Positive children’s house inspections
Inspectors have praised the care given at two children’s houses in Inverclyde after unannounced inspections.
Crosshill and Kylemore were visited by the Care Inspectorate earlier this year and the findings were presented at Inverclyde Council’s recent Social Care and Social Work Scrutiny Panel.
The Care Inspectorate uses a grading scale from 1: unsatisfactory to 6: excellent. Following the visit, Crosshill was awarded a grade of 4: good, and Kylemore was awarded a grade of 5: very good.
This adds to the inspection of the third children’s house in Inverclyde, The View, in 2024 which was awarded a grade of 5: very good.
During both inspections, the Care Inspectorate spoke with staff, young people, parents and other professionals as well as reviewing care plans.
Convener of the Social Care and Social Work Scrutiny Panel, Councillor Francesca Brennan said: “The entire team should be very proud of these inspections.
“The reports are wonderful to read. It’s clear the staff and young people have strong, positive relationships which is so important.
“All three children’s houses in Inverclyde are either good or very good and that is a fantastic achievement.
“I hope the good work being done continues to result in positive outcomes for our care-experienced young people.”
The key messages from Crosshill’s inspection report were that young people were kept safe in the house and were cared for; advocacy services were available to young people; and a variety of activities and opportunities were encouraged within the service.
It also found that the service had not consistently notified the Care Inspectorate of significant incidents occurring in the house. This has been noted as an area for improvement.
The key messages to come out of Kylemore’s inspection report included: young people were cared for by staff who knew them well; positive relationships had been established between young people and staff; young people experienced a high level of respect from everyone involved in their care; young people were given a variety of opportunities to take part in experiences that interested them; and the service was committed to young people remaining in the service into adulthood if they chose to.
All three houses have Improvement Action Plans in place to ensure continuous improvement, aiming for excellence in the delivery of residential care to children and young people in Inverclyde.
The committee report is available on the Inverclyde Council website and a recording of the meeting is available on the council’s YouTube channel, links above.