Children's Home run by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council in Blackburn with Darwen

Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 1 SC360599 Registered provider: Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is run and managed by the local authority. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four young people under a short-break arrangement who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 25 to 26 September 2017

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: improved effectiveness

p.1

Enforcement action since last inspection:

None Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 2

p.1

Key findings from this inspection

 The overall aim of this service is to strengthen and sustain positive and effective family relationships. Children, young people, parents, carers and professionals clearly value the service. One young person said, ‘I can’t wait to come again so I can see the people that I’ve met.’ Another young person wrote, ‘This is a calm and welcoming place and I like sleeping over. The staff are nice and the activities are fun and enjoyable. I count this place as my second home.’  Children and young people make good progress because of their short breaks and wraparound services that they receive from the registered manager and staff. Children and young people confirm that they look forward to their visits and thoroughly enjoy the activities that are on offer.  The services and support that are offered from this service have been instrumental in strengthening children and young people’s family relationships and dynamics.

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

 The qualified, competent and committed staff team provides a high level of care and support to children and young people. They provide children and young people with a wide range of interesting and enjoyable activities to ensure that they enjoy their stays in this home.  The registered manager has excellent oversight of the home and is passionate about continuing to enhance and develop the services and levels of support.

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s areas for development:

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

 Health and safety risk assessments of the home should be reviewed at least annually.  The home should be maintained to a safe and suitable standard and the damp in the children and young people’s bathroom should be addressed.  All staff should be provided with training to ensure that they can implement a physical intervention should this be required. Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 3

p.2

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 05/12/2016 Full Outstanding 15/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 11/11/2015 Full Outstanding Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 4

p.3

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet 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.

p.4

Requirement Due date

12: The protection of children standard The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that— the premises used for the purposes of the home are maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12(1) and (2)(d))

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the home’s health and safety risk assessments are reviewed regularly and at least annually as stated within these documents. 27/10/2017

p.4

Recommendations

 Ensure that the home is a homely, domestic environment. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) This is specifically in relation to ensuring that the damp in the upstairs bathroom is addressed.  The registered person is responsible for ensuring that all their staff have been adequately trained in the principles of restraint and any restraint techniques appropriate to the needs of the children the home is set up to care for as defined in the home’s statement of purpose. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.57)

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children, young people and their families who have experienced difficulties within their Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 5 relationships benefit greatly from this short-break provision. This, and a wraparound outreach service, enables children and young people and their families to work together so that they can enjoy improved and harmonious relationships. Children and young people and their families who want to access the services work with the registered manager and staff effectively to ensure that positive changes are made. One parent wrote, ‘Over the period of time, staff have supported [name] in lots of different ways. They have been there in crisis. They have been to hospital with my child when they needed help. The staff are always a phone call away and have been a great support. I would recommend this service to other parents in need of support.’ A young person said, ‘I now get on better as my social skills have improved. I have got better at solving things

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

myself. I have learned how to make friends and to keep friends. I can talk to new people and have loads of friends now.’

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Placement planning is effective and inclusive. Children and young people’s placement plans are clear and reflect the needs, strengths and areas of vulnerability for children and young people. Effective, well thought-out strategies that are agreed between children, young people, their families and social workers at the point of their admissions identify the key issues that they need to resolve. Staff work closely with children and young people during their key-work sessions and with their families during their outreach sessions. This ensures that these issues and concerns are consistently and effectively addressed. This has been instrumental in strengthening children and young people’s family relationships and dynamics. Subsequently, children and young people’s behaviours have improved and family relationships have been repaired. This ensures that family breakdowns are minimised and children and young people remain living

