Children's Home run by Sandcastle Care Limited in Blackpool

Inspection report children's home: 2529355 1 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 home provides care for one child with social and emotional difficulties. The manager was registered with Ofsted in September 2019. The home is one of a number operated by a private provider.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19, at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers carried out under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF) on 17 March 2020. We returned to routine SCCIF inspections on 12 April 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 18 March 2021 to carry out a monitoring visit. The report is published on the Ofsted website.18 Mar 2021

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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: 5 February 2020

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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: 2529355 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/02/2020 Full Good Inspection report children's home: 2529355 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There are good relationships between the child living at the home and staff. The staff demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the child. They understand the child’s moods and behaviours, leading to an insightful and empathetic approach to care practice.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is responding well to the high levels of nurture and warmth provided. This was evident during the inspection, when the child was observed laughing with staff. There was physical warmth, and the atmosphere was relaxed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers are working proactively to secure suitable education provision for the child. However, there is a need to ensure that there is an effective timetable that provides them with the necessary structure during normal school hours. Furthermore, the manager and staff are not aware of the local offer, which sets out the support available for children with special education needs or disabilities. This is a missed opportunity to access additional resources for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child to keep in touch with her family, despite them living some distance away.. A relative spoke extremely highly of the team, confirming that they keep him regularly updated on important matters and the child’s progress. The relative commented, ‘The manager and staff have gone above and beyond. They all deserve a medal the size of a dustbin lid.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child lives in a warm, welcoming home that clearly reflects the nurturing, caring environment that staff work hard to create.

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

The child feels safe and is protected from harm by the staff. The child feels able to talk to staff and knows their worries and concerns are taken seriously.

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

The manager and staff have a strong safeguarding culture. The child is listened to, respected and involved in decisions about their care. Staff have the skills to identify the signs that the child may be at risk and know what to do if they are concerned about the child’s safety. Staff understand and follow safeguarding procedures and the plans for keeping children safe.

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

When a risk arises in the child’s life, the manager reacts in a timely manner to ensure that there is a multi-agency response. Safety plans are reviewed regularly, and measures are quickly put in place to ensure that the child is kept safe. A social worker commented, ‘The manager and staff have been acting in the best ways to keep her [the child] safe. They have very high-calibre risk assessments that help them do so.’ Inspection report children's home: 2529355 4 The child’s plans include therapeutic input, providing guidance and support for staff, and detailing how to manage behaviours. This ensures that staff have a better understanding of trauma and how they can support the child to overcome some of their emotional setbacks. Staff promote acceptable behaviour based on positive relationships with the child.

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

All staff have suitable background checks before starting work at the home. This ensures that children are not placed at risk.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is very experienced and suitably qualified. She is well organised and an effective leader. She aspires for the child to be safe, happy and reach their full potential. This ethos and culture are shared by the capable and enthusiastic staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Relationships between the manager and staff are very positive. Staff are suitably trained, and they benefit from monthly supervision where they discuss their work and reflect on their practice. Strong teamwork and good management support ensure that all staff are suitably equipped with the knowledge, skills and expertise to care for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager recognised the need to support the staff well to minimise the impact of COVID-19 on their welfare so that they could provide continuous care for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The child is cared for by a stable staff team whose members know and understand them well. Feedback from professionals and family members is very positive. They recognise the good-quality care that the team provides. Professionals say that communication from the home is excellent.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have a clear understanding of the child’s plans and the progress they are making. Managers regularly review and monitor the quality of the care provided. This allows the manager to identify the strengths of the home and make plans for areas of improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers ensure that there are suitable levels of staffing in the home. However, the full names of staff working in the home are not recorded in the home’s rosters. This is not safe practice for children as there is no clear record of who was working with the child at any given time. Inspection report children's home: 2529355 5

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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 education 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—

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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

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; and

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Requirement Due date

help each child who is above compulsory school age to participate in further education, training or employment and to prepare for future care, education or employment. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(iv)(viii)(ix)) 27 February 2022

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4. (Regulation 37 (1) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

The provider needs to demonstrate that the full names of all staff are recorded on the rota, including managers and bank staff. 27 February 2022 Inspection report children's home: 2529355 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should make sure that managers and staff are aware of the local offer setting out the support available for children with special education needs or disabilities. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’ page 26, paragraph 5.4).

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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: 2529355 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Sandcastle Care Limited

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Children’s home details

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

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Inspector

Elaine Allison, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2529355 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 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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