Children's Home run by Lonsdale Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2676352 1 Registered provider: Lonsdale 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 owned by a private company. It offers care for up to four children who may experience social and/or emotional difficulties. It also offers care for children who may have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted in May 2022 and the manager registered in September 2023.

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Information about this children’s home

There were four children living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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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: 2676352 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/02/2024 Full Good 29/11/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2676352 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a home that is welcoming and friendly and has a family feel. Children benefit from a consistent and nurturing approach to care from staff, an ethos which permeates throughout the staff team. Children’s achievements are celebrated through the many photos proudly on display. This helps the children to develop a sense of pride and contributes to good self esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children build meaningful and healthy relationships with staff. One child said: ‘When I am sad, staff change their tone of voice so they can sound like a mother would.’ This shows children feel comfortable to reach out to staff and receive a loving and warm response. Children are encouraged to explore their favourite hobbies and interests. For example, one child is supported with their hobby of sea cadets and their love of their local football team. This helps to develop children’s skills and is helping them to enhance their self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s existing and emerging health needs are met, which is significant progress from their starting points. Children now attend all routine health appointments and reviews. As a result, the children have better informed healthcare. One child who had never been seen by a dentist is now fully up to date with their dental health and treatment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff prioritise the time children spend with their family members or those close to them. Efforts are made to facilitate family interactions for all children. In one case, staff have made it possible for a child to spend time with their brothers, marking notable progress. This has helped the child maintain meaningful connections with their family. Another child spends time regularly with their sister, whom they frequently visit at their home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child lives in an annex to the main house, where they are able to experience some level of independent living. This has helped to raise their confidence and better enabled them to be prepared for independent life. The child said that they love having their own space to cook for themselves.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The blanket use of door sensors and window restrictors at the home is not assessed individually for children to ensure that these restrictions are necessary and proportionate. This can sometimes detract from the overall family feel in the home.

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

Children rarely go missing from the home. Children have clear and concise missing-from- home protocols and plans. Staff understand the actions they should take if children go missing from the home. This demonstrates that children would be supported consistently and safely should they go missing from home. When children have been Inspection report for children’s home: 2676352 4 missing from home it is for short periods of time and the documentation remains comprehensive.

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

Staff regularly offer praise for children’s achievements or simply for being themselves, using dedicated communication sheets. This approach helps children to build self- awareness and self-esteem, which in turn fosters positive behaviour development. Staff regularly praise children for their educational achievements, which helps to highlight the importance placed on children’s development.

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

Children are supported to understand their own behaviours in a reflective and safe way. Staff know the needs of the children well and the progress children make is reflected in their care plans. Staff ensure that support plans are reviewed and updated in collaboration with the placing authority.

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

Physical interventions are rare, primarily due to the home’s caring approach. Staff are encouraged to use all available distraction or de-escalation techniques to prevent the need for physical intervention. Records are kept when physical interventions are used. However, the documents are not always clear and do not always identify the specific roles or holds that staff use during interventions.

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

Staff are recruited safely and safer recruitment guidance is adhered to in line with statutory guidance. However, one reference identified a potential issue relating to staff boundaries which was not followed up by the leaders and managers.

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

Staff know how to keep children safe from harm. Safeguarding incidents are managed well, and children are not placed at risk. However, the manager found that one isolated incident should have been made to the local authority designated officer. This did not impact on the child’s wellbeing.

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

Staff regularly review risk assessments. However, some risks identified for children are not included in their risk assessments. This potentially compromises staff’s understanding of children’s risks and vulnerabilities. Additionally, some risk assessments include information about risks that are low and not current.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led and managed by an ambitious and knowledgeable management team. The management team demonstrates a clear understanding of therapeutic approaches when supporting children with complex needs and ensures that staff implement these in their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager ensures that the placing authority care plans, personal education plans and care plans are reviewed regularly and in line with statutory processes. Inspection report for children’s home: 2676352 5 The staff team benefits from leadership that puts the care of children above everything else. Staff say that they enjoy coming to work and that they are able to build strong relationships with children. Staff say that coming to work each day never feels like work and the home is more of a ‘home from home’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager completes a quality of care review every six months. This is used to showcase progress and development and photos help to convey the children’s experience of living in the home. This review helps to highlight the positive work and positive feedback gained.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children are supported by a stable and experienced team who help children to develop a sense of security and stability. This helps children to ensure that they are able to make consistent progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff attend regular training, which helps them to better understand and meet the children’s needs. The training helps them to develop their skills and implement good practice. Training is reviewed regularly to ensure that it meets the changing needs of the staff and children. However, the training offered to staff could be enhanced in line with the specific needs of the children living at the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2676352 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, The 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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must promptly inform the relevant officer or teams within the local authority of all allegations that come to an employer’s attention. This includes ensuring that any concerns raised during the recruitment process are followed up correctly. 12 January 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home and gardens are safe for children, and that they are able to move around safely without barriers. This includes locks on gates, blanket door alarms without risk assessment, repair to the whirlpool bath and securing of potential ligature points such as blind cords or damaged washing lines. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’ page 15, paragraph 3.9) Inspection report for children’s home: 2676352 7  The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate training based on the individual needs of children in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 10.11)  The registered person should ensure that physical intervention records are clear and legible. Records should contain all relevant information, including the details of the staff involvement in incidents. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including

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Recommendations

the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.1)  The registered person should ensure that children’s risk assessments are regularly reviewed and updated to accurately reflect risks. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 41, 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: 2676352 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Lonsdale Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 20 Brookhouse Road, Caton, Lancaster LA2 9QT

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Inspector

James Meeks, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2676352 9 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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