Children's home run by Sandcastle Care Limited in Wyre

Inspection report children’s home: SC061803 1 SC061803 Registered provider: Sandcastle Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is one of several homes operated by a private provider. Care and support are provided for up to four children who may experience emotional and/or social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers on 17 March 2020.

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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

Date of last inspection: 3 December 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC061803 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/12/2019 Full Good 17/12/2018 Full Good 12/12/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC061803 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Each child receives good-quality, individualised care. Consequently, children make good progress across all areas of their development.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy positive relationships with those caring for them. Although there have been some recent changes to the staff team, new staff have quickly developed positive relationships with the children. Children say that they like the staff. During the inspection, staff and children were observed having fun. The relationships between them are respectful. Staff talk fondly about the children in their care and clearly derive pleasure from caring for them. This is key to children’s progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children move into the home in a planned way, wherever possible. Children already living in the home are prepared for a new child moving into their home and reminded about how worried a new child may be feeling. A child had moved into the home the day prior to this inspection. He said that the other children were friendly and he felt welcomed into the home. This is important, as it helps to reduce the inevitable anxieties of moving to a new home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Similarly, children move on from the home in a planned way. Staff work with them to ensure that they have the independence skills that they will need to look after themselves. Staff recently supported a child by helping to decorate and furnish his new flat. Staff and children attended a celebratory meal to wish him well and he left with photos and mementos of his time at the home. He remains in touch, which indicates the significance of the relationships he formed while living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s engagement with education is positive. They are helped to focus on what they want to do in the future and what they need to do to achieve this. Children are achieving well, despite the disruption to their learning and the frustration caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Some children have access to a computer for school or college. However, there is no house computer for children to use outside of education. This stops staff from helping children to learn how to use the computer safely for accessing information and for social contact.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff appreciate the significance of children maintaining links with their family and friends. They go out of their way to support these relationships. Children have been away on holiday with their family members, and the manager has provided financial support to help facilitate this. For some, this break away from the routine at the home and restrictions posed by the COVID-19 pandemic has helped them refocus on their return to the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Much of the home has been redecorated over recent months and it is now a warm and welcoming environment for children to live in. However, there is a cracked window and damaged window frame in one child’s bedroom. Although the manager Inspection report children’s home: SC061803 4 has requested for this be replaced, it detracts from the homely environment that staff have worked hard to create.

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

The positive relationships that staff have with children enable them to de-escalate most challenging situations. Children respect staff and listen to their advice. They learn how to manage their emotions, with the support of staff. Positively, it is over 12 months since staff have been required to engage in a physical intervention.

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

In the main, children get on well together. They do not generally socialise together outside of the home and any disagreements are quickly resolved by staff and forgotten about. All children spoken to during this inspection told the inspector that they get on well with the other children. They all describe their relationships as ‘sound’.

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

Children are confident that staff will listen to them and take any concerns seriously. They say that the rules and boundaries in the home are fair. Staff work with the older children to try to reduce restrictions, in preparation for them moving on from the home. This helps children to take responsibility for their own behaviour.

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

Sometimes, children go missing from the home, although incidents are infrequent. When they do occur, staff are proactive in trying to locate the child and return them safely. Staff try to get to know children’s friends and they have contact details for their families. This helps them to locate children swiftly. Children will agree with staff if they want to stay out later for a particular event. This helps to keep children safe.

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

Risk management plans contain appropriate detail, as well as strategies for staff to implement to reduce risk. However, some children experiment with using alcohol and cannabis. While staff provide children with information about these risks, so that they are aware of the implications, children do not currently wish to access specialist support services.

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

Staff recruitment procedures are not always sufficiently robust. The application form and employment chronology relating to one staff member’s recruitment file are confusing and inconsistent. The dates of employment provided by employers when references were sought should have alerted managers to the need to explore potential gaps in employment, but this was not identified or pursued. In addition, when risk assessments are used to evidence the decision-making around the suitability of staff, they do not include the details of how the decision was reached.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a suitably qualified and experienced manager in charge of the home. There is also a deputy manager, who shares the management tasks in the home. Together, they demonstrate a commitment to improving outcomes for children. They lead by example, which provides good role models for less-experienced staff. Inspection report children’s home: SC061803 5 Staff feel supported and valued. They benefit from regular reflective supervision and an annual performance appraisal. Staff receive support to progress their career.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Core training, which includes safeguarding, is completed during induction and regularly updated. Most training over the last year has been completed online, due to the restrictions posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Staff receive specific training to meet the needs of the children living in the home. This means that they are well equipped to advise and support those in their care. The manager is proactive in sourcing specific training when required. If there is a delay in accessing a specific course, managers will undertake their own research and disseminate this to staff. The home’s therapist also attends staff meetings to provide advice and is available for consultation. Consequently, staff feel confident that they are responding in the best way.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The internal monitoring reports, which are prepared by the manager on a six- monthly basis, clearly demonstrate the progress children are making. However, they lack evaluation, do not include the views of others, or target areas for development. Consequently, they are not being used to help drive forward improvements in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

For security reasons, closed-circuit television (CCTV) has been installed to the rear of the property in recent months. Appropriate consents to this have been obtained. However, although there is an organisation policy on the use of CCTV, it does not include detail about who can have access to the video footage or how long it will be retained.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager champions the progress of children and challenges placing authorities when needed. She will also escalate her concerns when necessary. Staff and managers are highly thought of by other professionals. Feedback about the home is positive. Feedback from professionals includes:

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

 ‘Staff identify children’s needs quickly and adapt their support to suit the individual child.’  ‘The manager’s communication is great. I am always kept informed.’  ‘I highly recommend [name of the home] to other professionals because of the positive impact they have had on my child.’ Inspection report children’s home: SC061803 6

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

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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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) (3)(d))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, any gaps in employment must be fully explored. 30 September 2021

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (5))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the report prepared must include: an evaluation of the quality of care children receive in the home; how the views of others have been taken into consideration; and targets to drive forward improvement. 30 September 2021

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all areas of the home are welcoming, by repairing the damaged window frame and broken window in one child’s bedroom. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that there is a comprehensive policy regarding the CCTV system installed to the rear of the property. (‘Guide to the Inspection report children’s home: SC061803 7 children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.16)  The registered person should ensure that children have access to a computer, unless there are specific safeguarding reasons why this would be inappropriate, so that staff can support them to use the internet safely. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 29, paragraph 5.19)

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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: SC061803 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Sandcastle Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 49 Whitegate Drive, Blackpool FY3 9DG

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Inspector

Mandy Williams, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC061803 9 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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Inspector

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