Children's home run by Broadwood Residential Limited in Rossendale

Good

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

p.2

The children’s home provision is good because:

 The young person receives good quality care that is sensitive to his communication needs and is understanding with regard to his previous life experiences.  From his starting points the young person has made progress with regard to understanding positive relationships and developing self-care skills.  The safety of the young person is a priority for all staff. There is an active inter-agency response to risks that the young person’s behaviour presents. Staff understand these risks well and the young person is given continuous support to make positive choices.  The staff provide care that is consistent and establishes boundaries, with regard to behaviour both in and outside of the home. The young person receives persistent and unfailingly positive regard from the staff, in order to build trust and develop confidence.  The young person’s interests are actively supported and encouraged. The staff provide a variety of opportunities to improve the young person’s

p.3

The children’s home provision is good because:

health and fitness levels.  The manager leads a team of dedicated staff who are flexible and resilient in their care of the young person.

p.3

Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person 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 must comply with the given timescales.

p.4

Requirement Due date

The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person's report to HMCI (Regulation 44 (7)(a)). 31 May 2016

p.4

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 (b)(i)(ii)(c)). 30 May 2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

5. In order to meet the engaging with the wider system standard, with particular reference to securing outstanding documentation and ensuring each child is provided with an opportunity for an independent return-home interview, the registered person must ensure that: (c) if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. 31 May 2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

14. In order to meet the care planning standard, with particular reference to early reviews being requested in a timely manner, the registered person must ensure that: (2)(e) The child’s placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child’s relevant plans is requested, if: (i) the registered person considers that the child is at risk of harm or has concerns that the care provided for the child is inadequate to meet the child’s needs (ii) the child is, or has been, persistently absent from the home without permission. 30 June 2016

p.4

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation:  Just as in a family home, children should be able to access all shared areas of their home unless there are specific reasons why this would not meet a child’s needs (‘Guide to the Quality Standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10), with particular reference to meetings that do not involve the young person being suitably arranged away from the home.

p.5

Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned and run. It is registered for one young person with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. This is the first inspection since being registered in December 2015.

p.6

Good

The young person experiences care that is attentive to his educational, emotional and physical needs. Staff are particularly sensitive with regard to providing an environment that is encouraging and warm, while balancing the need to provide unambiguous boundaries and expectations. Although the young person has only been at the home for a short period of time, progress has been made from his starting point with regard to managing relationships. For example, the young person has begun to make requests of staff in a positive and acceptable way and has begun to share aspects of his history with staff.

p.6

Good

Despite the complexity and challenges that some of the young person’s behaviours bring, staff remain calm, focused and creative in their approaches, in order to effectively communicate expectations. For example, in order to engage and develop the trust of the young person, there is a greater emphasis placed upon spontaneous conversation and less direct means of offering advice. Staff regularly consult the young person about his care, and continually encourage commitment to routines that are supportive of a healthy lifestyle. Registration with a general practitioner, dentist, opticians and more specialist services ensures that the young person has access to all aspects of healthcare. Staff work hard at overcoming the young person’s resistance to attending these appointments. In addition, staff support and encourage the young person’s interest in meal preparation and menu planning. Since arriving at the home, the young person has

p.6

Good

engaged in activities such as boxing, playing football, attending football matches and cooking.

p.6

Good

Staff are particularly adept at offering advice and assistance in a manner that works around the young person’s initial response, which is to resist and reject this aspect of care. In doing so the young person has made progress in his understanding of personal hygiene and tasks such as shaving.

p.6

Good

Although full-time educational provision is available to the young person, this has not been successful to date in meeting his needs. The manager and staff, however, have been active in identifying alternative provisions that may be better suited to his interests and his emotional requirements for less formal settings. The staff successfully recognise and use the young person’s interests to engage him in internet-based research resources.

p.7

Good

The home is suitably furnished and welcoming in its appearance, and the young person is given the opportunity to make his bedroom his own. The house, however, is not large enough to host meetings that do not involve the young person without requiring him to be in his bedroom. This has caused disruption of meetings when the young person’s negative behaviour has resulted in meetings being cancelled and rearranged.

