Children's Home run by Essandore Limited in St Helens

Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 1 SC066218 Registered provider: Essandore Limited

p.1

Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home offers accommodation for up to six young people who have learning disabilities and who may also have physical disabilities. The home is owned by a private company.

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

Date of last inspection: 10 October 2017

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/10/2017 Full Good 22/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 12/12/2016 Full Good 24/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 3

p.2

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.3

Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

p.3

Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

p.3

Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

p.3

Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

p.3

Requirement Due date

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

p.3

Requirement Due date

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(i)) 18/01/2019

p.3

Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

p.3

Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b)) 18/01/2019

p.3

Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

p.3

Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

p.3

Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that 18/01/2019 Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 4 individual to work at the home,

p.3

Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

p.4

Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1)(2)(a)(b)(3)(d))

p.4

Recommendations

 Where the placing authority does not provide input needed to meet a child’s needs during their time in the home, the home must challenge them to meet the child’s needs (see Regulation 5 (c)). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 12, paragraph 2.8) This is with particular regard to securing each young person’s education, health and care plan.  Enhance further the homely and domestic environments and comply with all relevant health and safety legislation. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) In particular, ensure that maintenance issues, such as the faulty light switch outside a young person’s bathroom, are repaired in a timely way, and that the cover over the speaker is in keeping with a homely environment.  Ensure that the staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support

p.4

Recommendations

their training needs. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8) In particular, ensure that staff access training about county lines. Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 5

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are thriving because the staff know them well, listen to them and invest considerable amounts of time in them. Young people are becoming much less anxious in a variety of social situations because of the trusting relationships that they have with the staff. Social workers and parents are impressed with the progress that the young people are making. A parent said that it is wonderful to see their child happy and smiling again.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people have a strong voice in the home. They are consulted on all aspects of their care, make choices and are treated with the utmost respect. Staff are accomplished communicators. They skilfully adapt their communication style to meet the diverse needs of each young person.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are much more independent. They now place their clothes in the laundry room after school and some young people are more able to see to their personal care needs, such as showering, with the support of staff. Young people’s progress is recognised by their placing authorities. A review report said, ‘[Name of child’s] needs are being met in placement to a high standard and [name of child] is now beginning to develop basic independence skills, such as being able to dress himself.’

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people enjoy a wide range of activities. Staff are acutely aware of each young person’s interests, which include the keyboard, drawing or ‘winding the staff up’. Consequently, staff provide activities that enable young people to have fun and to continue to promote young people’s progress across all areas of their development. Many young people are looking forward to watching the staff’s Christmas pantomime with their families.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are highly committed to helping young people overcome any barriers to their engagement in education or social events. The registered manager and deputy have been chasing the education, health and care plan (EHCP) for a young person. Despite their efforts, this has not been received from the placing authority. The young person’s school confirmed that a review took place in January 2018 and that they are also awaiting the final report. However, this drift is unacceptable. In another instance, the home does not have a copy of a deprivation of liberty (Dol) order relating to a young person. While the home has stated that they have received verbal confirmation about both the EHCP and the Dol order, the lack of written confirmation stipulating the specific details of each could have an impact upon the care and support provided.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Care planning is rigorous and reflects the young people’s current and emerging needs and demonstrates how they are being met well in practice. Staff have an in-depth knowledge of each young person, have high aspirations for them and they work hard to support young people to be as independent as possible.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people’s healthcare needs are met well. Staff are tenacious and ensure that the young people receive the correct medical support and interventions. Healthcare plans Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 6 are generally sound, but on a small number of occasions do not make clear that some medication is to be given as required, such as paracetamol. This is a recording issue and does not have an impact upon the care provided.

p.5

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are in full-time education and have excellent levels of attendance. A school commented on the positivity of the recent move for a young person. This has provided the young person with additional stability, which is enabling them to engage better in school. Staff are aspirational for young people and want them to achieve their full potential. Target-setting for each young person’s ongoing learning and independence is effective. Staff set individual targets, such as encouraging a young person to sit with others at mealtimes. This is regularly reviewed, and plans are amended as necessary to meet the young person’s needs.

