Children's home run by Sandcastle Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 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 is operated by a private provider.

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Information about this children’s home

It is registered to provide care for up to two children. It is registered to care for children who may have social or emotional needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since July 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, there was one child living in the home.

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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: 1 September 2021

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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: 2490998 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/09/2021 Full Good 11/02/2020 Interim Declined in effectiveness 08/05/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who are new to the home have a robust impact assessment in place to establish their compatibility with the group of children already living in the home. This assessment is reviewed regularly by the manager at the start of their placement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to build relationships with the adults who support them. They have a range of positive experiences and activities; this includes holidays abroad. This is supporting children with their confidence and self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff put the well-being of children and their individual needs at the centre of their practice. There are clear and consistent rules and boundaries in place and staff understand the importance of adhering to these boundaries. This helps children to learn acceptable behaviours and how to manage their own feelings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children with their health needs and to attend medical appointments. Children are provided with therapeutic care and support. However, the support and strategies identified by the therapist are not embedded in children’s individual care plans. This is a missed opportunity to demonstrate the therapeutic care package available to children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged and supported to attend their education provisions. However, school attendance for one child is minimal. Staff provide some education resources in the home on the days the child is not in school. However, this is not structured.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager a staff work positively with families to promote positive and meaningful family time in line with agreed plans. This encourages children to maintain quality time with important people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to develop independent skills. This prepares children for adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff support children to move on from the home in a positive way. The child said, ‘[The staff] have helped me with my education, helped me grow more confident and developed my independence skills.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is very warm and welcoming, with a homely feel. There were some locks on internal doors to communal areas, which means that children cannot access all appropriate areas of the home. This was addressed during the inspection and the locks were removed.

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

Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 4 Risk management plans help staff to understand the individual risks for each child. The registered manager and staff worked collaboratively with other safeguarding professionals to support the child’s needs. However, action is not always taken to update documents with all relevant information. This was important as a child had left the home through a window late at night, but this information was not included in the plan.

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

Staff complete direct work with children on important topics, such as the importance of education and how to use the internet safely. However, there was a missed opportunity to support a child in understanding the risks involved in leaving the home late at night.

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

When children have been missing from care, there are well-coordinated responses. There is a clear plan of urgent action in place to protect children. The registered manager has taken appropriate steps during missing-from-care episodes to escalate any concerns to all relevant professionals. This ensures that a safe plan is in place with a clear timescale and proposed actions. Children are welcomed back into the home following any missing-from-care episodes, and return home interviews are conducted. This is an opportunity to talk to children about any risks they may have faced.

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

Imposed consequences are not recorded or evaluated for effectiveness. The registered manager should ensure that all incidents of control and discipline have regular scrutiny to ensure that their use is fair and effective.

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

Restraints are minimal. When they have occurred, they have been reasonable and proportionate, and the children and staff involved have received appropriate debriefs following the restraint.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a consistent and experienced staff team whose members are suitably trained. Staff and the registered manager work well together and have clear responsibilities and accountabilities. Staff report being well led and managed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision for staff takes place and children’s experiences are considered within this supervision. It is practice-led, meaning staff are reflective and learn from experiences. Regular team meetings take place which all staff attend to develop their knowledge and skills. The therapist also attends meetings to review the children’s care with staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers ensure that most plans for children identify their needs. However, they do not cross-reference plans with the local authority care plan, as these important documents are not available. These were requested and received during the inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 5 Leaders and the manager have a good understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. This enables them to take effective action when required.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager uses internal and external monitoring of the home effectively, and has a good vision of the development she wants to achieve in the home and for staff growth. Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that risk assessments reflect current risks for the children, ensuring that there are clear steps for staff to follow should these risks occur. 30 November 2022

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (b)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)) 30 November 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 7 The registered person must prepare and implement a policy ("the behaviour management policy") which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. 30 November 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 8 (Regulation 35 (1)(b) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that sanctions are appropriately recorded.

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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

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) ("the Level 3 Diploma"); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home. (Regulation 32 (1) (4)(a) (5)(a))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff complete the relevant qualification within timescales. 30 November 2022

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensuring the registered person ensures that up- to-date placing authority care plans are available. 30 November 2022

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children; and 30 November 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 9 use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensuring that the home’s therapeutic care plan’s strategies are embedded within the home’s placement plan.

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Recommendations

 The registered person must ensure that where children placed in a home are not participating in education, 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. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraphs 5.14 and 5.15)

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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: 2490998 10

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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 Limited, 49 Whitegate Drive, Blackpool FY3 9DG

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Inspector

Katie Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2490998 11 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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