ACAD Lochview Care Home Service Lochview Kinlocheil Fort William PH33 7NP Telephone: 01397 722317 Type of inspection: Unannounced Inspection completed on: 22 December 2017 Service provided by: ACAD Lochview Service provider number: SP2003001697 Care service number: CS2003008470
About the service The Care Inspectorate regulates care services in Scotland. Information about all care services can be found on our website at www.careinspectorate.com The service was previously registered with the Care Commission and transferred its registration to the Care Inspectorate on 1 April 2011. ACAD Lochivew provides care, support and accommodation for up to six children and young people, aged 11-18 years. At the time of this inspection, there were three young people living at the service. Owned by Care Tech Holding PLC, ACAD (Applied Care and Development) Lochview is a single storey house located in Kinlocheil on the outskirts of Fort William. Set in its own grounds, the house offers spacious accommodation comprising a large lounge, kitchen/dining room, several breakaway rooms, bedrooms and bathing facilities. There is also office space for staff. The service aims and objectives state, "The service provided by ACAD Lochview will focus on meeting the individual needs of young people within a nurturing environment which is designed to encourage and support young people to reach their full potential". What people told us We spoke with all three young people during our visit and listened to their views about living at the service. Young people who had been resident for some time, spoke warmly and enthusiastically about the support they received from staff. While others who had arrived more recently were clearly beginning to develop good relationships with those providing daily care and support. All young people stated that they felt safe and protected within the service and that staff provided clear boundaries to support their understanding of what was expected. Young people said they had fun and that they valued the efforts of staff to help them to have positive experiences. We were told by young people that when they arrived, staff helped them to settle in and find out about their views and preferences. One example of this involved a young person being supported to join a local club to take part in their chosen activity. All young people talked of feeling well cared for, although they were not always in agreement with some of the 'house rules'. For example, young people spoke about feeling restricted due to the expectation of the service, that they remain in the house at least one night each week. We fed this back to the manager, who equally expressed the sound reasoning behind this decision. We asked that this be discussed again with young people in order to reassure them of the rationale and the benefits of spending time in the service. Some of the direct comments from young people included: "Staff are lovely. They look after us well. XX is great. I really love it here". "It's OK even though I don't want to be here, they make it OK". "They do include me in everything. I know I can speak to staff if I need to". page 2 of 8
Self assessment The provider was not required to submit a self assessment document for this inspecting year. From this inspection we graded this service as: Quality of care and support Quality of environment Quality of staffing Quality of management and leadership 5 - Very Good not assessed 5 - Very Good not assessed What the service does well During this inspection, we considered the quality themes relating to Care and Support and. Further to reviewing written evidence, speaking with young people, staff and external professionals, we concluded that the service should be awarded grades of very good for both quality themes. We found that a positive ethos of inclusion was well embedded in the service. This was confirmed by young people who told us that they felt included in decisions, with some, expressing a strong sense of belonging. Our observations of staff practice further supported our view that ACAD Lochview 'embraced' its young people and nurtured them, through proactive strategies which promoted positive growth and development. Both while speaking with young people and when reviewing their personal plans, we confirmed that they were making good progress in their placement at ACAD Lochview. We found that over time, some young people had developed independent travelling skills, a positive commitment to college and the ability to seek work placements through their own initiative. This was made possible through trusting relationships, which helped those young people to feel safe and supported to make their own choices and decisions. To evidence this strength of relationship, we noted that one young person had invited those living and working at the service, to an evening event at college, where they prepared and cooked a meal for those in attendance. For other young people, we found that they had participated in an annual Who Cares? Scotland event and had contributed to the Root and Branch Review of Residential Child Care in Scotland, by adding to the 1000 Voices campaign, a means of encouraging care experienced young people to express their views, ideas, hopes and dreams about how care can offer a stable and loving environment to enable young people to thrive. The service had also enabled young people to reduce risk behaviours, by providing a structured approach to meeting their needs. Young people were encouraged to try new experiences and for one young person this included swimming in the loch. This desire came to light during reflective discussion time between the young person and the manager. By protecting time to allow young people to open up about their aspirations and contribute to solution focused outcomes, including where there were difficulties, the service provided a safe space for young people to express themselves. We also found that where the health needs of young people required specialist input, the organisation deployed a psychologist to develop a better understanding of need and to highlight effective strategies. Further to this support, the service also encouraged young people to make use of 'coping boxes' which offered personally chosen items to help them deal with the stresses of particular situations. By having the items in one place, young people were encouraged to use these rather than display negative behaviours. During inspection, we saw one young person use this to assist them to calm down during a period of distress. page 3 of 8
