Children's Home run by Sandcastle Care Limited in Kirklees

Inspection report for children’s home: 2526992 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 owned and managed by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who may have social, emotional or mental health difficulties. One child currently lives in the home and one child has recently left.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered in September 2019. The registered manager left the home in February 2022. A new manager is in post but has yet to apply to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 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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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: 26 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 for children’s home: 2526992 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/02/2020 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2526992 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff use a positive parenting approach to create a welcoming family atmosphere in the home. This helps children to settle and develop close and trusting relationships with them. As a result, children feel able to approach staff if they are worried or concerned about any aspect of their care. Children feel that their views and opinions matter and that their voices are heard. One child said, ‘This is the best home I have ever lived in. I feel staff actually listen to me and they genuinely care.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children fully engage in education and make good progress. Staff celebrate children’s successes and achievements, and they work closely with education placements to ensure that children’s learning needs are met. This helps children to recognise the importance of education and develop aspirations for their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health and developmental needs are well understood by staff. They support children to attend routine medical appointments. Staff work closely with the organisation’s therapist and the ‘children in care’ nurse to ensure that the children’s health needs are well supported. This coordinated approach ensures that children receive health care that meets their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to participate in a range of activities to help them explore their talents and interests. These activities allow children to have age-appropriate experiences and develop their self-esteem. Children have been walking, swimming, fishing and playing golf. However, for one child these moments are not captured, and they do not have a memory book to reflect their placement in the home. This means that opportunities are missed to create lasting memories of their time in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children learn valuable skills to help them become more independent. Staff encourage them to cook, clean, do their own laundry and open bank accounts. These essential skills help children to develop their independent living skills and this helps to prepare them for the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff use a range of consultation methods to engage with children. Discussions take place in the evenings or when travelling to and from school. More targeted work is covered in regular key-work sessions and children’s meetings. The work covers pertinent issues such as improving relationships and future plans. This helps children to recognise the progress they make.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff regularly support children to see their family and friends. They help with transport for those children whose families live a long way from the home. They support children to have friends and form age-appropriate relationships. This helps children to maintain positive links with people who are important to them, and who will be part of their future lives. Inspection report for children’s home: 2526992 4

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

Children feel increasingly safe and protected as a result of living in this home. Staff regularly update children’s risk assessments, and these assessments clearly provide evidence of the progress children have made and continue to make. Risks associated with children going missing from care and alcohol misuse have reduced. Effective multi-agency working and focused key-work sessions contribute to this measurable progress. This means that children are better protected from harm.

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

Staff help children to develop ways of managing their frustrations and anxieties. The home is generally calm and settled, and there have been very few incidents relating to behaviour. There has been only one physical restraint and very few sanctions since the last inspection. This is testament to the good relationships that exist between staff and children. The level of trust the children have means that they can talk to staff and explore their feelings openly. As a result, children learn to manage their emotions more effectively.

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

Staff respond appropriately to concerns of bullying. They take these concerns seriously and take prompt action to address them. Clear and detailed plans are put in place with regular reviews to evaluate the effectiveness of these plans. This effective monitoring promotes children’s welfare and well-being.

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

Safer recruitment and employment practices mean that the suitability of staff to work with children is thoroughly checked. This process ensures children’s safety and gives assurances that only suitable people are supporting children in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has recently left the home. A new manager is now in post but has yet to apply to register with Ofsted. The manager is passionate about positive outcomes for children and has a clear vision for the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

This has been a time of change for the home. However, the responsible individual has retained an excellent oversight of the day-to-day running of the home, with support from the team leaders. This has provided consistency for children and staff. Staff said that they enjoy their roles, and feel supported and motivated. This means that children are supported by a staff team whose members are enthusiastic and want the best for them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff advocate on behalf of children to ensure that their views are listened to. They recognise that some children find it difficult to express their feelings. Staff challenge children’s social workers and placing authority when they do not take account of the child’s needs or opinions in relation to their care plans. This ensures that children receive the support they need to achieve good outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers use monitoring tools to track the children’s progress and development. This means that they have a good understanding of children’s Inspection report for children’s home: 2526992 5 individual needs and how the quality of care provided supports children’s progress. Where areas for improvement are identified, managers use this as a learning opportunity for the whole staff team. This demonstrates that managers are keen to learn and have a desire to continually improve practice. This helps to ensure that children’s needs are met and that they are safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are regular visits to the home by an independent visitor. The reports compiled following these visits generally provide sufficient external oversight of the quality of care provided by the home. However, the independent visitor rarely seeks feedback from children’s families. This limits the opportunity for managers to consider the views of others in their development plans for the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from regular formal supervision. These sessions are comprehensive and reflective, and include discussions about children’s progress and staff’s welfare. In addition, staff complete a good range of training that is relevant to their roles and reflects children’s needs. This means that staff have the knowledge and skills required to provide a high level of care for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2526992 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, 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 ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)) 22 April 2022

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff help children to understand who they are and where they come from. This is recognised in good social work practice, for example through undertaking life story work or other direct work. Staff in children’s homes should play a full role in work of this kind. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.14)

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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 for children’s home: 2526992 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 FY3 9DG

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Inspector

Evelyn Chafota, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2526992 8 regulates and inspects 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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