Children's Home run by Sandcastle Care Limited in Blackpool

Inspection report children’s home: 2537060 1 Registered provider: Sandcastle Care Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is one of a number of homes operated by a private organisation. It is registered to provide care for up to two young people who may have emotional or behavioural needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since August 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: This is the first inspection of the home since registration.

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 2537060 2 Inspection report children’s home: 2537060 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home opened in September 2019 and young people have been making good progress in the short period of time they have been there. One social worker said, ‘[Young person’s name] has made massive progress. I see positive progression in him every time I visit. He is like a different child.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are cared for by a consistent team of staff who know and understand them well. This means that young people can form positive and trusting relationships with staff. One social worker said, ‘[Young person’s name] has settled well and the home has given him stability he needed.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people enjoy spending time with staff and they value the variety of trips and activities that staff support them to engage in. For example, trips to skate parks and football matches are particularly popular. One young person has recently learned to swim. Staff also encourage young people to widen their friendship groups and have assisted them to join local youth clubs to promote this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Prior to coming to this home, some young people have struggled with attendance at school. They have also experienced delay in the identification of suitable educational provision locally. Staff understand the importance of education in securing good outcomes for young people. They have sourced activities and educational trips to keep young people active and engaged while a placement is sourced. However, these activities require greater structure and planning to support an effective reintroduction to full-time education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Good arrangements are in place to promote young people’s health. They are supported to attend appointments, which ensures that routine checks, such as at the dentist and optician, are up to date. In addition to this, the home has its own therapy team, giving young people quick and regular access to counselling and support.

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

There are effective arrangements in place to protect young people and to keep them safe. High staffing ratios mean that young people have a level of supervision that is in line with their age and their support needs. As a result, young people living at this home have not engaged in risk-taking behaviours such as going missing from the home.

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

Staff have established clear boundaries and routines that support young people to understand what is expected from them. Young people are responding well to this and it is helping them to manage their behaviours and regulate their responses. Staff are skilled in positive behaviour support and, as a result, incidents that require them to use physical interventions to manage situations are infrequent in this home. Inspection report children’s home: 2537060 4 Young people benefit from regular individual key-work sessions which give them the opportunity to reflect on their behaviours and talk about their feelings. Staff also use these sessions as informal learning opportunities to focus on subjects such as puberty and personal care.

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

All staff receive safeguarding training at the start of their employment. This equips them with the skills and confidence to deal with any safeguarding concerns. Robust recruitment procedures ensure that all employees undergo thorough background checks prior to being offered employment. These measures help to protect young people from harm.

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

All young people have behaviour support plans and risk assessments which are updated on a regular basis. However, these documents do not always contain sufficient detail about the control measures and strategies that staff should use to manage risks and de-escalate situations effectively. This may mean that staff do not respond in a consistent way. A recommendation is made to improve practice in this area.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since August 2019. He is suitably qualified and experienced to undertake this role. During the inspection, the manager demonstrated that he is committed to providing a high-quality, child-centred service to vulnerable young people. He demonstrated an in-depth knowledge of young people’s individual needs and the progress they are making.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works in a positive way with other professionals involved with each young person. He provides social workers with weekly reports about young people’s progress and ensures that they are kept up to date with significant events. However, he has not sufficiently challenged a local authority over the delay in identifying suitable educational provision for one young person. A recommendation has been made to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is staffed by a consistent and stable staff team. The manager ensures that only a small pool of casual workers are employed. This helps to ensure consistency for young people, as they are cared for by staff who know them well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Prior to the home opening, staff attended a two-week mandatory training programme together. Staff reported that they valued this opportunity and it has helped them to work more cohesively as a team. One member of staff said, ‘The team had a chance to bond and develop a shared approach. This was really beneficial for the young people in terms of the consistency we could provide them.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Regular team meetings and supervision sessions enable staff to reflect on their practice, share ideas or raise concerns. There are good communication systems in place and staff are kept updated with young people’s changing needs. Staff members spoken to were positive about their roles and stated that they had a good level of support from managers. Inspection report children’s home: 2537060 5 There are effective and well-organised monitoring systems in place. This enables the manager to monitor the quality of care and address any issues that arise. In addition to this, he seeks feedback from young people and external professionals. He is able to demonstrate effective analysis of significant events in the home and uses learning to shape future practice. This demonstrates his commitment to continuous improvement. Inspection report children’s home: 2537060 6

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Recommendations

 Where children placed in a home are not participating in education because they have been excluded or are not on a school roll for some other reason, the registered person and staff must work closely with the placing authority so that the child is supported and enabled to resume full-time education as soon as possible. In the interim, the child should be supported to sustain or regain their confidence in education and be engaged in suitable structured activities. If no education place is identified by the placing authority, the registered person must challenge them to meet the child’s needs under regulation 5 (engaging with the wider system to ensure children’s needs are met). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.15)  There is a legal requirement for the IRO of a looked-after child to ensure that the child understands they have an entitlement to independent advocacy support

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Recommendations

arranged by the child’s local authority. Children’s home staff should complement any explanation given by the IRO by helping looked-after children to understand the role of an independent advocate and how they can access one. Staff should regularly remind children of their right to access an independent advocate, concerning any matter relevant to the child’s status as looked-after. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 23, paragraph 4.17)  Staff should continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5) Specifically, risk assessments and individual behaviour support plans should detail the control measures in place and the strategies that staff should use to support young people.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, 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: 2537060 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: 49 Whitegate Drive, Blackpool, Lancashire FY3 9DG

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Inspector

Sophie Thomson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2537060 8 to 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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