The Banyan Tree

Unique reference number SC396186 Inspection date 18/10/2012 Inspector Katarina Djordjevic Type of inspection Full Provision subtype Children's home

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Date of last inspection 31/01/2012 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Brief description of the service

The home is a privately run and provides care for four young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties and learning disabilities.

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The inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding : a service of exceptional quality that significantly exceeds minimum requirements Good : a service of high quality that exceeds minimum requirements Adequate : a service that only meets minimum requirements Inadequate : a service that does not meet minimum requirements

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Overall effectiveness

The overall effectiveness is judged to be outstanding .

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Overall effectiveness

Children and young people receive an excellent level of care based on their individualised needs. They make very good progress during their time at the home. This is because they are cared for by a truly committed staff team who are highly skilled, well trained and who have high aspirations for all children and young people.

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Overall effectiveness

Children and young people are very happy and safe living at the home. They have excellent relationships with staff which enables them to raise any concerns they may have. This helps to protect children and young people from the risk of harm and abuse.

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Overall effectiveness

The Registered Manager is inspirational. She provides clear leadership and direction with an inclusive management style. This makes children, young people and staff feel valued.

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Overall effectiveness

Feedback from social workers recognises the commitment of the staff to improving the lives of children and young people; and the very good progress they make during their time at the home.

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Overall effectiveness

Feedback from parents is extremely positive about the care provided and about the progress made by their children during their time at the home. One parent commented that the care their child has received ‘has been the best care ever since they have been in care.’

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Outcomes for children and young people

Outcomes for children and young people are outstanding .

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Outcomes for children and young people

Children and young benefit tremendously from living at the home. They are very happy living at the home and feel safe and secure. They very quickly settle into the home and build up trusting relationships with adults. This helps to protect them from the risk of harm and abuse. Children and young people become more emotionally resilient and their self-confidence increases. Their experiences at the home help them to develop skills and emotional resilience in preparation for their next stages of life.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Children and young people receive care and support which is based on their starting points, previous histories, experiences and identified risks. Care provided also takes into account children and young people’s age, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities, race, religion, culture and communication and language needs. As a result, they receive outstanding care which helps them make very good progress in preparation for adulthood.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Children and young people receive education based on their individual needs which ensures they receive the support they need. They have 100% attendance which helps to improve their chances of achieving their full academic potential. Children and young people make significant progress in their educational achievements given their starting points.

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Outcomes for children and young people

Children and young people are central to the decision-making process. They are given every opportunity to contribute to the daily running of the home, their futures and the wider community. For example, they are members of local clubs, such as guides, and appear in school plays. As a result, children and young people feel valued and their self-esteem increases.

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Quality of care

The quality of the care is outstanding .

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Quality of care

Children and young people receive an excellent level of individualised care. Although all the children and young people currently living at the home have been in care for a long time, this is their first time in residential care. The home has provided stability for children and young people which has helped to build up their trust in adults. Excellent relationships exist between children, young people and staff. This helps children and young people make very good progress in an environment that is nurturing; recognises the strengths of each individual and celebrates achievement.

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Quality of care

The promotion of the empowerment of children and young people and individualised care are synonymous and are embedded in the day-to-day practice at the home. Staff truly understand that children and young people need to be central to the planning and provision of their care. Systems and practices in the home ensure this is possible. This helps children and young people learn about how to live and share with others; accept difference; to build up their confidence, feel valued and listened to. There are many examples of exemplary practice where children and young people are at the centre of the decision-making processes. They are given both practical and emotional support to take an active part in producing their placement plans. As a result, children and young people have placement plans which truly reflect their individual needs, achievements and aspirations; and that they understand how their care is provided. Weekly meetings (known as ‘get togethers’) take place and are

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Quality of care

used effectively to listen to what children and young people want, as well as, providing education and guidance. Some outstanding work has taken place about bullying behaviour; learning to understand other people’s differences and how to live and share with others.

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Quality of care

Education is seen as very important and the promotion of educational achievement is embedded in the culture of the home. Staff are strong advocates and work tirelessly to ensure children and young people access education provisions which are tailored around individual’s needs, skills and interests. Staff are excellent at quickly establishing good working relationships with schools. As a result, children and young people’s attendance at school is excellent; they enjoy school and they receive the support they need both from the home and the school. This helps to promote the potential of children and young people to achieve their full potential. Children and young people have access to books, the internet and staff support to complete their homework. Staff also attend parents/carer’s evenings and any activities which children and young people are involved in at school. It is testament to the commitment of staff that every member of the staff team attended a school play that

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Quality of care

one of the young people was in. This helps children and young people feel valued.

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Quality of care

Admission procedures and practices are excellent. The detailed planning of the admission of a new child or young person to the home is exceptional. Children and young people are central to this process which takes into account individualised needs, levels of understanding, previous histories and experiences and levels of risks. As a result, children and young people are well prepared and informed about what the home provides and what to expect. An example of outstanding practice includes the production of a calendar of events relating to the admission. This was based on the child’s level of understanding and included pictures from their favourite books and film. It also gave reminders to the child of questions they might like to ask during their visit to the home. This detail to planning and the effective implementation ensures the potential emotional stress, caused by moving placements to children and young people, is significantly reduced. Children and

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Quality of care

young people are able to settle in very quickly and ‘feel at home’ within a short space of time. Furthermore, staff are proactive in establishing a relationship and communication systems with the individual’s school prior to admission. This helps to lessen the impact on children and young people at such an important time of change for them.

