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

Good

The children's home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.2

The children's home provision is good because:

 Children are safe and feel safe in the home.  Children develop trusting relationships with staff enabling them to talk openly about any concerns they may have.  Children make progress in all aspects of their life including their health, education and emotional wellbeing.  Children have safe quality contact with their family and other key people. They learn to make sense of their life and understand their experiences and background.  Children benefit from healthy, balanced diets. They participate in leisure activities providing them with regular exercise helping them to maintain healthy lifestyles.  Staff are proactive and take immediate action when children are missing from home. Their good knowledge of safeguarding procedures helps reduce risks to children leading to their safe return home.  Staff communicate well and work collaboratively with partner agencies ensuring children’s needs are prioritised. They advocate strongly for children

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

promoting their relationship with independent advocacy services.  The managers and staff are committed and motivated to helping children achieve their potential.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 Staff feel supported, they receive good training and timely supervision from their managers.

p.3

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 (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

p.4

12: The protection of children standard

12 -(2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure - (a) that staff - (i) assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child's relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child; This relates specifically to risk assessments and proving an accurate account of the risks posed to children 31/07/2015

p.4

12: The protection of children standard

The registered person must ensure that- within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes: the name of the child; details of the child's behaviour leading to the use of the measure; the date, time and location of the measure used; a description of the measure and its duration; details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iv)(v)) This refers specifically to sanctions and the need to maintain a log of these 31/07/2015

p.4

12: The protection of children standard

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purpose of the children's home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirements in regulation 12 (2)(c) (the protection of children standard) (Regulation 46 (1)) 31/07/2015

p.4

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  The children's guide should help children to understand how to contact the Office of the Children's Commissioner (The Guide to Quality Standards, paragraph 4.22, page 24)

p.5

Information about this children's home

This is a local authority children’s home which is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to eight children with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

p.5

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

p.5

Recent inspection history

03/02/2015 Interim Declined in effectiveness

p.5

good

Children present as calm and confident in their home surroundings. They develop good relationships with a nurturing staff team who invest time in them providing them with stability and consistent routines. They have access to advocates and know how to complain and raise concerns. Children know and trust their caregivers who are skilled at developing positive attachments, enhancing trust and confidence in them. One child said, ‘I trust my keyworker, he’s the best.’

p.6

good

Staff know the children well, they listen to them and consult with them, encouraging them to participate in day-to-day decisions and make continuous progress. Open discussions about their experiences helps children make sense of their life and understand their journey.

p.6

good

Children have agreed levels of safe contact with family members and other key people in their life. The staff team maintain good links with parents keeping them informed about children’s progress and development. This helps to make contact a positive experience for children. They take part in life story work and create memory boxes helping them recall positives experiences and understand and accept ones not so good. This enables children to develop resilience and plan positively for their future.

p.6

good

Children benefit from good attendance at school leading to good progress in comparison to their starting points. They access daily support from staff at dedicated times for homework and reading. They have additional intensive one-to- one support on a weekly basis improving their literacy skills and take part in e- learning with a dedicated visitor. When experiencing disruptions, staff liaise with authorities, firmly advocating through the virtual head to identify appropriate solutions. One member of staff said, ‘My key child has jumped two levels in the short time since admission.’ This results in children taking pride in their achievements and improved levels of confidence and self-esteem.

p.6

good

Children enjoy good physical health. They have healthy lifestyles; take regular exercise through social and recreational activities and play. They benefit from healthy balanced meals and understand the importance of safe lifestyle choices. Children are encouraged to attend routine health appointments addressing their immediate and longer-term health needs. One young person’s skin has visibly improved following consistent use of emollients and creams. Children access specialist services ensuring support in line with their emerging emotional and psychological behaviours. Staff are quick at recognising children’s talents and actively pursue their interests and hobbies. This helps them integrate in their community, learn new skills and make new friendships. One young person has learnt to ice skate following a period of dedicated lessons. Others are involved with community clubs such as rugby and cadets. Children have weekly opportunities to take part in fun, recreational

p.6

good

activities and sports. There are plans for children to attend the police camp over the summer. This is exciting and teaches them about their personal safety while developing their independence and life skills.

