Children's home run by Broadwood Education Services in Rossendale

Requires improvement

The children's home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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The children's home provision requires improvement because:

 Staff do not promote the education achievement of all young people. A young person has been excluded from his school for over eight weeks. He has not been successfully re-integrated, neither has a suitable new/alternative provision been arranged.  Staff do not adequately promote the health needs of a young person. He does not attend essential appointments with the dentist, doctors or opticians.  Staff try to help each young person to learn how to keep themselves safe. However, the impact of their work has not yet been successful as the frequency that one young person goes missing from their care has recently increased.  The manager does not have a sufficient number of staff members on her team to provide continuity of care for young people. There is a reliance on staff from other houses and two agencies to fill the shift vacancies.

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The children's home strengths

 The manager has successfully addressed the two compliance notices and eight of the ten requirements that were issued following the previous inspection.  The manager has resolved the difficulties of poor compatibility between the young people. Young people were not well matched at this was having a negative effect on the safety and behaviour of all of them.  The relationship between the remaining young people has improved. Staff are quick to address any bullying or threatening comments between the two of them.  Overall, staff provide a safer level of care and are better equipped to manage the young people without the need for police intervention. The frequency of young people’s incidents and negative behaviour has decreased.

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that must be taken so that the registered persons meet 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 persons must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the education standard, the registered person must ensure

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Requirement Due date

(2) (a) that staff (viii) help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. 1 September

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the health and well-being standard, the registered must ensure that

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Requirement Due date

(2) (a) staff help each child to (ii) understand the child’s health and well-being needs and the options that are available in relation to the child’s health and well- being, in a way that is appropriate to the child’s age and understanding; and (iii) take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs. 1 September

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the protection of children standard, the registered person must ensure

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Requirement Due date

(2)(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 31 July 2016 necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child; (ii) help each child to understand how to keep safe; and (vi) take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare.

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

(2)(d) ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child; and (e) ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. 1 September

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Information about this children's home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for four young people who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. It is owned by a large national childcare organisation.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

15 February 2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Requires improvement

Staff do not promote the educational achievement and progress of all young people effectively. One young person has been excluded from his school and states that he does not want to go back there. Re-integration meetings have not been successful and plans for a placement at a new provision are slow. As a result, the young person is missing vital time at school. Staff do not successfully promote the health needs of all young people. A young person refuses to attend appointments with doctors, the dentist and optician. Staff are not able to persuade him to attend the appointments, and the incentives have been unsuccessful. Thus, important health issues are not being attended to and resolved. The young person does not understand the impact of this on his longer term health. Young people live in a well-maintained and homely environment. The home was previously damaged during incidents. All the damage has now been repaired.

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Requires improvement

Young people have new furniture in their bedrooms and have painted their rooms according to their choice. The home is embellished with soft furnishings and pictures that make it feel relaxed and comfortable. Consequently, young people now respect their surroundings and incidents causing damage have stopped. Relationships between the young people have improved. The previous incidents of aggressive and violent behaviour have stopped and young people are beginning to make better choices about their actions. Staff deal instantly with young people’s bullying and threatening remarks, while also following them up with reflective discussions in key-worker sessions. This work helps to promote positive relationships and makes the young people feel safer. The manager has reviewed the young people’s behaviour management plans. These documents now include clear guidance for staff on how to support the young people. Staff now manage the young people safely without the need for

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Requires improvement

police intervention. Staff promote a good range of helpful activities for young people. One young person has developed a love of horses. He attends the stables every day to visit them. Once a week he also has riding lessons, carriage driver lessons and equine therapy sessions. Both young people are encouraged by staff to get out of the home and have fun. They are taken on days out to local towns as well as mountain biking and waking in the countryside. A young person has also joined a boxing club. An independent reviewing officer (IRO) for one of the young people reports that he is more positive than she has known him for a long time and that he has a very good relationship with one staff member, which helps him to remain calm.

