management of the home, or the homes, in respect of which the responsible individual is nominated. 15/05/2017

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Requirement Due date

16. (1) The registered person must compile in relation to the children’s home a statement (‘the statement of purpose’) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1. (2) The registered person must provide a copy of the statement of purpose to HMCI and make a copy of it available upon request to: (a) a person who works at the home; (b) a child, or a child for whom accommodation in the home is being considered; (c) a parent of a child, or a parent of a child for whom accommodation in the home is being considered; (d) a child’s placing authority; and (e) in the case of a qualifying school, the Secretary of State. (3) The registered person must: (a) keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and (b) notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. 12/05/2017

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Requirement Due date

12. (1) The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure: (a) that staff: (i) assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if 28/04/2017 necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child; (ii) help each child to understand how to keep safe; (iii) have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm; (iv) manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; (v) understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; (vi) take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and (vii) are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s

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Recommendations

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

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Recommendations

 All staff must have their performance and fitness to carry out their role formally appraised at least once annually. This appraisal should take into account, where reasonable and practical, the views of other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year and children in the home’s care. As part of the performance management process, poor performance should be addressed by a timely plan to bring about improvement. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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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 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, work- based 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

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

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