Children's Home run by Sandcastle Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report children’s home: 2504082 1 Registered provider: Sandcastle Care Ltd

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately run children’s home that provides care and accommodation for up to two young people.

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Information about this children’s home

The home provides a service for young people who would benefit from having a placement in a small, single-gender, residential setting.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted in February 2019.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

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

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 2504082 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

N/A Inspection report children’s home: 2504082 3

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Recommendations

 The registered person should only accept placements for children where they are satisfied that the home can respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, and where they have fully considered the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4) This is with particular reference to strengthening the quality of information within the home’s pre-admission impact assessment.  Where there is a possibility that a child will run away or go missing from a children’s home placement, their placement plan should include strategies to minimise the risk. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.24) This is with particular reference to improving the quality of information within the missing-from-home risk management plan.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people who currently live at the home make good progress across most aspects of their welfare, including physical, social, emotional and behavioural development, taking into account their individual starting points. There is evidence of change and improvement in the lives of young people, who benefit from living in a caring, highly supportive and nurturing environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people enjoy good relationships with staff, and benefit from having continuity of care, which provides them with consistency and stability in their lives. Care planning is well organised and practice is highly individualised to meet the specific needs of the young people at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people living in this home have experienced trauma, personal crises, rejection and chaotic histories. However, both young people have settled in quickly and have developed good relationships with the staff team. A social worker said:

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

X [young person’s name] has had a number of previous placements and he is a hard-to-place young person. However, as soon as he walked in to this home he was totally sold. He was made to feel welcome and was immediately quite relaxed in the company of staff. He’s told me that he likes the home, gets on well with everyone and I can see that he has settled in extremely well. Inspection report children’s home: 2504082 4 When young people come to live at the home, they often have a history of non- attendance in education. Staff promote the importance of regular attendance, and have high aspirations for all young people. Staff maintain effective partnerships with the providers of education and promote young people’s educational achievements. Any barriers to learning are challenged quickly and effectively. This ensures minimal disruption to educational outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people’s healthcare needs are well met. Both young people have regular appointments with local healthcare professionals, as well as weekly sessions with their allocated therapist. The therapist work closely with staff to develop individually tailored strategies of support. This has proved effective in helping young people to reflect upon their behaviours and emotions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support young people to keep in touch with family members and significant others. Parents feel very welcome to visit the home and reported that there is excellent communication from staff. Staff demonstrate a detailed understanding of each young person and their family relationships. They have helped young people to strengthen relationships and improve the quality of contact they have with key people in their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people have a strong voice in the home. Their views matter and have an influence on how the home is run. The culture and atmosphere in the home are very warm and nurturing. There is no doubt that young people feel valued, respected and cherished.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and young people work hard to ensure that the house feels like a family home. The atmosphere is welcoming, and both young people appear relaxed and comfortable in their surroundings.

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

Young people reported that they feel safe in the home. This is endorsed by feedback from external professionals and relatives.

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

Young people come to the home with long-established histories of very high-risk behaviours. Staff have a very good understanding of these risks and challenge young people appropriately. This helps young people to understand how their behaviour impacts on them and others. As a result, young people’s risk-taking behaviour has decreased significantly.

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

All of the staff are trained appropriately in physical intervention, but such methods are only used on rare occasions. This is as a direct result of consistent early intervention to defuse challenging situations. The use of distraction and deflection has helped young people to learn appropriate ways of expressing themselves.

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

Meaningful discussions are undertaken with young people following any significant incident. This affords them the opportunity to discuss their wishes, views and concerns Inspection report children’s home: 2504082 5 in a safe space. This supportive approach gives young people the opportunity to reflect on their behaviours and make positive changes in the future.

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

Most young people’s missing episodes have decreased in number significantly. Records confirm that when young people go missing, staff act immediately and attempt to locate them as quickly as possible.

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

While good practice is noted in relation to staff action, missing-from-home risk management plans lack sufficient detail. For example, little information is available about young people’s peer groups and the known locations they tend to frequent. This is a missed opportunity to gather information and to consider the potential interplay between peer groups in the local community.

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

The recruitment of staff is sufficiently robust. The manager follows agreed procedures to ensure the thorough scrutiny of applicants prior to their employment in the home. This helps prevent unsuitable people from being able to work with young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is child focused and committed to delivering and maintaining high standards of care. He promotes a clear ethos that is caring, supportive and safe. The home is run in accordance with its statement of purpose and the manager and staff achieve the aims and objectives set out in this document. The home is well resourced in terms of staffing. Staff have a broad range of experience and skills that enable them to meet the everyday challenges of caring for young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff reported that they receive regular supervision and that they feel supported in their roles. They reported that the registered manager is approachable, and that communication with the organisation is good.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The training and development of staff are good. Staff confirmed that their training is useful and informative, and supports them to meet the specific needs of the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Placement planning is based on good analysis of information in relation to matching young people’s needs to the skill set of staff. However, there is little evidence to show that the manager has considered all known risks prior to accepting new placements. For example, impact risk assessments do not consider how the admission of a new young person may impact on the risky behaviour of others. The registered manager has acknowledged this shortfall and agrees that peer dynamics need to be clearly considered for future admissions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager maintains highly effective partnerships with the police, schools, social workers and other professional agencies to ensure that young people benefit from receiving the best possible help and all-round support. Concerns are escalated appropriately and the registered manager challenges decisions if he believes that these Inspection report children’s home: 2504082 6 have not been made in the best interests of young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Internal and external monitoring of the home take place regularly. Reports review the quality of care provided and clearly identify areas of strength and areas for improvement. Any shortfalls identified through these monitoring systems are highlighted and addressed quickly. As a result, the registered manager ensures that the staff continue to deliver a high standard of care to young people.

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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: 2504082 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Sandcastle Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Sandcastle Care Ltd, 49 Whitegate Drive, Blackpool, Lancashire FY3 9DG

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Inspector

Ceri Evans, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2504082 8 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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