Letham Young People's Centre Care Home Service Letham Court Craigshill Livingston EH54 5ND Inspected by: (Care Commission Officer) Type of inspection: Ruth Cameron Announced Inspection completed on: 16 January 2007 1/9
Service Number Service name CS2003011108 Letham Young People's Centre Service address Letham Court Craigshill Livingston EH54 5ND Provider Number Provider Name SP2003002601 West Lothian Council Inspected By Inspection Type Ruth Cameron Care Commission Officer Announced Inspection Completed Period since last inspection 16 January 2007 7 months Local Office Address Stuart House Eskmills Musselburgh East Lothian EH21 7PB 0845 6008335 2/9
Introduction Uphall YPC is owned and managed by West Lothian Council Community Services Department. It offers care, accommodation and support to a maximum of 7 young people aged from 11 to 16 years of age. At the time of the inspection 5 young people were resident at Uphall. The property is a purpose built unit located in a residential area of properties of similar appearance. The unit is convenient for access to local amenities and public transport links. The service was registered with the Care Commission on 1st April 2002. Part of the stated aim of the service is to: Provide quality residential support and other social work services to children and young people. In providing such support, the safeguarding of the welfare of the young people is of paramount importance. Basis of Report Before the inspection the Care Commission Officer wrote to the service telling them when the visit would take place. The service sent a Pre Inspection Return containing information about the service. The service also sent a self-evaluation form. This service was inspected after a Regulation Support Assessment (RSA) was carried out to determine what level of regulatory support was necessary. The RSA is an assessment undertaken by the Officer which considers: complaint activity, changes in the provision of the service, nature of notifications made to the Care Commission by the service, action taken upon requirements etc. This service was required to have a low level of regulatory support. During the visit which took place on 16th January 2007 the Care Commission Officer spoke with the Acting manager, members of staff, the cook and 4 young people. The Care Commission Officer also looked at a range of policies, procedures and records including the following: Incident records, care plans, child protection and sample menus. The Care Commission Officer spent time observing how staff members worked with young people. The Care Commission Officer took all of the above into account and reported on whether the service was meeting the following National Care Standards for care homes for children and young people. Standard 2: First Meetings Standard 4: Support Arrangements Standard 5: Your environment Standard 6: Feeling safe and secure Standard 7: Management and staffing Standard 10 Eating Well The Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 and associated Regulations were also taken into 3/9
account. The Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 introduced new regulatory arrangements in respect of fire safety, on 1 October 2006. In terms of those arrangements, responsibility for enforcing the statutory provisions in relation to fire safety now lies with the Fire and Rescue service for the area in which a care service is located. Accordingly, the Care Commission will no longer report on matters of fire safety as part of its regulatory function, but, where significant fire safety issues become apparent, will alert the relevant Fire and Rescue service to their existence in order that it may act as it considers appropriate. An audit of the organisation s safer recruitment policies and procedures has been carried out by the Care Commission resulting in two requirements, a recommendation and an area for development highlighted in this report. Action taken on requirements in last Inspection Report There were no requirements in the last inspection report. Comments on Self-Evaluation The self-evaluation form is to assist the provider of a service to judge the quality of their service against the National Care Standards being inspected. The contents were used as further basis for discussion, to inform the inspection. View of Service Users During the inspection there were 4 young people who were able to meet with the Officer. Overall the young people said that Uphall was a good place to live. Some young people felt that they would like to have more opportunities to influence what happens in the home. Some young people said that they felt they were over supervised and that staff were continually watching them. All of the young people said that the staff were helpful and available to talk to. All the young people had a keyworker and were aware of their future plans. View of Carers No representative or family members were consulted as part of this inspection. 4/9
Regulations / Principles Regulation : National Care Standards National Care Standard Number 2: Care Homes for Children and Young People - First Meetings Discussion with staff confirmed that when placements had been planned the young people were able to visit the home prior to moving in and had met with other service users and staff. Wherever possible the young person's keyworker had been identified prior to moving into the home. Where placements had been made on an emergency basis staff had demonstrated a good awareness of young people's anxieties and had provided reassurance and support during the settling in period. One young person who had recently moved into the home confirmed that he had been made to feel very welcome by staff and other young people. Evidence in the young people's files confirmed that a meeting was held within 72 hours of placement with all relevant professionals and family / carers to assess the young person's care needs and agree the care plan. No areas were identified at this inspection. National Care Standard Number 4: Care Homes for Children and Young People - Support Arrangements All young people had a Looked After Children (LAC) care plan in place. This included details of support provided in relation to individual care needs, including education, health, family contact, identity, emotional and behavioural needs, future plans and legal issues. Young people also had a more focussed house care plan in place. Key worker notes evidenced work undertaken to support young people in meeting their goals. 5/9
