Children's home run by Witherslack Group Limited in Westmorland and Furness

Inspection report for children’s home: SC475710 1 SC475710 Registered provider: Witherslack Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. It can provide care for up to eight children with emotional and social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted on 24 April 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

There were eight children living at the home at the time of this inspection. The inspectors observed and/or spoke to six of the children at the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 8 February 2023

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC475710 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/02/2023 Full Outstanding 30/11/2021 Full Good 30/07/2019 Full Good 21/08/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC475710 3

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outstanding

Children make exceptional progress in all aspects of their lives because of the care they receive. Children have trusting relationships with staff. The manager and his team see themselves collectively as ‘18 parents’ who provide care for the children. This is evident by the warm interactions and affection that the staff show to the children.

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outstanding

Some children have lived in the home for almost four years. This provides stability. Children have only moved out of the home when they have returned to live with a parent or moved on to independent living. One child’s parent said:

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outstanding

‘The staff are doing an amazing job. I have never seen [name of child] so happy. They are a different child. It is down to the staff.’

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outstanding

Children experience thoughtful and personalised introductions to the home. This helps them with the challenges of moving. The manager is creative in observing a child before they move in to inform the assessment process. For example, when the manager visited one child’s previous home and school as a guest, this allowed the manager to observe the child in their own environment. This helped to satisfy the manager that he and the staff team could meet the child’s needs. This means that once children move in, there are no unplanned endings for them.

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outstanding

Children make remarkable progress with their education. Children’s attendance and achievements continue to significantly improve. Staff are both ambitious and realistic for the children. They are creative in supporting those children who struggle to achieve an academic qualification. Staff provide opportunities for these children to have alternative experiences and obtain alternative qualifications to help them achieve in life. Staff also support older children to access college and training.

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outstanding

Staff encourage children to contribute to their local community. Children help to litter-pick and deliver food parcels to families in need. Children also participate in fundraising activities such as the Junior Great North Run. This contributes towards the children’s sense of belonging and give them a sense of achievement.

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outstanding

Staff prepare children exceptionally well for new experiences or significant changes, such as moving out of the home. They help to build children’s confidence in readiness for living independently. One child is supported by staff to give them coping strategies to help to reduce their anxiety. This has resulted in this child attending concerts independently.

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outstanding

Additionally, staff encourage children to participate in new and existing activities such as horse riding. The staff also create enjoyable events in the home that help to Inspection report for children’s home: SC475710 4 build children’s relationships. For example, the older children supported the younger children when Santa Claus visited the home at Christmas.

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outstanding

Staff help children to capture their time in the home in personalised, hand-crafted wooden boxes. Children decide what should be put in these boxes, such as a toy, photo, or certificate. These boxes are readily accessible so that children can freely dip into them, to add something precious or to re-visit a memory. This helps children to understand that they are valued by staff.

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outstanding

Staff forge strong relationships with family members and those important to the children. This includes them regularly seeking the input of family members into the children’s care plans. Staff recognise the importance of children’s relationship with others. For example, staff held a surprise birthday party for one child, inviting their siblings to the home. The manager and staff identify ways to overcome obstacles that may emerge when building relationships with family members. For example, the managers are learning a foreign language to help them better communicate with one child’s parent.

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outstanding

Staff are proactive in identifying and pre-empting the risks that the children face. These are reflected in the children’s individualised risk assessments. Children are also directly involved in developing their own safety plans. This helps children to develop their own coping strategies. This has contributed towards a significant reduction in the number of times that children struggle to manage their emotions and behaviours.

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outstanding

Staff use natural consequences when children make mistakes. This helps children to learn and move on quickly. When one child drew on their bedroom wall, the staff supported the child to redecorate the wall. Staff also provided the child with a chalk board to allow them to continue to express themselves without causing further damage. One professional said, ‘[Name of child] is a different child; staff give [name of child] tools and strategies to manage their behaviour,’ while another said, ‘I cannot praise staff enough,’ stating that the staff always focus on the positive aspects of a child’s life.