p.6

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Transitions in and out of the home are well managed. The independent visitor wrote for one young person that, ‘The transition plan is detailed and well considered and has provided adult services with lots of opportunities to observe and work with [name of young person] in his current placement so that they can get to know his likes and dislikes. They can also observe his plans and look at strategies that work best for him.’ This is further supported by staff visiting the young person in his new home and this has helped him to settle and to feel safe there.

p.6

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Partnership working with parents and carers is another key strength of the service. Staff value this relationship and take the time to get to know parents and carers. This ensures that parents and carers are fully involved in all aspects of their child’s care and support. Parents and carers regularly visit their children in the home and spend time with them. Because of this support, some families are looking forward to spending time at home with their children over Christmas.

p.6

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

Young people live in a safe home where they are protected from harm. Safeguarding practice is secure. Staff understand good safeguarding practice, including whom they need to report concerns to.

p.6

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

Young people do not go missing from the home. This is because of the high staffing levels in place, and because staff have a very good understanding of the needs and vulnerabilities of each young person. Staff are clear about the action to take should this occur.

p.6

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

Young people receive high levels of praise and encouragement from staff, who are positive role models. They understand the diverse communication styles of each young person, whether this is through hand signals, pictures or spoken word. This allows the staff to gain young people’s views and helps young people to make good choices. The staff plan well and are proactive in responding to young people’s anxieties. As a result, physical interventions are very rarely used. Parents commented on a substantial decrease in challenging and distressing behaviour since their child moved into the home. Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 7 Staff are aware that some situations can heighten young people’s anxieties considerably. They carefully consider each situation, identifying any potential issues for each young person and the action to take to support them. This proactive response shows that staff are not risk-averse and that they work hard to overcome barriers to young people’s

p.6

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

There has been considerable investment in the building and grounds since the last inspection. Additional car parking spaces are available at the front of the property, and a new outdoor office and a sensory room have been created. A refurbishment programme is also underway in the home, which includes new wet rooms, decor, furniture and soft furnishings. Young people have been involved in choosing the colours and soft furnishings. However, a light switch outside a young person’s bathroom is loose, which is a risk, and a speaker cover in the lounge is detracting from the homely environment the home is striving to maintain. Young people said that they liked their bedrooms and the changes in the home.

p.7

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

At the last inspection, the registered manager was asked to improve recruitment records by ensuring that they requested the specific dates of previous employment and scrutinised any gaps in employment. Two recruitment files were examined, and these issues remained. Both members of staff had gaps in their employment history and while it appears these have been discussed, there is no written evidence to support this. Consequently, the shortfalls in staff recruitment remain.

p.7

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led and managed by a qualified and very experienced registered manager. He is supported by an experienced deputy and staff team, all of whose members are strong advocates for young people.

p.7

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The current statement of purpose provided during the inspection is dated July 2018 and this has been reviewed on several occasions prior to that date. However, Ofsted has not received an updated version of the statement of purpose since March 2017. This does not promote transparency.

p.7

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive high levels of training to support their roles and interests. Staff said that they have regular, good-quality supervision that enables them to talk about their role and their ongoing professional development. However, staff would benefit from training in relation to county lines to support their understating of the potential dangers to the young people that they are caring for, given their vulnerabilities.

p.7

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring of the home by the registered manager and independent person is sound. The independent person’s reports are thorough and identify shortfalls in practice and records, such as the lack of an EHCP for one young person. The registered manager’s monitoring reports are also reasonably detailed and show what has gone well for each young person. The manager’s report does identify the areas for development for the home and how these are to be achieved, and overall the reports provide a solid basis for the continuous improvement of the service. Nevertheless, the monitoring had not Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 8 addressed the shortfalls identified during this inspection.

p.7

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Parents and professionals are complimentary about the service and the high standards of care each young person receives, which contribute effectively to their ongoing development. Parents said that they know their children are safe and happy here and that their progress has been amazing. Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 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: SC066218 10

p.9

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: c/o Harrison Latham, 97 Tulketh Street, Birkenhead, Merseyside PR8 1AW

p.10

Inspector

Chris Scully, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC066218 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