p.7

good

Children look forward to the annual summer holiday. This year the home has plans for a weeklong visit to Devon amongst more local fun days out to national parks and theme parks. These eagerly awaited events provide children with opportunities to relax, develop relationships and flourish.

p.7

good

Children live in a safe home environment. They identify with trusted adults with whom they can share their worries. Children say they feel safe in the home and the staff team look after them. They listen to children, take their views seriously and respond to them appropriately. One parent comments, ‘I know they look after my son well. He says he can talk to staff at any time. This reassures me.’

p.7

good

Children present with a variety of needs and behaviours, which include missing from home, smoking, substance misuse, learning and developmental impairments and sexualised behaviours. The staff team respond proactively in identifying triggers and implementing strategies to de-escalate situations and minimise risk. For example, when the staff team recognise children are looking for opportunities to run away, they effectively distract children, engaging them in alternative conversations.

p.7

good

The staff team have a good insight and awareness of the relevant safeguarding policies and practice used in the home. They know whom to contact and what action is necessary to safeguard children. They communicate well with other agencies and professionals, maintaining good relationships with social workers, independent reviewing officer’s and the local authority designated officer. This allows them to communicate effectively when advocating on behalf of children.

p.7

good

There has been a recent escalation of children running away and missing from home. This initially referred to isolated individual’s however has now extended to involving very young children. On these occasions, the staff team take immediate and urgent action, conducting a thorough search of the home and grounds before alerting authorities. They collaborate with the police in search of children prioritising their safe return. Return home interviews take place by the police, Voice-ability and staff at the home. Children are encouraged to settle back into their normal routines within the home without making a fuss. For example, two children who ran away from the home and were missing for a short period were safely located and encouraged to participate in tea at the dining table along with their co-residents. This approach helps children to settle quickly and maintain their relationships with staff.

p.7

good

Staff discuss these pertinent issues with children at carefully selected times for a more productive response. They engage children well with dialogue about their behaviours and refer to them as key work sessions. They detail their concerns and the potential risks to children making them aware of the actual dangers to their health and wellbeing. Children receive rewards and treats using in line with their incentive charts when they show progress and good behaviour. This ranges from a selection of candy kept in the home, a visit to McDonald’s for a Mcflurry or an extra activity at the weekend.

p.8

good

Some children regularly require sensitive intervention to help them regulate their emotions. The caring staff use their good knowledge of de-escalation strategies in supporting children to adapt their behaviours. Failing this, they use age appropriate restraints to intervene sensitively, preventing children from causing harm to themselves and others. This calming response leads to more socially acceptable behaviours from children. Clear records detail the nature and need for physical intervention. This provides children with an accurate account of their care and behaviours should they wish to view their case records at a later stage.

p.8

good

Staff work well together as a team providing children with consistency and stability. They implement clear boundaries around safe and acceptable behaviours and promote good behaviour. They challenge discriminatory behaviours and support children to learn how to treat and respect others. This leads to better relationships within the home and increases children’s awareness of their personal responsibility.

p.8

good

Risk assessments records are not always detailed or clear in reflecting the actual levels of harm to children. This leaves potential for staff to minimise the serious nature of risk posed to children. However, risks to individuals are well understood and minimised by staff through robust and immediate action and effective multi- agency working. This mitigates any significant risk from the shortfall in records.

p.8

good

Restorative practices lead to the separation of some children from peers during activities. Other children are subject to supervised spends if seen smoking. The Registered Manager and staff try not to acknowledge these negatively as sanctions. This is to avoid reprimanding children. Although their practices are restorative, the lack of recording means staff are unable to evidence their practice, providing children with an account of the approaches used to manage behaviours. Judgement grade

p.8

good

The leadership and management of the home are effective with a consistent, qualified and experienced manager registered in post manager since April 2009. There is support from an assistant unit manager who effectively deputises in the absence of the Registered Manager. Together they provide strong leadership to a full complement of stable, motivated and enthusiastic staff.

