Children's Home run by Lancashire County Council in Lancashire

Assurance visit report: SC359836 1 SC359836

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to six young people who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is operated by a local authority.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager since July 2020. A manager has been appointed and has submitted an application to Ofsted to become registered.

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection judgement: Requires improvement to be good

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Information about this visit

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), Ofsted suspended all routine inspections in March 2020. As part of a phased return to routine inspection, we are undertaking assurance visits to children’s social care services that are inspected under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF).

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Information about this visit

At these visits, inspectors evaluate the extent to which:  children are well cared for  children are safe  leaders and managers are exercising strong leadership.

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Information about this visit

This visit was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000, following the published guidance for assurance visits.

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Information about this visit

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills is leading Ofsted’s work into how England’s social care system has delivered child-centred practice and care within the context of the restrictions placed on society during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Findings from the visit

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance visit. Assurance visit report: SC359836 2

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The care of children

Young people receive care and support from staff who know them well. Young people have formed good relationships with staff and say that they feel safe. One young person said, ‘I love it here. Before I moved here, I had an image about what a children’s home would be like. I thought staff wouldn’t care about you. But it’s not like that. Staff look out for you and do everything they can for you.’

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The care of children

Young people’s bedrooms have recently been redecorated and are personalised to reflect their taste and individuality. For example, one young person asked for a princess-themed bedroom. Young people were excited about choosing the décor and furnishings. Young people love the results and are very proud of their bedrooms.

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The care of children

Young people are supported to keep in touch with their families and people who are important to them. Staff educate young people about the COVID-19 pandemic and keep them updated about changes to local restriction measures. This helps to ensure that young people know how to keep themselves safe, while maintaining important links with their family and friends.

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The care of children

Staff understand the importance of education in securing good outcomes for young people. However, despite staff encouragement, some young people’s attendance and engagement with educational activities is erratic. Staff are persistent, and most young people have recently returned to their learning programmes. One young person is still struggling to attend school, and their day lacks structure. Consequently, her future learning and employment opportunities may be affected. A requirement has been made to address this.

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The care of children

The staff team demonstrates a good understanding of young people’s needs. Young people’s care plans are updated regularly and contain details about daily routines that are important to young people. One social worker said, ‘I have always been extremely impressed with how all the staff have a really good knowledge of each child.’ However, one care plan lacked detail about a young person’s additional needs and the impact these needs may have on the type of support he requires. A recommendation has been made to improve this.

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The safety of children

Young people have struggled to manage their relationships safely, and some young people have experienced bullying in the home. Incidents have occurred where young people have been subject to verbal abuse and physical assaults. Following these incidents, staff have tried hard to mediate and support young people to repair their relationships. However, this has not always been successful, and one young person had to temporarily move out of the home to keep her safe. This situation is resolved, but insufficiently robust action was taken to address the bullying at an earlier stage. Assurance visit report: SC359836 3 Young people’s risk assessments are reviewed regularly and updated after significant incidents. They contain clear information about known risks, potential triggers and strategies for staff to follow.

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The safety of children

The manager is promoting the use of personalised incentives to reinforce positive behaviours. For example, young people are rewarded for coming home on time and for re-engaging with education. This is starting to have a positive effect on young people’s behaviours. One social worker said, ‘I am particularly impressed with their use of incentives for young people, which gives them a sense of ownership over their money and choices.’ Staff use regular key-work sessions to challenge poor behaviours and help young people to understand the impact and consequences of their behaviours.

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The safety of children

The manager has introduced new rules and boundaries which young people are adapting to and responding well to. Young people told the inspector that they understood the rules and felt they were fair. For example, Wi-Fi is now not available throughout the night. This means that young people are not staying up late accessing social media and games.

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The safety of children

At times, some young people do present challenging behaviours, and staff have to physically intervene in order to keep them safe. However, staff are gaining an understanding of young people’s behaviours and are identifying how best to respond to them. As a result, there has been a notable reduction in the incidents of restraint.

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Leaders and managers

The manager is newly appointed and has applied to become registered with Ofsted. Senior managers within the organisation have ensured that there was a cohesive transition between managers which did not disrupt the care of young people.

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Leaders and managers

The manager has a clear vision for the future direction of the home. He has refreshed and refocused the home, and he has had a positive impact in a short period of time. For example, he has initiated the refurbishment of the home and increased consultations with young people.

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Leaders and managers

Managers have a good oversight of the daily care provided to young people. They analyse significant events to look for patterns and trends. This helps them to adapt strategies and change staff practice. However, some shortfalls in the recording and subsequent analysis of incidents of bullying were identified during the inspection. A recommendation has been made to address this.

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Leaders and managers

Staff retention is high. Some staff were required to shield during the period of national lockdown restrictions. The management team ensured that alternative arrangements were made to minimise the impact on young people and sufficient staff were available to meet young people’s individual needs.

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Leaders and managers

Staff benefit from regular supervision and team meetings. All staff have received an induction and attend mandatory training programmes. Staff expressed confidence in Assurance visit report: SC359836 4 the new manager and spoke positively about the changes he had brought in. One member of staff said, ‘It’s brilliant here. There is a good management team and they look after us.’

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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 education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to use reasonable endeavours to ensure— that staff— help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans; 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)(viii)) 27/11/2020

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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. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff— manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(iv)) 27/11/2020

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Recommendations

 Children’s care plans should reflect that they are receiving care which meets their needs and promotes their welfare, taking into account of the child’s gender, religion, ethnicity, cultural and linguistic background, sexual identity, mental health, any disability, their assessed needs, previous experiences and any relevant plans. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.2) Assurance visit report: SC359836 5  The registered person should actively seek scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from internal monitoring to ensure continuous improvement. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Lancashire County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: PO Box 78, County Hall, Fishergate, Preston PR1 8XJ

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Inspector

Sophie Thomson, Social Care Inspector Assurance visit report: SC359836 6 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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