Children's Home run by Bryn Melyn Care Limited in Telford and Wrekin

Good

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

p.2

The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people confirm they feel safe and say, ‘I trust everyone in the house if I was doing something unsafe they would stop me’.  All young people in the home are engaged in education.  Young people benefit from learning independence skills that will support them when they move on from the home.  Good leadership, management and monitoring of the home ensure that young people’s individual needs are met.  Staff from the home work effectively in partnership with parents, professionals and other agencies.  The home is a large spacious property that receives regular maintenance and repairs.  There are couple of shortfalls. The location risk assessment requires updating and registered manager needs to ensure the home’s vehicle remains safe.

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

Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard.

p.4

Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard the registered person must ensure –

p.4

Requirement Due date

(1)(b) Promotes the welfare of young people by ensuring that the home’s motor vehicle is safe to use. 30/09/2015

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children's home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard)

p.4

Requirement Due date

When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1)(2)) 30/09/2015

p.4

Information about this children's home

The home is run by a private organisation. The home is registered to provide care for up to two young people of either gender, aged between 10 and 17 years.

p.5

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

p.5

Recent inspection history

09/03/2015 CH - Interim Sustained effectiveness

p.5

Recent inspection history

15/10/2013 CH - Interim Satisfactory progress

p.5

good

Young people make good progress overall from their starting points on admission to the home. Young people speak highly about their relationships with staff and the care they receive. One young person reported, ‘every one so nice and understanding they will always help you out’. With the support of staff, some young people have improved their relationships with relatives. This has helped to develop their confidence and sense of belonging. Care planning for each young person is personalised, reviewed regularly and managed well at the home. Staff consult young people about their care plans and provide them with every opportunity to contribute to their own review meetings. This has enabled young people to be actively involved in the planning of their care. Young people’s health needs are effectively identified and services are provided to meet them. They are encouraged and supported to attend routine appointments

p.6

good

with dentists and doctors and have access to the organisation’s therapeutic service. Young people are encouraged and supported to be physically active. Young people cycle and are involved in different groups such as martial arts, going to the gym and mountain climbing. These activities contribute positively to young people’s fitness and their self-esteem. All young people at the home are either engaged in school or college. Staff use every opportunity to help young people to successfully engage in education. This supportive approach enables young people to gain valuable knowledge and skills that contributes to them achieving their full potential. Young people are fully consulted about their day to day arrangements and the running of the home. The registered manager has systems in place to ensure young people’s views and opinions are captured. The manager gives young people monthly feedback sheets that they complete and return. The manager then

p.6

good

addresses any issues highlighted. Young people report that ‘we can speak to the manager or staff anytime about anything’. Young people feel that they are listened to and any concerns are resolved effectively. The home supports contact with families and supervises contact where necessary. They transport young people and work with parents to ensure the time spent on contact has been positive. The home also facilitates regular phone calls for young people who live far from home. This enables them to maintain contact with their families. Some young people living in the home are learning independence skills that will support them when they move on from the home. The skills used include, budgeting for their weekly shopping, preparation of meals and processing their own laundry.

p.6

good

Young people say that they feel safe in this home. Risk assessments clearly identify potential risks for young people and the strategies used to reduce them. These are monitored and reviewed to reflect any changes. This means that the welfare and safety of young people is safeguarded. There have been no instances of young people being missing from care since the last inspection. Staff are aware of the home’s procedures to respond to any episodes of missing from care. There is a low level of behaviour management. Staff use their positive relationships with young people to de-escalate challenging behaviours. This means that the use of sanctions is infrequent and there has been no use of physical restraint since the last inspection. Young people live in a physically safe environment. There are measures in place to ensure the home is free from hazards. Regular fire drills are carried out to ensure that young people know what they need to do in the event of a fire. However, one

p.7

good

of the home’s vehicles does not have the appropriate safety measures in place to protect young people in the event of an accident. Young people know how to make a complaint if they are unhappy with any aspect of their care. Young people also have access to independent advocate services if they wish to speak to someone outside of the home. There are thorough recruitment and vetting procedures in place before staff start work in the home. Visitors to the home are checked and supervised as appropriate. This helps to prevent unsuitable individuals having access to vulnerable young people. The home is a large detached house in a residential area. It is well furnished and decorated. There are communal rooms for young people and other rooms to allow for privacy. Young people’s bedrooms are well furnished and personalised by the young people. There are large gardens around the building that includes a barbecue area. The home is a warm and welcoming home that provides young

p.7

good

people with a safe and secure environment.

p.8

good

The home has an appropriately qualified registered manager in place. The manager has been in post since February 2015 and holds a National Vocational Qualification in leadership health and social care level 5. The home’s statement of purpose document is reviewed regularly to ensure the changing needs of young people are safely met. This means that young people, parents, placing social workers and other professionals are clear about the services and support the home provides. Staff are sufficient in number and have a broad range of experiences and skills to meet the everyday challenges of caring for young people. With the managers support they have a collaborative team dynamic, which ensures a consistent approach in working with young people. The supervision and appraisal of staff is taking place on a monthly basis. This enables them to reflect on practice and identify developmental needs. Staff are also supported through team meetings and regular training. This ensures that staff

p.8

good

have the skills required to work with young people. Monthly independent monitoring reports review the home’s performance and identifies areas for improvement. The independent visitor consults with young people, parents and other professionals to capture their views to contribute to the report. The home has a working development plan that is regularly reviewed to drive forward improvements to the home. The home works well in partnership with parents, police, placing authorities and other agencies. A social worker reported ‘communication is weekly and as necessary, phone calls are returned promptly’. As a result, young people are provided with a consistent approach and means they are better protected. The home’s location risk assessment, which reviews the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises, has not been updated. This means, current potential risks in the area are not being identified and highlighted.

p.8

good

There are no requirements or recommendations from the last inspection.

p.8

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.9

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.9

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.9

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.10

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.10

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.11

Information about this inspection

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

p.11

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.11

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.11