Avonlea users still waiting for clarity on what 'temporarily vacated' will mean
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Users of Wick's Avonlea care home are said to be still waiting for clarity on its future – more than three weeks after Highland Council announced that the facility was being "temporarily vacated".
A spokesperson for the local authority said this week that Avonlea’s use will be considered as part of a wider review of the health and social care service and reiterated that the council’s ambition is to reduce the number of children and young people in residential care.
It comes after a hard-hitting report by the Care Inspectorate.
A young adult who has been a user of the service alleged recently that young people and staff had been "left in the dark" over the future of Avonlea, claiming that senior managers had ignored their concerns.
The 19-year-old is a resident at one of the two houses linked to Avonlea that accommodate young people in care in the 16-25 age group.
The £1.2 million home opened in the town's West Banks Avenue eight years ago. It was described at the time as providing "a high-quality environment" for young people aged 12 to 16.
Checks were carried out on Avonlea by the Care Inspectorate in July this year and a subsequent report listed a number of complaints.
"We found significant weaknesses which compromised the safety and wellbeing of young people," the inspectors stated. "We issued a letter of serious concern as urgent improvements were required to ensure people were safe and protected."
In August, Highland Council said Avonlea was "progressing a carefully planned closure". It said the process involved "sensitive discussions with staff, children and young adults as to innovative options which promote the best outcomes".
On September 5, the local authority issued a further statement saying: "Avonlea is being temporarily vacated – it is not formally closing – while the service reviews its practice and policies."
It said "the process of placing Avonlea’s children and young people into more suitable and appropriate accommodation" was well under way.
The 19-year-old whose concerns were reported in the Caithness Courier on September 7 said this week: "We are yet to receive any answers to any of our questions, or clarity as to what 'temporarily vacated' really means for us all going forward.
"It blows my mind that they have said it would be inappropriate to respond to my comments through the newspaper, yet have not responded to me at all prior to or since the article was published."
A Highland Council spokesperson said on Monday: “Avonlea’s future use will be considered as part of a much wider review and assessment of the health and social care service.
"Ultimately, the council’s ambition is to reduce the number of children and young people in residential care. This review is designed to identify innovative options which will promote the best outcomes for our children and young people.
“As this involves multiple service-wide reviews being undertaken in parallel, these will dovetail and form the basis of the health and social care service’s action plan and strategy for the future vision of residential care (children and young people) in Highland. A number of these reviews are still in the early stages and therefore a timescale for this cannot currently be confirmed.”
It is understood Highland Council's chief executive, Donna Manson, and its executive chief officer for health and social care, Fiona Duncan, were in Wick for a meeting on Tuesday.
The spokesperson said: “Tuesday’s visit to Wick and the wider Caithness area is to undertake staff engagement with officers working in a range of council services and settings, not specifically the health and social care service or Avonlea.”
Two inspectors from the Care Inspectorate carried out unannounced checks at Avonlea on July 11. Key messages set out in their report were:
- A letter of serious concern was issued to the service.
- At times there were no staff available to support young people.
- Avonlea failed to act on protection concerns.
- There were no individual care plans for the young people.
- Risk assessments were not robust.
- Staff did not have the relevant training.
- There was no development plan for the service.
- Debriefs were not reflective or happening consistently after each event.
- Complaints were not actioned or dealt with appropriately.
The service was evaluated as “unsatisfactory” in the way it supported children and young people's rights and wellbeing.
"During our inspection we found that Avonlea had not responded appropriately to protection concerns for the young people in their care," the report stated. "We also found that the complaints made to the service had not been responded to or acted upon.
"One young person told us: 'I have made complaints, but nothing has changed.' This had led to young people being placed at significant risk with no evidence of support. This led to the Care Inspectorate issuing a letter of serious concern to the service."
