Lochaber Lodge
- Registered: 2006
- Registered Places: 5
- DfE Education: Yes
- Assessment/Therapy: Yes
- Step Down Placements: Yes
- Staff Ratio: 3:5
Lochaber Lodge - A 'Good' Children's Home
What Ofsted say...
"Children have positive relationships with staff who know them well. Children’s progress is regularly reviewed to ensure the care is meeting their needs, and to celebrate their successes.
Children talk positively about the home and are animated when playing games and spending time with the staff. They laugh and joke with each other at mealtimes. Children congratulated a younger child on how well they had cut up their food.
Children are listened to regarding all aspects of their care. Their views feed into their plans and how the house is run, and they are helped to make their views known to their social workers.
Children all attend education as planned. Joint working with school staff means that there is a consistent approach to supporting children’s needs. In addition, children engage in a range of activities, including going to sea cadets and Scouts and playing football. These activities boost children’s confidence and help them to form friendships outside of the home. Children also enjoy activities together and have a sense of belonging to the home.
Children benefit from planned moves into the home. They visit the home and meet the staff and children. Staff have time to learn about the children’s needs before they move in. The move for three children from another of the organisation’s homes to this one was well managed. Children were supported well throughout the process.
Children are supported to maintain relationships with friends and family. Staff know how important it is for children to see their friends and loved ones. Staff support visits and travel, no matter what the distance.
Children learn new skills such as self-care and living with others and social skills such as turn-taking in discussions or games. They are supported in an ageappropriate manner to understand healthy food choices. Children’s emotional wellbeing is supported through individual therapy....[ ]"
Ofsted Inspection - March 2024 - Full report available by request
Residential Care
Lochaber Lodge is a nurturing and homely environment for children that may have emotional, behavioural and mild learning difficulties.
Children and young people come to reside in the home for a number of reasons, some of which are due to early child hood experiences which may have had an effect on their ability to form attachments and to recognise and understand their own emotions.
Lochaber Lodge ensures a safe, structured environment where the staff team are able to support the young people to explore their feelings and behaviours as well as their past experiences.
The staff team aim to develop professional, parental relationships with the children, affording the children nurture, support and the tools to develop and utilise positive life skills, both within the home and for their future independence.
The home aims to provide the level of consistency and structure necessary to create a warm, caring and safe environment for the children at Lochaber Lodge. The staff team provide a positive parenting approach to the children, with boundaries and expectations designed to represent a traditional “family home”.
To support and develop relationships within the home, it is paramount that the children’s primary needs are met. There is a great emphasis in the home for the staff team to think in a psychological and reflective way in order to have a thorough understanding of the behaviours that are, or may be presented. By using this approach, together with the development of trusting relationships, we can support and guide children to express their emotions in appropriate, constructive and socially acceptable ways.
Education
The home is directly affiliated to both our DfE registered, specialist SEMH schools: The Davenport Primary School and The Old Priory Secondary School.
The respective school and the home work in close partnership to ensure continuity in respect of learning support, achieving developmental goals and behaviour management.
The Davenport School (Key Stage 2: 7-11yrs) offers a differentiated curriculum in order to meet the individual learning needs of each young person. The school operates with small group settings where children are closely supported and supervised by a qualified teacher and learning support assistants.
The Old Priory School (Key Stages 3 & 4: 11 – 16yrs) offers the national curriculum allowing for GCSE study in essential subject areas, alongside alternative, differentiated curriculums, including ASDAN and City & Guilds NPTC vocational awards, both of which lead to nationally recognised qualifications.
Assessment & Therapy
Children and young people residing in our care have access to a range of assessment and therapy services including:
- Psychological Assessment
- Psychotherapy
- Systemic Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
- Speech & Language Therapy
- Equine Therapy
- Music Therapy
- Drama Therapy
- Art Therapy
- Play Therapy
All therapy referrals are overseen by the organisation’s dedicated Therapy Services Manager in consultation with the allocated social worker and other key stakeholders as appropriate.
Our assessment and therapy services are an inclusive element of our residential care provision and attract no additional funding requirement.
Health Support
In addition to our therapy services and panel of consultants, each of our homes have direct access to a health promotions worker and, in the event of any significant health concerns arising, oversight from a registered, dual diagnosis nurse. This ensures effective, professional guidance in respect of health profiling, together with the immediate and ongoing health needs of each individual child and young person placed in our care.
Statement of Purpose
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