Children's home run by Lytham Care Limited

Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 1 Registered provider: Lytham Care Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company owns the home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for two young people who may have social or emotional difficulties and a learning disability.

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Information about this children’s home

The current manager was registered with Ofsted in July 2018.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 17 January 2018

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/01/2018 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 3

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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.

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(b))

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In particular, ensure that the young people’s information in their risk assessments is in a clear order and that staff have clear guidance on the action to take in the event of an incident. 13/09/2018

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The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(d)(e)) 13/09/2018

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The care planning standard is that children—

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receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home.

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In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— 13/09/2018 Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 4 that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(2)(c))

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In particular, young people’s local authority plans should be updated. The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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ensure that any care that is arranged or provided for a child that satisfies the conditions in paragraph (3).

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That care is delivered by a person who ─

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has the experience, knowledge and skills to deliver that care. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b)(2)(d)(3)(c)(i))

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In particular, ensure that all staff receive mandatory and additional training in accordance with the home’s statement of purpose. 13/09/2018

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The registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child which—

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include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(b)(c) 13/09/2018

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The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to HMCI. (Regulation 44 (7)(a)) 13/09/2018

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The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and 13/09/2018 Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 5 promotes their welfare.

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In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(g)(i))

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Recommendations

 The registered person should review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home at least once a year (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1). In particular, the registered person should ensure that they consider the impact of crime statistics provided by the police. Further to this, the registered manager should ensure that consideration is given to the safer area location review when completing impact risk assessments on new admissions to the home.  The registered person should have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20) (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)  The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring to ensure

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Recommendations

continuous improvement (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24). In particular, regulation 45 reports need to be evaluative and identify areas for improvement for the service.

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improvement to be good

One young person has lived at this home for a significant period. She said, ‘I love it here and I call this home.’ Another young person is relatively new to the home. He said, ‘It’s great, and I am happy here.’ The young person visited the home several times before moving in, including staying for tea and staying overnight. This positive and well-planned approach to transition into the home meant that the young person felt fully included in the decision to move here and that his views, wishes and feelings were considered Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 6 important and listened to. However, the young person’s local authority care plans have not been updated to reflect his current history, the reason for moving to this home and whether he has any further care needs to be met by the home.

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improvement to be good

Until recently, both young people have been receiving tutoring at the home from their appointed schools. The manager and the staff team have worked tirelessly with educational professionals to find suitable provisions for them. As a result, one young person is currently completing an induction to an alternative education provision and will be completing a hair and beauty course alongside mathematics and English. On the morning of the inspection, another young person attended and successfully passed an interview to gain a placement on his preferred college course. Staff completed several mock interviews with him, and he said that this gave him confidence. He was immensely proud of this achievement and could not wait to let his family and friends know.

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improvement to be good

The young people are in good health because they attend all their health appointments. One young person receives additional support from a counsellor, and this is helping them to discuss their emotions, to reflect on past experiences and to find positive solutions to managing their feelings. Another young person has told staff that they are ready to accept this kind of support. This means that both young people can seek support in dealing with past trauma in a constructive way. In addition to this, one young person has been engaging with a substance misuse worker. Through this, the young person has grown to understand the risks involved and was able to explain that he is now much more aware of how this can affect his mental health. As a result, he has reduced his use of illicit substances with the support of staff and the specialist worker.

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improvement to be good

The young people enjoy a range of activities, such as going to the cinema, ice skating and going to the beach. They often have holidays or short breaks at the company’s caravan. One young person enjoys cooking and baking and has a passion for pancakes. One young person has gained qualifications in climbing and associated outdoor pursuits. He is proud of these achievements.

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improvement to be good

Both young people enjoy spending time with their friends. Staff supervise some of these visits to ensure that the young people are safe. Friends are invited to the home and have stayed for barbeques and DVD nights. This enables the young people to maintain friendships that are important to them.

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improvement to be good

The home environment is warm and welcoming. One young person has helped the maintenance person to decorate the lounge and kitchen. Another young person was preparing her room ready for decorating. This gives the young people a sense of ownership and belonging, as well as an opportunity to learn useful life skills.