p.9

good

Previous requirements have led to improved recruitment practices with robust checks on individuals now completed at interview stage. This means adults working with children encounter suitable vetting procedures deeming them safe to work with children.

p.9

good

The delivery of training is through both internal and external sources providing staff with good opportunities to develop their expertise. Staff are supported to develop links with specific agencies and champion those issues. Their knowledge and skills being further enhanced through specialist workers attending team meetings and sharing good practice initiatives. Recent sexual health and ‘speak easy’ training sessions helped staff understand and gain confidence in their approach to addressing difficult issues with children. This gives children a clear message leaving no scope for ambiguity and misinterpretation of facts. Furthermore, the Registered Manager is involved with a citywide initiative identifying effective training in the authority’s strive to achieve excellence for staff working in residential services.

p.9

good

Improvements in formal supervision practices show that staff supervisions take place regularly. Practitioners receive timely, consistent and reflective supervision. This is on top of the day-to-day support available from managers who operate an ‘open door’ policy. Senior staff members develop their management skills having undertaken supervision training and support the managers to skill-up the workforce. This allows staff at all levels within the home to build on their existing knowledge base making them more aware of their practice. It benefits children in that staff are qualified, competent and know how best to meet their challenging and complex needs.

p.9

good

The managers and staff take children’s complaints seriously. Although children know how to complain formally, they rarely use this process. Instead, they prefer to have their concerns logged in the home’s ‘moans and groans’ book. In addition, the open culture of residents meetings enables a collective response and provides children with a platform to share concerns. This helps managers to develop practices and identify difficult relationships in the home.

p.9

good

Regular independent monitoring complements the management’s internal auditing process. The collective identification of shortfalls in recording and documentation enables swift and responsive action. The review and update of individual development plans are timely and in line with the changing needs of children. This allows staff to offer care as directed in care and placements plans and in line with children’s assessed needs.

p.10

good

Staff and managers understand the plans for children and show a firm commitment in driving these to secure permanence for children. They advocate strongly on behalf of children, set aspirational goals and support them to achieve important milestones. Child-centred decisions made in respect of new admissions focus on the homes ethos, needs of children and whether resources are sufficient in meeting need.

p.10

good

The managers have a good understanding of the homes strengths and weaknesses. They recognise how the homes size and group environment affect children.

p.10

good

The home meets its aims and objectives as set out in the updated Statement of Purpose. This provides stakeholder with relevant information about the homes ethos. Additional information is available in the children’s guide, which provides details about life at the home and what children can expect from living here. However, this does not accurately reflect the details of the Children’s Commissioner.

p.10

What the inspection judgements mean

The experiences and progress of children and young people are at the centre of the inspection. Inspectors will use their professional judgement to determine the weight and significance of their findings in this respect. The judgements included in the report are made against Inspection of children's homes: framework for inspection.

p.11

What the inspection judgements mean

An outstanding children's home provides highly effective services that contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help and protection and care. Their progress exceeds expectations and is sustained over time. A good children's home provides effective services that help, protect and care for children and young people and have their welfare safeguarded and promoted. In a children's home that requires improvement , there are no widespread or serious failures that create or leave children being harmed or at risk of harm. The welfare of looked after children is safeguarded and promoted. Minimum requirements are in place, however, the children's home is not yet delivering good protection, help and care for children and young people. A children's home that is inadequate is providing services where there are widespread or serious failures that create or leave children and young people being

p.11

What the inspection judgements mean

harmed or at risk of harm or result in children looked after not having their welfare safeguarded and promoted.

p.11

Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people living in the children's home. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference adults make to the lives of children and young people. They read case files, watched how professional staff work with children, young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care given to children and young people. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people and their families. In addition the inspectors have tried to understand what the children's home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people who it is trying to help, protect and look after. This 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 Children's

p.12

Information about this inspection

Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. the guidance raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.12

Information about this inspection

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, workbased learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for looked after children and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

p.13

Information about this inspection

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.13

Information about this inspection

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.13

Information about this inspection

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

p.13