Children's Home run by Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council in Barnsley

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

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

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Children continue to have positive experiences and enjoy their short breaks. The strong partnership working with families and schools helps contribute towards their development and progress. Safeguarding of children remains a priority and staff practice is effective at keeping them safe. Improved outcomes and experiences include; more settled behaviour, taking medication whole, moving to a solid food diet and reducing tube feeding, better sleep patterns and developing social skills and independence. The increase in confidence and maturity helps young people complete household tasks, shop independently, cook for peers and in one case pass the driving theory test. Staff are very thoughtful and considerate in following children’s care plans. They are skilled and competent so that children have their very specific needs met, such as, personal care, communication, socialisation, and health. Parents who completed consultation surveys and were spoken to during the inspection made

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

comments such as, ‘The home is amazing, I can’t think of any improvements’, ‘She loves coming, we know she is safe’ and ‘I would recommend this home to other parents.’ One parent did raise concerns about laundry and mixed up clothing that was promptly addressed by staff. Another raised the issue of children with complex needs getting out and about more. There is a people carrier that staff use to take more able children out. However, staff also use other means such as pushing children in wheelchairs and accessing public transport, buses and trains. This ensures all children regardless of their needs enjoy a wide and stimulating variety of activities. Partnership working with parents is developing with coffee mornings and fundraising activities to raise money for a new minibus. The home has plenty of books, toys, DVDs, games consoles, pool tables and a sensory room. The garden has play equipment for children with a range of needs.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Children enjoy the chance to see their friends and develop social relationships with each other. They also enjoy cooking, shopping, trips out, social events and using local leisure facilities. Staff have produced a new activity file, which is full of photographs of children enjoying their activities. Staff ensure the home is ready for the group of children who come for each short break. For example, bedrooms are prepared for the individual child with their personal likes and dislikes. There are separate areas in the home, designed to meet a range of different needs and abilities. Careful attention is given to co- ordinating the mix of children who come for each short break. Such effective organisation of short breaks helps promote their welfare and safety.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The flexibility in this short break service helps keep children living at home with their families. When needed, children can come for longer stays or on a shared care arrangement. For example when parents or carers are away or too ill to look after them. Staff also play a key role in monitoring the welfare and safety of vulnerable, disabled children who spend most of their time at their family home. Staff support parents emotionally, offer advice about effective parenting skills and help when there are difficulties with making and attending children’s appointments.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Good staffing levels ensure that children are appropriately supervised at all times. This reduces the likelihood of them going missing from home and staff are able to intervene quickly and de-escalate any challenging behaviour. Good relationships with children mean that physical intervention is used rarely. Any incidents are reviewed and signed off by the manager, which helps ensure good and safe practice. The requirement at the last inspection about the quality of physical intervention records has been met. However when the manager has been directly involved in using physical intervention the registered provider needs to ensure this is reviewed by someone else authorised to do so.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The second requirement about making sure staff sign and date all records is also met. There is regular external scrutiny of the service by independent reviewing officers (IROs) employed by the registered provider. The monthly reports completed by the IROs do not meet regulatory requirements. They fail to include their specific opinion about children’s wellbeing and effectiveness of safeguarding measures. The impact of this is limited by the quality of the manger’s own monitoring and the open, transparent approach to working with parents and other agencies.

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Information about this children's home

The home is a local authority children’s home and is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to ten children with physical and learning disabilities.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

12/02/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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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.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that- within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")- has spoken to the user about the measure; and has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3) (b)(i)(ii)(c)) 30/04/2016

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit ("the independent person's report") which sets out, in particular, the independent person's opinion as to whether- children are effectively safeguarded; and the conduct of the home promotes children's well-being. (Regulation 44 (4)(a)(b)) 30/04/2016

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What the inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspection 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.

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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 focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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Information about this inspection

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 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 .

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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,

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Information about this inspection

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

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Information about this inspection

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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

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