The service had developed very good approaches to support young people's involvement and progress and the range of discussions and quality of recordings helped to clearly show the benefits of supportive interventions. Discussions with young people ensured that they remained involved in decisions and we found that young people were committed to using strategies including mindfulness, which encouraged them to retain a focus on their immediate situation and to find ways to improve mental wellbeing. In order to ensure this quality of provision for young people, staff were required to be professionally curious and genuinely interested in young people. We observed a strong commitment and positive sense of team work during our visit and in discussions with members of the team, we found that they gained confidence from knowing that strong leadership supported their practice. Staff were encouraged to be highly motivated and willing to learn while maximising their own skills to the benefit of young people and this was noted when teaching young people to cook. Staff involved used encouragement and a relaxed approach to involving and demonstrating to young people that they could achieve and enjoy through taking part. Training and supervision played an important role in developing the skills and abilities of staff and we found that regular opportunities were available to learn and reflect on practice. Each member of staff that we spoke with commented positively about the support they received from managers and colleagues and that this empowered them to maximise their own interests, such as, outdoor pursuits, to the benefit of young people. To further evidence the experience of people using the service, we spoke with external stakeholders and found that evaluations by placing social workers confirmed the high standards of care and support provided by the service. Some direct comments from professionals included, "very friendly staff who communicate well", and "the service is managed to a very high standard the staff are always courteous and professional. There is continuity of care even if senior management are not in the unit". We were also told that, "the service gets the balance right. Staff remain calm and focused", and "I think the service operates very well. I'm always made to feel welcome and you get a real sense that it's the young people's home". What the service could do better Whilst we were satisfied with the overall quality of care and support for young people, there were a few areas for improvement identified during the inspection. These were: - young people had raised on a number of occasions over several months, that they would like some of the issues with technology within the house to be resolved. These included SKY TV and access to WiFi. We agreed with young people that the service should ensure a solution is found as soon as possible. This will allow young people to have a similar experience as other young people do within their home. - Although bathrooms provided young people with the opportunity to bathe, we noted that young people did not have the opportunity to shower within their bathrooms. We were aware that the manager had previously discussed this issue with the estates manager back in July 2017. We would expect the manager to be fully supported in her efforts to resolve this matter on behalf of young people. We will review progress at the next inspection. - As some young people were nearing the stage of considering their future beyond the service, we believed that the service should progress its work around developing a structured approach to teaching independent living skills. This will help to prepare young people to understand how to support themselves as they enter adulthood. page 4 of 8
- As each member of the team develops in their role, we believed that it would be beneficial for the service to implement a strategy which promotes leadership at all levels. This had been identified by the service, however they should now progress this work and we will review progress at the next inspection. - We felt that there was a good range of training available, however we felt that staff could learn more about how to support issues around personal identity. The manager assured us that she would explore this possibility and take it forward. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Complaints There have been no complaints upheld since the last inspection. Details of any older upheld complaints are published at www.careinspectorate.com. page 5 of 8
Inspection and grading history Date Type Gradings 16 Nov 2016 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 6 - Excellent 29 Jun 2015 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 26 Jun 2014 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 5 Jun 2013 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 7 Sep 2012 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 17 Jan 2012 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 29 Sep 2011 Unannounced Care and support 3 - Adequate 3 - Adequate Management and leadership page 6 of 8
Date Type Gradings 21 Dec 2010 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 4 Jun 2010 Announced Care and support Management and leadership 11 Feb 2010 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 15 Jul 2009 Unannounced Care and support Management and leadership 8 Dec 2008 Unannounced Care and support 3 - Adequate Management and leadership 3 - Adequate 10 Sep 2008 Announced Care and support 3 - Adequate 3 - Adequate Management and leadership 3 - Adequate page 7 of 8
To find out more This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can download this report and others from our website. Care services in Scotland cannot operate unless they are registered with the Care Inspectorate. We inspect, award grades and help services to improve. We also investigate complaints about care services and can take action when things aren't good enough. Please get in touch with us if you would like more information or have any concerns about a care service. You can also read more about our work online at www.careinspectorate.com Contact us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY enquiries@careinspectorate.com 0345 600 9527 Find us on Facebook Twitter: @careinspect Other languages and formats This report is available in other languages and formats on request. Tha am foillseachadh seo ri fhaighinn ann an cruthannan is cànain eile ma nithear iarrtas. page 8 of 8