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff clearly understand the needs of children, young people and their families and they are committed and passionate about improving the lives and experiences of children and young people. Staff are aware of the local provisions and services and access these well to ensure that children and young people benefit from a wide range of interesting, enjoyable and exciting opportunities. The management team has secured additional funding to ensure that some children and young people can increase their life skills, and two young people were proud to share that because of this, they now feel more confident in water as they have now learned to swim.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and young people benefit from structure, boundaries and routines that are followed by staff who are supportive and nurturing. Children and young people report extremely positive relationships with the staff and that they feel that this support has helped them to work through some of the things they once found difficult. As such, children and young people report that their relationships with family and friends have much improved and that they are able to manage their thoughts and feelings in a more structured and appropriate way.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The overall responsibility for ensuring that children and young people’s health and education needs are met remains with their parent or carer. That said, staff work effectively with parents and carers to ensure that children and young people’s health and education needs are continuously met. The registered manager ensures that staff are Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 6 trained to support children and young people effectively if they become unwell or suffer an accident while accessing the service. Staff ensure that they maintain up-to-date health records and practice for administering medication is good.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff value educational opportunities for children and young people. They support children and young people to do homework during their stays. Staff take children and young people to school when difficulties in the home arise. In addition, staff enhance children and young people’s learning opportunities further as they provide many opportunities for children and young people to gain and develop a range of skills and talents. This has included taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh Awards. Consequently, children and young people not only benefit from improved educational outcomes but they also benefit from positive childhood experiences.

p.6

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is maintained to a suitable standard. It is a detached property on an estate that blends into the local community. All of the children and young people’s bedrooms have a themed colour and they are encouraged to choose their own rooms and personalise them for the duration of their stay. A homely and welcoming environment is maintained as pictures and creations that children and young people have made or been involved in are proudly displayed around the home. While the manager and staff maintain most of the communal areas to a good standard, the children and young people’s upstairs bathroom is showing signs of damp. Although this issue has been raised with the provider’s maintenance team, this has not been followed up or addressed. This damp could have an adverse effect on the health of children and young people and compromise their well-being.

p.6

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Ensuring the welfare and protection of children and young people is a priority for the registered manager and staff. Staff are aware of their safeguarding roles and responsibilities and respond appropriately and quickly to safeguarding concerns when children and young people raise these. The registered manager ensures that Ofsted is informed as required. This prompt and effective action promotes the safety and welfare of children and young people.

p.6

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The registered manager and staff are committed to ensuring that children and young people have the skills and knowledge to keep themselves safe online. Children and young people are encouraged to take part in one-to-one sessions and group work. This highlights the benefits and dangers associated with the online world. Staff support and encourage children and young people to engage in specialist services to further their knowledge and understanding so that they can make safe and measured decisions. When children and young people are reluctant to engage in these services, staff are skilled and creative, and spend time with them, encouraging them to take part with these services. These positive relationships with children and young people and the effective partnership connections that the registered manager and staff have with other agencies ensure that children and young people receive prompt specialist services and

p.6

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

support. This enables children and young people to change and adapt their behaviours that may put them or others at risk of harm. Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 7 Staff know children and young people’s risks and vulnerabilities. Through the inspector’s discussion with the registered manager and staff, it is clear that the staff know children and young people well. Staff are clear about children and young people’s strengths, needs and vulnerabilities and work hard with them and other agencies to keep them safe. The high level of close support and supervision that staff provide to children and young people enables the staff to gain an intrinsic understanding of their needs.

p.6

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff role model positive behaviour and use their positive, trusting and nurturing relationships with children and young people to promote positive behaviour. Constant praise and recognition encourage children and young people to behave in a safe and appropriate way. Staff are familiar with and responsive to changes in children and young people’s behaviour and sensitively challenge any inappropriate behaviour quickly and effectively. This approach ensures that children and young people maintain positive relationships with their peers within the home, that the use of sanctions is extremely rare and that physical interventions have not been required.

p.7

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff work well with all agencies to manage and support children and young people in times of crisis. They are aware of triggers to behaviours and respond to these in line with children and young people’s individual risk management plans. Staff are acutely aware of the risks associated with children and young people being away from the home and make every effort to discourage this. When children and young people do go missing from the home, professionals confirm that the staff follow the correct protocols and inform all agencies quickly. This promotes the safety and well-being of children and young people.