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Requires improvement

Staff try to help each young person learn how to keep themselves safe. The incidents of young people going missing together have stopped. However, one young person has regularly started to go missing by himself. A risk management meeting with the manager, social worker, headteacher and the young person has taken place, to ascertain his reasons for going missing and to help to keep him safe. As a result, the young person has entered into an agreement, which is intended to reduce the need for him to go missing. This impact of this approach is yet to be tested. The manager’s response to allegations made by young people is now satisfactory. She follows the company’s polices and the statutory guidance and now refers all concerning remarks made by the young peopleto the local authority designated officer. The safeguarding records are now well organised. The safeguarding logbook is cross referenced to supporting information to show that appropriate

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Requires improvement

investigations take place. Thus, young people are better safeguarded and protected from potentially abusive practice. Staff provide effective support to reassure the young people. Young people’s negative behaviour has calmed down. One of the young people is making good choices about his actions. He chooses not to become involved even when encouraged to by other young people. His actions demonstrate that that he is feeling safer and more in control of his life. Staff now uphold boundaries and deliver a consistent message to the young people, without escalating the situation. This has resulted in only one episode of physical intervention since the previous inspection. The use of restraint was in appropriate circumstances and was for the minimum amount of time possible. The young person was offered medical treatment following the restraint and had the opportunity to raise any concerns in discussion with the manager.

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Requires improvement

Staff regularly use praise and rewards to re-enforce young people’s positive achievements and good choices. Staff thank the young people and compliment them on their efforts and use money and lucky-dip prizes as rewards. A young person has used his incentive money to buy horse-riding clothing, which he is very proud of. The recruitment and vetting checks for agency staff have now improved. The manager has obtained information from the agency about employees’ references and gaps in their working history. A risk assessment for an employee with issues declared on their disclosure and barring certificate is now in place. With the outstanding information complete, the manager has deemed that the staff are all suitable to work alongside young people.

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Requires improvement

The manager does not have enough permanent staff to ensure that the staff team provides a good continuity of care to the young people. Currently, there are two full-time vacancies and another expected this month. The vacancies are covered by staff from the providers other homes and staff from an agency. As a result, young people are not always supported by staff whom they are familiar with and it limits the individuals with whom they can build a trusting relationship. The manager has addressed the two compliance notices and eight out of ten requirements from the previous inspection. Significantly, the manager has resolved the concerns about young people’s behaviour negatively impacting on one another. This has had a positive impact on the dynamics between remaining young people and has increased their safety. The manager has reviewed the admission process and now plans to include the placing authority social workers at the referral stage, so that they are involved in

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Requires improvement

the initial decision. The impact of this action is yet to be assessed. After a turbulent start to their placements, the current young people are benefitting from a period of stability without any new young people being admitted to the home. Staff receive good training opportunities. Since the previous inspection they have had behaviour management training, and counter-bullying training is arranged for the end of June. A staff member stated that this training has been helpful, as it has given her more practical ideas of how to respond to young people. The manager led an exercise in a team meeting, to ensure that staff understand how to respond to a safeguarding concern raised by a young person. The manager has arranged for staff to attend safeguarding training, but this had not taken place by this inspection. The manager can now evidence that she receives regular supervision. She provided a thorough action plan to respond to the shortfalls raised at the previous

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Requires improvement

inspection. The manager now completes notifications to Ofsted about significant events at the home in a timely manner. The manager works collaboratively with the local authority and arranges risk management meetings to help to resolve unsafe situations that young people become involved in. A social worker has no concerns about the manner in which the home is run. He states that the ‘communication is good’ and that the manager has ‘responded to the wishes of the local authority following meetings.’ Both IROs provide largely positive feedback, now that the matching of young people living together has been resolved. The manager clearly has a good relationship with the young people. She cares about them greatly and has a strong influence on their actions. The young people respect the manager. One young person bought her a cushion that states, ‘Home is wherever I am with you.’

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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’.

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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 children looked after 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

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What the inspection judgements mean

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

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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 that 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 whom 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

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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 .

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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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