p.7

Good

Staff have a thorough understanding of the risks that the young person’s behaviour present, both to himself and to others. In working with these risks, there is continuous guidance and advice given to the young person in order to facilitate change. The social worker commented, ‘They manage his behaviour in a professional way and they defuse situations. Last time I saw him he was hostile towards me and his youth offending worker and they dealt with this well. They have an understanding of him and in the beginning he was engaging well.’

p.7

Good

The staff, in a firm and supportive manner, challenge the potentially offensive and discriminatory language used by the young person. Through this consistent approach, the young person has made progress in reducing the frequency and type of descriptions applied to people different from himself.

p.7

Good

Any incidents of concern or increases in risk-taking behaviour are quickly followed up by staff through supportive conversations, and in ways that demonstrate that he is valued as an individual. One member of staff commented with insight, ‘He is very attached to his area that he has been brought up in. It upsets me that he isn’t attached to a person there.’

p.7

Good

There is a robust approach taken by staff to any incidents of missing from home. A particular strength of the home is the prompt and clear information sharing that takes place. A youth offending officer from the Youth Offending Team commented, ‘In terms of sharing information they are always good in giving us up-to-date information.’ The police missing from home coordinator said, ‘In terms of going looking for ‘X’ they are very active. They have knocked on doors and done what they can. Any information they have they pass over to us.’ Following any missing from home incidents, the young person is welcomed back into the home and staff make sensitive enquiries with regard to his activities and his whereabouts while away. In addition, this is followed up by a ‘safe and well’ check conducted by the police. However, due to service delivery changes within the local area, and a level of misunderstanding by the staff, no independent

p.7

Good

return-home interviews have been offered to the young person. This reduces the opportunities for the young person to discuss any concerns with someone independently, and for staff to develop further their understanding of the risks. Although certain behaviours present high levels of challenge for the staff, incidents of physical intervention have been minimal. This type of intervention is only used when all other means of de-escalation have not been successful. Records of these incidents are clear. However the build-up to an incident is not always explicit. In addition, an authorised person has not signed off the documentation when the registered manager has been active in these circumstances.

p.8

Good

The manager has been registered for the home since March 2015 and is suitably qualified and experienced. She is extremely passionate about the young person in her care and is suitably involved in his day-to-day experiences. The manager regularly consults with the young person, seeking his views and input into the running of the home. This high level of contact and availability ensures that she is able to offer good levels of insight to the staff with regard to the needs of the young person. For example, she is attuned to the young person’s specific communication needs and the impact that previous life experiences have upon his current presentation.

p.8

Good

The manager offers good levels of support and leads by example. She uses a reflective process to manage staff and improve the care that they give to the young person. Formal supervision is regular and of a good quality. The manager is keen to professionally develop staff and to create a learning environment. The manager is aware of the strengths and the development areas that the home has, and takes an inclusive approach with staff to bring about changes that are necessary. The progress of the young person has been variable. However, given the short period of placement, his starting points and his long history of placement breakdowns, staff have offered consistency, continuous positive regard and nurturing care. The social worker commented, ‘He presents many challenges and given his lengthy history of placement breakdowns, they have maintained his placement. Previous placements would have broken down by now. To their credit

p.8

Good

they have stood by him, despite the challenges.’

p.9

Good

Staff work effectively as a team in order to provide the stability and predictability that the young person needs. There is good information sharing between the staff, and the sharing of ideas and approaches in order to improve outcomes. Staff feel that they have good support and processes in place to offer good quality care.

p.9

Good

Particular strengths of the manager are the positive and trusted working relationships she establishes with other agencies. There is both prompt and efficient information sharing to ensure that the young person’s needs, and any new concerns, are fully understood. However, although meetings take place with the local authority and other agencies, these do not result in a clear evaluation of whether the placement continues to meet the young person’s needs, when set against faltering progress.

p.9

Good

The manager has good overall insight into the progress and needs of the young person. She has systems in place, of both a qualitative and quantitative nature, to review the quality of care given. The feedback provided by the independent visitor is regularly discussed and disseminated in staff meetings and individual supervision. However, some documentation requested from the local authority has not been forthcoming in a timely manner and there has been a delay in Ofsted receiving the independent visitor’s report.

p.9

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.10

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.10

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.10

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.11

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.11

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, work- based 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.12

Information about this inspection

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

p.12

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.12

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.12