p.7

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

A number of systems and audits are in place to ensure that the physical safety of the home is maintained. Staff complete regular health and safety checks of the home and undertake regular training so that they can respond to any accidents or emergency quickly and effectively. That said, although the provider’s policy notes that the home’s health and safety assessments will be reviewed at least annually, these had not been reviewed or updated by the registered manager since April 2016. The registered manager was quick to rectify this during the inspection and reviewed and updated all these documents to ensure that the safety of children, young people and staff is maintained.

p.7

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

New staff to the home are supported well to ensure that they deliver a high standard of care to children and young people. Staff receive regular supervision and training. They undertake regular probation reviews to ensure that they have the skills, knowledge and support to do their job well.

p.7

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The ambitious and committed registered manager ensures that children and young people receive a high standard of individualised care from the staff. She is qualified and experienced to lead her team well and she manages this service effectively. The registered manager was registered with Ofsted in July 2007. Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 8 The registered manager ensures that the statement of purpose is regularly updated. This detailed document provides sufficient information regarding the support and services that are on offer at this home. The staff consistently deliver their work in line with the commitments identified in this document, which highlights the scope of the home and the admission and discharge processes. This ensures that families and commissioners are aware of what to expect for children and young people who receive a service from this home.

p.7

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager ensures that the services delivered are in line with the statement of purpose and emergency placements are facilitated in line with this. Due to structural changes within the organisation, the registered manager has identified that the use of emergency placements has increased following the last inspection. Although the registered manager and staff have been flexible in their approach and covered additional shifts themselves, these additional duties have resulted in some individual and group sessions being cancelled. This causes further disruption and unsettlement for children, young people and their families.

p.8

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children and young people and their families value the service and support available. They confirm that the service has helped them and their children and they can identify the progress that their children have made. One carer validated this by reporting that her child was now a lot calmer and is more open to talking to her following the support received from the home. Another family member reiterated this by saying, ‘[Name] is learning things here and bringing it home. [Name] is accessing the help she is getting and she is now attending school 100% with the support of staff.’

p.8

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager uses her internal monitoring systems well to ensure that children and young people remain central to their care plans. The registered manager regularly seeks feedback from family members, carers, professionals and her staff team. Feedback from children and young people is gathered through regular meetings and more informal ‘Have your say’ records. These systems allow children and young people to express their wishes and views so that activities and menus can be planned around their likes, interests and hobbies. Professional feedback is gained regularly to ensure that children and young people continue to make progress. Furthermore, the registered manager seeks professional feedback in the annual appraisals of staff. This ensures that systems in the home continue to improve so that children and young people receive a high standard of care and support from the registered manager and staff team.

p.8

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A real strength of this home is the quality of care that is consistently provided by an experienced, stable and dedicated staff team. There are a suitable number of competent, experienced and qualified staff to ensure that the needs of children and young people are met. All staff members have the required childcare qualification and are committed to making a positive difference to children and young people’s lives. The established staff team is trained and supported to deliver a good standard of care. Staff receive in-house training during team meetings in which issues that are pertinent to the home are shared, discussed and developed. However, not all staff have received the required training to implement a physical intervention. Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 9

p.8

Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the differences made to the lives of children and young people. They watched how professional staff work with children and young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care provided. Wherever possible, they talked to children and 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.

p.9

Information about this inspection

Using the ‘Social care common inspection framework’, this inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, 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’. Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 10

p.9

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Blackburn With Darwen Borough Council, Town Hall, King William Street, Blackburn BB1 7DY

p.10

Inspector

Janine Shortman-Thomas, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC360599 11 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, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

p.10

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, 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 http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.11

Inspector

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

p.11

Inspector

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

p.11