The young people confirmed that they were aware of their plan of care and were supported by staff to contribute to reviews and care plan meetings. Young people's files evidenced that young people had contributed their own reports for Children's Hearings and review meetings. The care plans examined evidenced that the staff worked closely with family / carers, social workers and other relevant professionals and agencies. Social workers were consulted as part of the inspection and confirmed that they felt that the staff were committed to meeting the care needs of their clients and felt that they had good working relationships with the staff team. No areas were identified at this inspection National Care Standard Number 5: Care Homes for Children and Young People - Your Environment All the young people had their own bedroom, which they had been able to personalise with posters, photos and their own belongings. The home was in a good state of repair and decoration. The young people had access to a communal lounge and dining area there was also a small sitting room where young people could meet privately with friends and family. They had access to the kitchen at all times. A replacement new build unit was almost ready for occupation at the time of the inspection visit. Young people had been involved in choosing elements of the decoration and furnishings for the new unit. The home was a non smoking environment. All bedrooms could be locked and the young people had their own key. The home was located in a residential area with grounds for outdoor play. The home had some outdoor play equipment. No areas were identified National Care Standard Number 6: Care Homes for Children and Young People - Feeling Safe and Secure The home was found to have at least two staff on shift at all times. Staff who were spoken with demonstrated a good understanding and awareness of child protection procedures and had been involved in relevant training. The home had a copy of 6/9
the Edinburgh and Lothian Child Protection Guidelines for reference. The home had clear procedures to manage young people who went missing. Records examined evidenced that the missing person procedure was followed. The home operated an open access policy for the young people; however the building was found to be secure and they had an appropriate visitors' procedure in place. Young people confirmed that they felt that staff were aware of bullying issues and dealt with specific incidents quickly. Staff spoken with demonstrated a good understanding and awareness of bullying issues and confirmed that the home operated a zero tolerance approach to bullying incidents. Examination of daily recordings demonstrated that staff were actively working with young people to support them to manage their behaviour. The home also had good links with a number of external agencies such as West Lothian Drug and Alcohol Project. All incidents since the last inspection were found to have been recorded appropriately and were monitored by the Unit Manager. All staff had received training in Crisis and Aggression Limitation Management(CALM). Staff confirmed that re-accreditation took place annually. Staff used their own cars to take young people out and staff were required to provide the children and families department with the necessary documentation to evidence that their vehicle was safe. No areas were identified at this inspection. National Care Standard Number 7: Care Homes for Children and Young People - Management and Staffing The home had all the required policies and procedures in place, which were clear and comprehensive. The home had a stable staff team and all the staff were found to be experienced in working with young people and had a good knowledge and understanding of the individual young people s needs. The staff confirmed that they felt well supported by each other and management. They stated that they received formal and informal supervision and had been involved in an appraisal process. Staff confirmed that they had access to ongoing training. All staff held an appropriate qualification or were working towards a qualification as required to register with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC). All staff were aware of the SSSC and their responsibilities with regards to the codes of practice. 7/9
It is suggested that the provider develops a system to recheck Enhanced Disclosure Scotland Checks in accordance with current best practice outlined in the National Care Standards and in the SSSC code of practice for Employers. National Care Standard Number 10: Care Homes for Children and Young People - Eating Well Healthy eating was promoted within the home and the menus evidenced that a varied and well balanced diet was provided for the young people. The cook had a good awareness of the young people's likes and dislikes, allergies and special dietary requirements and these were catered for. The cook had an appropriate qualification and had completed food hygiene training. Young people were encouraged to be involved in the preparation of meals at the weekends, with staff support. Young people had access to snacks and drinks throughout the day, including fresh fruit. The young people's nutritional needs were assessed through the LAC nurse and were reviewed through the care planning system. The Care Commission Officer joined the staff and young people for lunch and this was observed to be an enjoyable and social occasion. Young people confirmed that they liked the food provided in the home and were able to contribute ideas and suggestions to the weekly menu. The care staff were involved in the preparation of meals at the weekend. Not all staff had received food hygiene training. (See recommendation 2) 8/9
Enforcement No enforcement action has been taken against this service by the Care Commission. Other Information The Unit Manager of Uphall is currently away. In his absence an Acting Manager has been appointed. Requirements Requirement 1 The organisation must employ a system to record in staff personnel files that the applicant s skills, experience and qualifications have been checked. SSSC Codes of Practice Employer, SSI 2002/114 Regulation 9 (2)(a) Records. Requirement 2 The organisation must develop a recording system to record that the employer has checked professional registers. SSSC Codes of Practice -1.2, SSI 2002/114 Regulation 9 (2)(c) Fitness of Employees & Regulation 19 (2)(d) Check criminal records & relevant registers. Recommendations Recommendation 1 It is recommended that the organisation, in line with their policies and procedures, consistently carry out all relevant checks on employees who transfer from a temporary to permanent post within the organisation. National Care Standards, SSSC Employer Recommendation 2 The home should provide food hygiene training for all care staff involved in food preparation. National Care Standards, Care Homes for Children and Young People, Standard 10: Eating Well. Ruth Cameron Care Commission Officer 9/9