Children's Home run by City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council in Bradford

Unique reference number SC033502 Inspector Parveen Hussain Type of inspection Interim Provision subtype Children's home

p.1

Registered person City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council Registered person address City Hall Centenary Square BRADFORD West Yorkshire BD1 1HY Responsible individual Julie Jenkins Registered manager Christopher Stephen Workman Date of last inspection 26/11/2014 2 of 6 Inspection date 17/03/2015

p.1

Previous inspection good Enforcement action since last inspection none

p.2

This inspection

This home was judged good at the last full inspection. At this interim inspection Ofsted judge that it has sustained effectiveness .

p.2

This inspection

Since the last inspection the home has demonstrated its capacity to improve in that all the previous requirements and recommendations have been met. Staffing has improved in the home. This means young people benefit from a more focused staff team that are responsive to their social and leisure needs. The regularity of staff supervision has improved. This ensures the staff team are supported to reflect on their practice; affording them a formal outlet to address their learning and development needs. Improvements to the home have enabled young people to benefit from a more warm, friendly and relaxed atmosphere. Further improvements including fitting new carpets are scheduled to take place.

p.2

This inspection

Young people are not often reported to be missing from home. On the few instances that this does happen, staff confidently follow procedures to ensure young people return home safely. Records are made on the local authority’s electronic system immediately notifying the social workers of the incident and outcomes. Staff also maintain written records to comply with legislation and aid the monitoring of patterns. This can cause confusion at times and prevents full information from being available in one succinct record.

p.2

This inspection

Staff appropriately utilise their good relationships and de-escalation skills to manage challenging behaviours. As a result physical interventions are very rare. Sanctions are restorative in nature; these provide young people with appropriate consequences in line with their behaviours. However, records reflecting these are not available to view on the homes electronic system in a timely way. Although the impact of this is minimal, it can impact on the manager’s evaluation of care to young people.

p.2

This inspection

Young people are happy and settled in their home. They are cared for by a team of experienced and child focused individuals. Young people build good relationships 3 of 6 with staff and benefit from nurturing and trusting relationships.

p.2

This inspection

Staff advocate on behalf of young people to ensure the services they require are available. This ensures young people’s needs are met in a timely way. Some young people quickly engage with mental health services to promote their psychological health and wellbeing. Others wait to develop stability at home prior to therapeutic intervention. The staff are aware of young people’s individual needs enabling them to engage with specialist services when they are able. This helps young people develop emotional stability and resilience whilst supporting them to address their underlying difficulties and problematic behaviours.

p.3

This inspection

All young people have education placements and benefit from good attendance. The staff team prioritise school and college attendance to enhance the benefits to young people. This is achieved through working closely with professionals to ensure young people are supported to make progress in line with their individual ability. Some young people are rewarded financially and through extra activities. Such incentives motivate young people to maintain focus whilst benefitting from good attendance. One young person said, ‘If I go to school every day, I get extra money to spend on an activity or I can buy something for this value. It’s great.’

p.3

This inspection

The Registered Manager undertakes robust monitoring of the home. This ensures oversight regarding outcomes and the quality of care afforded to young people is maintained. This is further complemented by the independent visitor’s external auditing. Together, these ensure shortfalls are swiftly identified and responded to accordingly.

p.3

This inspection

Independence is promoted in many ways including through young people participating in cooking their own meals, doing their laundry, addressing their personal hygiene and learning to budget. Those preparing for the transition to adulthood benefit from taster sessions in independent accommodation. These experiences provide insight on whether young people are able to maintain their own tenancy. As a result, transition plans are adjusted to meet young people’s individual support needs.

p.3

This inspection

The Registered Manager has introduced recent changes to the way direct work with young people is planned and recorded. The new system ensures staff recognise and target young peoples’ specific needs. The improved records provide a more detailed account of the findings which inform individual development plans. This new approach promotes the regular updating of young people’s care plans to accurately reflect their needs and views.

p.3

This inspection

Feedback from professionals about the manager and staff team is positive. Young people also provide positive feedback about their experiences and their care. One young person rated the home ‘ten out of ten’. 4 of 6

p.3

Information about this children’s home

This children's home is run by a local authority. It provides care and accommodation for up to seven young people who have experienced emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

p.4

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/11/2014 Full good 26/02/2014 Interim satisfactory progress 31/10/2013 Full good 08/01/2013 Interim good progress

p.4

Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person/s meets the Care Standards Act 2000, Children's Homes Regulations 2001 and the National Minimum Standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

p.4

Reg. Requirement Due date

17B (2001) ensure that within 24 hours of the use of any measure of control, restraint or discipline in a children's home, a written record is made in a volume kept for the purpose of (Regulation 17B). Particular attention to be given to records being uploaded onto the home's electronic system within 24 hours. 01/05/2015

p.4

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):

p.4

Recommendations

 ensure information about the child is recorded clearly and in a way which 5 of 6 will be helpful to the child when they access their files now or in the future (NMS 22.5). In particular for electronic records to provide full details of missing episodes and actions taken. Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.4

Recommendations

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.

p.6

What inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspections we make a judgement on whether the home has improved in effectiveness, sustained effectiveness, or declined in effectiveness since the previous full inspection. This is in line with the Inspection of children’s homes: framework for inspection.

p.6

Information 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.

p.6

Information 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 framework of inspection for children's homes.

p.6