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Quality of care

Children and young people receive excellent practical and emotional support to maintain contact and develop relationships with their families and friends where appropriate. Children and young people are supported to sustain friendships as well as make new friends. They are encouraged to invite their family and friends to the home.

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Quality of care

The commitment of staff to meet children and young people’s leisure needs and providing them with new activities and experiences is outstanding. Children and young people are given opportunities which some of them may not normally have access to. For example, some young people have recently been to summer camp in the United States of America while others had two holidays during the school holidays. Children and young people are supported to join local clubs and pursue their hobbies and interests such as horse riding. Consequently, children and young people have enjoyable experiences while at the same time developing social and independence skills and becoming more confident.

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Quality of care

Children and young people live in a home which is comfortable, and furnished and decorated to a good standard. There is plenty of space which helps promote group living as well as individualisation. Children and young people are actively supported to personalise their bedrooms which ensures their individual identities and interests are reflected.

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Safeguarding children and young people

The service is outstanding at keeping children and young people safe and feeling safe.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Safeguarding is at the forefront of practice while at the same time enabling children and young people to develop skills and take risks in a safe and nurturing environment. This helps them learn about how to keep themselves and others safe in preparation for adulthood. Young people say they feel safe living at the home and make good progress in changing their socially unacceptable and risk taking behaviours.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Staff are fully committed to protecting young people from the risk of harm and abuse and in helping them prepare for adulthood. This is possible due to a range of clear safeguarding policies and procedures which staff fully understand and implement effectively. Staff are very clear about their responsibilities in reporting any child protection concerns. Staffing levels and the existence of open and trusting relationships between staff and children and young people further protects and promotes children and young people’s well-being.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Close working and regular communication with placing authorities and other professionals also helps to monitor the care and safety provided to children and young people. Feedback from social workers and the person in the local authority responsible for safeguarding confirm the existence of close working relationships with staff; and a real commitment from staff to protect children and young people from the risk of harm and abuse. The Registered Manager also liaises with these professionals for good practice advice, which helps to further promote the well-being of children and young people.

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Safeguarding children and young people

The management of behaviour is good. Children and young people’s behaviour improves significantly from their time of admission to the home. This is because there are very clear boundaries which are consistently implemented in place which children and young people understand. Furthermore, the ethos of the home is on recognising and rewarding positive behaviours which improve children and young people’s self-esteem and confidence. Detailed records of restraint show that restraint is only ever used as a last resort and is used appropriately. Sanctions are not used often.

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Safeguarding children and young people

Safe and rigorous recruitment practices help to ensure children and young people are protected from the risk of harm and abuse. Great importance is also placed on finding the right person for the job. This helps to ensure children and young people receive care from staff who are suitably experienced and staff who can work effectively with the existing team. Appropriate checks are carried out. Children and young people play an important role in the recruitment process; they form part of the second interview stage of candidates. This is excellent practice and really empowers children and young people and helps to make them feel valued.

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Leadership and management

The leadership and management of the children's home are outstanding .

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Leadership and management

The home’s Statement of Purpose informs young people, parents and carers about what to expect. The children’s guide, which is in a child friendly format, also informs children and young people about what to expect and what is expected of them. Practice in the home is in line with the Statement of Purpose and the children’s guide.

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Leadership and management

Children and young people receive an excellent level of individualised care and make significant progress during their time at the home. This can be attributed to the unquestionable commitment of the staff team who always have children and young people’s best interests at heart. The staff team are constantly striving to enable children and young people to reach their full potential in life. They benefit from a skilled, well-trained and highly motivated staff team who present as excellent role models. Staffing levels are based on individual’s needs and are flexible.

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Leadership and management

A strong commitment to continual improvement is embedded in the ethos and practice within the home. The Registered Manager leads from the front and provides an inclusive and innovative style of management which is enthusiastically adopted by the staff team. She motivates the staff team, as well as children and young people, with both groups feeling valued. Consequently, systems and practices are constantly improving which results in tremendous benefits for children and young people. Since the last inspection a new phone line has been installed specifically for children and young people to use. Significant improvements have been made to involving children and young people in producing their placement plans. This has truly empowered them by being at the centre of this process, which has also increased children and young people’s self-esteem.

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Leadership and management

The absolute commitment to continual improvement is clearly evident in the range of internal quality assurance systems, which are robust, effective and really do inform future practices. The whole staff team take responsibility for monitoring systems and practices within the home. This is possible due to the culture of respect for each other’s strength and weaknesses within the team. The Registered Manager carries out weekly as well as out monthly checks of a wide range of records; systems and practices which help to ensure children and young people’s needs are being met. As part of the monthly visits carried out by an independent person, the Registered Manager has produced a monitoring tool which assesses how the home is meeting the national minimum standards. This is used to inform future developments.

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Leadership and management

There is a clear system in place to notify appropriate authorities of all significant events relating to the protection of young people living at the home. This helps to further promote young people's well-being and protect them from harm.

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About this inspection

The purpose of this inspection is to assure children and young people, parents, the public, local authorities and government of the quality and standard of the service provided. The inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service and to consider how well it complies with the relevant regulations and meets the national minimum standards.

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About this inspection

The report details the main strengths, any areas for improvement, including any breaches of regulation, and any failure to meet national minimum standards. The judgements included in the report are made against the Inspections of children’s homes – framework for inspection (March 2011) and the evaluation schedule for children's homes.

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