Children's Home run by Lighthouse Southwest Ltd in Torbay

Inspection report for children’s home: 2534589 1 Registered provider: Lighthouse Southwest Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by an independent provider and is registered to care for up to three children. At the time of inspection, two children were living at the home and one of them was away from the home on holiday.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since September 2019.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2534589 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/07/2022 Full Good 07/09/2021 Full Good 28/01/2020 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2534589 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Carers know the children well, and children and carers enjoy close relationships. Children make good progress here. Both children have made excellent progress in attending school or college. One child, who was not able to attend at all, now has a 100% attendance record. The care team have high aspirations for the children. Care planning is of a good standard. The changing needs of children are fully considered and clear guidance is provided for carers to help them promote best outcomes for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s achievements are celebrated, from small achievements like cooking a meal from scratch to much bigger ones like completing a college course. Each child has a monthly photo journal which document their experiences and there are folders full of certificates to show their achievements. Both children are developing their independence skills, with carefully planned steps devised for each of them to achieve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has developed its support for the children’s sexual health. This is an open topic of conversation, when needed, and children are supported with all aspects of this well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a wide range of activities; a holiday abroad is about to take place for one child. Children’s wider family and friends visit the home and are made to feel welcome. On some occasions, friends sleep over, which is an expected part of family life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is welcoming and warm. Personal possessions, models the children have made and photos are on display. Bright paintings in the living room have been painted by the children and carers together. There are thumb locks on the children’s bedroom doors. While the children are used to having these, they detract from the homely feel.

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

Carers know and understand the risks to children. When children have gone missing from home, carers follow the correct processes. They keep in contact with the child as much as possible. Conversations with children take place when they return, and nurturing messages are consistently given. There have been times when children have gone missing more frequently and carers have been reflective about what could be causing this. The manager has tracked these incidents to identify themes and patterns to reduce the risk of this happening again. The number of times in which children have gone missing has significantly reduced in recent months, which is due to the nurturing approach of the team. Inspection report for children’s home: 2534589 4 Clear plans are in place, and carers understand these. One child vapes. Over the three years she has lived here, there have been consistent and successful plans for her to switch from smoking to vaping, and then to reduce the nicotine levels from

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

3mg to 0mg. However, support to reduce this further is lacking.

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

Children know whom to talk to and can speak to carers when they have worries. They know how to make complaints. The complaint that was made by one child was dealt with seriously and sensitively. The child received the outcome in a detailed written letter.

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

Children have discussed with carers their experiences of alcohol and experimentation with drugs. There is a consistent response to this, and direct work has been completed with the children to help them to understand the dangers of such behaviour. Information has been shared appropriately with other professionals. Support from relevant agencies has been sought when needed.

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

There have not been any incidents of restraint during the last 18 months. There was one occasion where carers intervened to support a child. This related to when a child had used alcohol and needed support. The child was guided appropriately to safety.

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

Managers have worked effectively with the police and local authority in respect of concerns about child sexual exploitation. The quick sharing of information led to the other agencies being able to take action to protect children in the local area.

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

Recruitment processes are thorough, and no agency staff have been used. This provides consistency of care for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

This home is run by a reflective manager who knows the children well. Carers speak of the manager as going ‘above and beyond’ in their approach. They feel supported by each other as a team, and by their manager. The manager has good systems in place for monitoring incidents and can notice, and act on, patterns of concerns developing.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Carers can access a therapist to think about the children’s needs or any impact the work has on them. This is good practice and is valued by the staff team. These sessions help the carers to think about the children’s needs and their own values and feelings. This enables the carers to reflect and to provide consistent and nurturing care to the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Carers and managers work closely with other professionals. Feedback from staff, family members and professionals is wholly positive, and all speak of the good communication they receive from the home. One family member said that it is not just a job to the managers and carers and that they are more ‘like family’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2534589 5 Consideration is given in children’s plans as to what could be done differently, and creative approaches are suggested. There is constant review of what the children need and how the carers can learn from and adapt their approaches to them. Inspection report for children’s home: 2534589 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that, in line with children’s individual health plans, and the ethos of the home, children are offered advice, support and guidance on health and well-being to enhance and supplement that provided by their school. Staff should have the relevant skills and knowledge to be able to help children understand and, when necessary, work to change negative behaviour in key areas of health and well-being. In particular, this refers to working with the children to reduce the frequency of smoking and vaping and identify in plans how the home will help them to reduce these harmful behaviours. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.18)

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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: 2534589 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Lighthouse Southwest Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Providence Court, 5, Exeter, EX2 5JL

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Inspector

Nickie Doney, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2534589 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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