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outstanding

Staff have significantly reduced the risks of knife crime for one child. This improves this child’s life chances while helping them to stay safe as they moved on from the home. In addition, the staff forged positive relationships with the child’s family members and maintained contact with the child and family until the staff’s help was no longer needed.

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outstanding

The trusting relationship with staff prevents children from going missing from the home. One child has gone missing on one occasion, and staff responded swiftly to safely locate the child. Staff give the children a sense of belonging, which helps to improve children’s safety. Inspection report for children’s home: SC475710 5 When a child makes a complaint, the manager is quick to address it. Children are listened to, and investigations are dealt with in a timely manner to help improve children’s safety. The manager supports the staff well and helps them to reflect and learn from their experiences.

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outstanding

Staff support children’s relationships with each other extremely well. Their approach helps the children to have an awareness of the impact that their behaviour has on others. It also provides the children with the skills and tools that they need to repair their relationships with each other. This led to one child voluntarily giving another child one of their favourite toys by way of an apology.

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outstanding

Staff also encourage the children to help each other stay safe. For example, one child helped to teach two younger children about online safety. This builds relationships between the children while helping to improve children’s safety.

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outstanding

Staff meet the children’s health needs well. The manager appropriately challenges medical professionals about the use of medication. This has resulted in one child no longer being medicated. Staff have noted an improvement in the child’s progress since this time. Staff are effective at acting on advice. For example, staff implement suggestions about diet, portion sizes, and healthy snacks. This has resulted in one child losing weight at a consistent pace. A professional said, ‘This has boosted [name of child]’s confidence no end.’

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outstanding

The manager and staff advocate vigorously on behalf of the children. This has included the manager escalating a request for information to the Director of Children’s Services in one child’s placing local authority. This helps the staff to have the most up-to-date information that they require to fully support the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home continues to be led by an ambitious and enthusiastic manager, who also continues to be supported well by an equally committed deputy manager. Together, staff see them as an inspirational management team that is committed about the children in their care and that leads by example. The positive impact of their role modelling behaviour is seen in the exceptional standards of practice that the staff demonstrate across the home. Staff members said:

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

‘They are inspirational. I aspire to be like them,’ and ‘I understand the manager’s vision and am proud to be part of it.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager successfully manages and leads the home to a high standard while still having a visible presence in the home. He builds secure attachment bases for the children with his role-modelling behaviour for the staff. This results in positive relationships with the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is influential in the development of the staff and their practice. Staff members independently identify training courses that they feel would enhance the level of care for children. This includes staff completing training on preparing Inspection report for children’s home: SC475710 6 children for therapy, which the staff are putting into practice. Since the last inspection, the manager and staff have successfully achieved further awards relating to attachment and trauma. Furthermore, the manager carefully considers the skills, knowledge and personality of staff members when allocating them a staff supervisor. This contributes towards valuable reflective supervision sessions, which support the staff well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager knows the staff well and is innovative in supporting them. He recognises that those who perform at the highest level can experience external factors that may adversely impact on their practice. He has therefore adapted an evaluation tool to support the staff in these circumstances. This contributes towards an exceptionally well supported staff team. One newly recruited member of staff said, ‘It feels established, safe and secure.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The staff’s practice continues to be informed by theories and research, which underpin all they do. The manager has expanded his own learning and attends a degree-level counselling course to improve his knowledge of providing therapeutic care to children. He shares this information with the staff team to improve the care that the staff give to the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive training specific to the needs of each child before the child moves into the home. Further ongoing training is provided when a new need is identified. For example, staff have received training on helping a child learn to write to support one child to meet an education-led target.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager works collaboratively with the home’s clinical team. In addition, he has initiated contact with the manager of a home owned by a different provider. These relationships help to exchange best practice models and creates opportunities for critical reflection and staff development. Inspection report for children’s home: SC475710 7

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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: SC475710 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Witherslack Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lupton Tower, Lupton, Carnforth, Lancashire LA6 2PR

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Inspectors

Julia Hagan, Social Care Inspector Jess Elliott, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC475710 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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