Children's home run by Lytham Care Limited in Knowsley

Inspection report children’s home: 1234432 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 this home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for two young people who may have emotional or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The current manager was registered with Ofsted in June 2016. Two young people talked with the inspector at this inspection.

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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 requires improvement to be good

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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: 20 September 2018

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1234432 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/09/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 15/02/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 17/05/2017 Full Good 21/09/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1234432 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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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

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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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that risk assessments only reflect the individual young person’s history and emerging needs. 03/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally; 03/09/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 1234432 4 help a child who is excluded from school or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

Further to this, ensure that a good routine and structure are maintained in the home for encouraging young people to be ready for their school day. The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all steps have been taken to engage the young people in receiving health checks. This includes involving other professionals for advice and guidance. 03/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

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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Requirement Due date

helps children to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(f))

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Requirement Due date

This is specifically in relation to having a good structure and routine in the home. Further to this, any steps taken by the home to secure good outcomes should be clearly recorded in the young people’s plans. 03/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

If the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing 03/09/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 1234432 5 authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (b)(c)) The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 03/09/2019

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)  The behaviour management strategy should be understood and applied at all times by staff, and must be kept under review and revised where appropriate. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.34)

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improvement to be good

Two young people live in this home. They have been here for a significant period. Both young people said that they are happy and settled and enjoy living here. However, young people’s records do not show how the staff are helping them to engage with additional services or to consistently attend school or college. As a result, there is limited information to show what the staff have done to secure good outcomes. This does not help the young people to understand or to reflect on their experience throughout their time living here, when they read their records now or in later life.

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improvement to be good

One young person has not engaged in education for over a year. The manager has tried to source alternative education provisions, including asking the virtual head from the placing authority to provide a tutor for the young person. This request was declined, but this decision was not sufficiently challenged. As a result, the young person continues not to be engaged in purposeful education, employment or training at an important stage in his life. Further to this, the structure and routines in the home do not encourage young people to be ready for their day. For example, they can stay in bed until early afternoon and watch television or use their mobile phones throughout the night. More positively, one young person has been attending college for two days a week and is doing well. Inspection report children’s home: 1234432 6 Both young people said that they have aspirations for their futures: one young person

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improvement to be good

wants to work in construction, and the other young person wants to be a carpenter.

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improvement to be good

Similarly, young people refuse to attend health checks and appointments. Staff have completed reflective sessions with each young person to try to find out why they are reluctant to attend, but the manager has not yet involved other healthcare professionals to ask their advice and guidance that would help them to support the young people.

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improvement to be good

Young people receive practical support from staff so that they can visit friends and family. The staff understand the strong links that young people have with their families and friends, and the positive impact that these relationships can have. For example, young people are confident in bringing their friends to the home, and this allows staff to get to know their friends.

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improvement to be good

The young people have started on the road to semi-independence. They have recently had pathway planning meetings. It is early days, but they have been introduced to their personal advisers from the local authority, who will help them to prepare and plan for their futures. The staff are helping young people to acquire the skills to move successfully. These include shopping and cooking for themselves, budgeting and completing domestic tasks, such as washing and ironing.

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improvement to be good

The young people spoken to said that they feel safe in the home. One young person said, ‘I know that they mean well. I have learned a lot, and because of this I was able to tell them [the staff] when I got an inappropriate request on social media.’ He continued to say, ‘It was good because the manager was able to tell me that she had a duty to keep both of us safe and I never thought about this.’ Safeguarding issues, such as this, are reported quickly to the relevant safeguarding professionals, and appropriate action is taken. Staff receive effective training in safeguarding, which is refreshed regularly.

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improvement to be good

Young people’s behaviour in the home is good. However, young people are rarely challenged by staff; for example, they stay in bed until early afternoon and then go out with friends until the late evening. Incentive charts are ineffective because staff do not adhere to them. Young people can gain extra monies for completing three identified areas for improvement. However, they mostly receive the full allowance without completing these.

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improvement to be good

There has been a significant reduction in young people being reported missing from the home. However, it is unclear whether this is due to work that staff have completed with young people or other factors. When young people have been reported missing, they are protected in line with agreed protocols. Records show that staff search and attempt to contact them when they fail to return on time. The missing from home coordinator from the police said that the manager and staff work well with the police and they have a good relationship. Return interviews are completed by an independent service to ensure that the young people have someone whom they can talk to about any worries or Inspection report children’s home: 1234432 7 concerns.

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection in September 2018, there have been no reported incidents of bullying, no physical interventions and no allegations made against staff. Staff are trained in these areas to ensure that they can de-escalate a situation and know how to follow the home’s policies and procedures when reporting incidents.

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improvement to be good

Individual risk assessments have improved because they now provide staff with agreed strategies and actions to take if an incident were to occur. However, some risk assessments are compiled for matters that are not necessarily required or relevant.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

An experienced and suitably qualified manager manages the home. Several members of staff have left, and a recruitment drive has been successful. Two new staff are waiting to start employment. In the interim, the remaining permanent staff, bank staff and the manager have been covering the shortfalls in the rota. The manager said that this had taken her away from some of her managerial tasks, such as overseeing information in the young people’s records.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff said that they feel supported by the manager. However, some staff members have not received regular one-to-one supervision. This does not ensure that staff have had the opportunity to reflect on their practice. More positively, the staff said that team meetings are regular and that they are an open forum in which to discuss any concerns or to learn from colleagues. For example, if a member of staff attends additional training, the attendee will feed back to the group about the content of the training and their opinion on whether it should be offered to all staff. In this way, the staff can update their knowledge about issues that may affect the young people in their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

When new staff start at the home, they receive a good introduction. This includes completing several shadow shifts, completing all mandatory training and having time to read the young people’s information. As a result, the staff said that they are confident in understanding their roles and in their knowledge of the young people. Several members of staff have a childcare qualification, and new staff are registered on an equivalent childcare qualification as soon as their employment starts.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

At present, young people’s written records do not provide sufficient insight into, and understanding about, how staff are helping young people to overcome past difficulties and move forward in their lives. The manager has not always strongly advocated or challenged other services on behalf of young people in order to ensure that they receive all the help and advice that they may need, such as in health matters.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The independent visitor, who monitors the quality of care, has identified improvements needed, such as supervisions, in her recent reports. The manager has a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the home, and she is committed to implementing the changes required to improve the progress and experiences for young people. Inspection report children’s home: 1234432 8

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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 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: 1234432 9

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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: 1234432 10 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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Inspector

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