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improvement to be good

The young people said that they are happy and safe at this home. One young person said that the staff ‘looked out’ for him. Another young person said, ‘The staff explain why they are concerned about me and I am starting to understand why.’ Young people have Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 7 warm and trusting relationships with staff and with each other. The young people said that they could talk to any staff member and that their views and wishes would be taken into consideration. Both young people said that any grumbles were quickly rectified and that they had not needed to make any complaints. However, they clearly understood how to do this if a reason was to occur.

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improvement to be good

There have been occasions when a young person has been reported missing from the home. Members of staff have followed the local authority’s protocol for reporting them to the police. The young person has had a return interview with an independent person after each occasion. This good practice helps to identify any concerns or preventative work that can be undertaken with the young person. The staff have worked closely with the young person to reduce these incidents, and incentives have been agreed. As a result, in recent months, the young person has not been missing. The young person proudly said, ‘I have not been missing for six weeks. I have received several beauty treatments because of this. I have a new school placement and I want to do well.’

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improvement to be good

There has been one safeguarding incident. This was responded to quickly and all relevant professionals were notified. Alongside this, the young person has received extra support from an external agency about the dangers he had exposed himself to. He is now looking forward to potentially becoming a mentor to other young people who may find themselves in a similar situation. Professionals spoken to at this inspection all said that they are confident that the home takes the necessary action to safeguard young people well.

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improvement to be good

There have been no incidents of bullying and no physical restraints. Risk assessments identify the known risks that young people face. However, the information in the risk assessments is unclear. For example, the strategies that staff need to take to prevent an incident are mixed in with the actions that staff need to take if an incident was to occur.

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improvement to be good

Members of staff complete some company information courses, such as equality and diversity, as part of their induction into the home. However, some staff have not received formal training in a variety of topics, such as the use of restraint, safeguarding and medical procedures. This does not provide members of staff with the knowledge and skills to care for young people well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

A suitably qualified manager manages the home. Professionals were very complimentary about the manager and her leadership. One professional said, ‘The manager is excellent. She knows (Name of young person) well. She is a good ambassador for him and she keeps me well informed of any changes to his care.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The home currently has two staff vacancies. In addition to this, one member of staff is on annual leave and another is on bereavement leave. This has led to a significant shortfall in staffing. The manager has been covering lots of shifts to offer the young people consistency of care. However, this has led to a lack of oversight of the home’s records and managerial tasks. Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 8 The company has recently completed a recruitment drive, and one new staff member has been identified. The company follows the safer recruitment guidance. As a result, young people are protected, as far as possible, from unsuitable adults.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff reported that the manager supports them well. They said that they can discuss any concerns and can reflect on their practice during supervision sessions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff meetings are regular. However, staff do not currently routinely discuss research, practice and social trends during staff meetings. This does not give the staff an occasion to discuss how these matters may affect them and the outcomes for young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Overall, young people’s records reflect the progress that they are making. However, some documents are unsigned and not dated by the author, staff and the manager. This does not show that everyone is aware of the changes to the young people’s plans or that they agree with them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The home has a safer area report that shows risks in the immediate area and within the local community, such as busy roads, bridges and bodies of water. The home has the most recent police crime statistics, but the manager has not evaluated what this would mean when considering a new placement. Further to this, the manager did not use the safer area report when deciding whether the area was safe for the most recent young person.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There is a development plan in place for the home. However, there is no workforce plan in place that fulfils the workforce-related requirements of the regulations for children’s homes. For example, it is unclear what the arrangements are for staff supervision, including agency staff, new staff and permanent staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The company was not satisfied with the last independent visitor’s oversight of the home and their reports. The last report completed by the previous independent visitor was in December 2017. A new independent visitor is now in place and she started completing the visits in April 2018. These reports have significantly improved. However, there was no evidence of the external oversight of the home during the intervening period. Therefore, the manager did not have an independent view of how the home was progressing. In conjunction with this, the manager’s monitoring report about the home lacks evaluation and does not identify improvements and developments for the service. Therefore, there is not a critical reflective view to help the home drive forward improvements.

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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 Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 9 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.

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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: 1256658 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Lytham Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lytham Care, 400 Longmoor Lane, Fazakerley, Liverpool L9 9DB

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Pamela Constance

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Inspector

Pam Nuckley, social care regulatory inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1256658 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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