Children's home run by Lytham Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 1256658 1 Registered provider: Lytham Care Limited

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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 a private company. It provides care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties and learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 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: 21 February 2024

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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: 1256658 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/02/2024 Full Good 05/04/2022 Full Good 26/01/2022 Interim Declined in effectiveness 19/10/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 1256658 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There was one child living at the home at the time of this inspection. Two children have left the home since the last inspection. This report reflects the experience and progress of each child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child lived at the home for a considerable period. The home offered this child stability and enabled them to develop a sense of permanence and belonging. Staff have successfully supported this child to live more independently.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There has been a short, unsettled period in the home. One child struggled to manage living with the other child and there were incidents that staff found difficult to manage. The manager made the decision to end this child’s placement. This decision was thoroughly considered and in the best interests of all children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of education in securing positive outcomes for each child who has lived in the home. Staff are persistent in encouraging school attendance. They work in partnership with schools to find creative and child-centred ways to support re-engagement with school. One child said, ‘I didn’t go to school whatsoever when I first got here but they found a different way and that was better for me.’ Another child has recently returned to education and their attendance is improving.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child’s time with their family and friends. They ensure that this is done in a safe and planned way. This ensures that each child remains close to people who are important to them and benefit from being involved in a wider support network outside of the home. Staff help children to build resilience and learn ways to manage complex relationships with family members.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is modern and comfortable. However, redecoration is required in some areas of the home and the carpet on the stairs and landing is worn and needs replacing. This detracts from the homely environment that the staff are trying to create.

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

The child currently living at the home has only recently moved in and they are quickly forming trusting relationships with the staff who care for them.

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

Staff are embedding clear boundaries and rules for the child. When the child tests these boundaries, staff are consistent in their response. This is helping the child to understand what is expected of them.

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

Staff work alone when there is only one child living at the home. Staff are confident to do this and have the skills to respond to challenging situations effectively. If staff require Inspection report for children’s home: 1256658 4 additional advice or assistance in the evenings or weekends, support is available from the wider management team.

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

There are clear procedures in place to assist staff to respond consistently if a child goes missing from the home. Staff are persistent in their efforts to locate a missing child and encourage them to come home. The manager collaborates with other professionals to try to minimise risk and disrupt patterns of behaviour.

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

Staff take a calm and proportionate approach to incidents in the home. Each child has been encouraged to learn from their mistakes and to think about how they could manage situations differently in the future.

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

Staff understand the unique risk to each child who has lived in the home. There are clear and detailed plans in place to minimise risk. However, some plans do not reflect all the strategies that staff are using to keep a child safe.

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

The quality of direct work with the child is a strength of this home. Staff have open and honest conversations with the child about the potential consequences of their actions. This is helping children to reflect, learn and make different choices. One child said, ‘Staff talked a lot to me about keeping safe and I’m more cautious now than I used to be.’

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

Allegations and complaints are taken seriously and investigated promptly. The manager ensures that the appropriate safeguarding professionals are informed. This helps to keep the child safe.

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

There are surveillance measures in place in the back garden of the home. The need for surveillance relates to historic risks to a child who no longer lives at the home. These measures are no longer necessary and are intrusive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A confident and experienced manager leads this home. The registered manager is ambitious for every child placed in the home. She has high expectations of the staff team to support each child to achieve their full potential.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has good oversight of events in the home. Robust monitoring systems help her to have a clear understanding of the quality of care. The manager learns from incidents to adapt and shape future practice. She takes swift and effective action when shortfalls in staff practice are identified. This promotes safeguarding practice and supports staff to improve and develop their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel valued by the manager, and they enjoy working at the home. One member of staff said, ‘[Manager’s name] is an inspirational leader; she is confident, a great mentor and truly is ambitious in striving for the best possible outcomes for the children in her care.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 1256658 5 Team meetings are regular. They are a forum to share detailed information about children and to reflect on their progress. The manager uses team meetings to reinforce her expectations about staff practice and to ensure that staff are aware of any changes to children’s plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision. This supports them to reflect on their practice and identify any areas for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is not a full staff team in place. However, there are sufficient staff to meet the needs of the one child currently living at the home. Recruitment for the vacant posts is ongoing, and the manager uses consistent bank staff to try to minimise any impact on the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff work well with other professionals involved with each child. Professionals speak highly of the home and the progress children make. They value the effective communication from staff and say that they are kept updated following significant events in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 1256658 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children’s bedrooms and the communal areas of the home are redecorated in a timely way. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that any limits on children’s privacy are only put in place to safeguard each child in the home. Any decision to limit children’s privacy should be informed by a rigorous assessment of the children’s needs, be properly recorded and be kept under regular review. This specifically relates to surveillance measures in the back garden. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the child’s plans detail all the practical strategies that staff must use to safeguard the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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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: 1256658 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Lytham Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lytham Care, 400 Longmoor Lane, Liverpool L9 9DB

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Inspectors

Sophie Thomson, Social Care Inspector Anna Belshaw, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1256658 8 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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