Children's Home, Residential special school run by Ruskin Mill Trust Limited in Sheffield

Outstanding

The children's home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the home contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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The children's home provision is outstanding because:

 This is a home with a strong track record of providing bespoke packages of care and education. It operates within a very clear philosophy that celebrates difference and holds each young person in high regard.  Staff are strongly committed to young people and have a genuine attachment to them. They work successfully alongside others to get the best for young people.  There is a strong focus on education and learning. The emphasis on acquiring a range of practical skills helps to prepare young people for the world of work.  Effective management and leadership, clear commitment of staff and stringent monitoring help young people to have fulfilling experiences and to make excellent progress. The home works successfully alongside others, with the interests of young people being of primary importance.

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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 person must comply within the given timescales.

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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) and (b)) 8 August 2016

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Requirement Due date

The system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating, in order to complete a quality of care review, must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45(5)) 30 September

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  The policy on protection of children from abuse and neglect should include arrangements in relation to dealing with risks of self-harm and suicide. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 44, paragraph 9.19).  Fully consider the impact that a new placement will have on the existing group of children ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 56, paragraph 11.4). Specifically, document the risks that have been considered and clearly record the analysis and rationale for accepting new admissions to the home.  The registered person should undertake a review that focuses on the quality of the care provided by the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact that the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children.

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Recommendations

('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 64 paragraph 15.2)

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Information about this children's home

This home is run by Ruskin Mill Trust. It is part of a specialist school. It is registered for five young people who live in the home on either a full-time or shared-care basis. It caters for the care and education needs of young people with a broad range of learning, emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

2 November 2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

11 March 2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Outstanding

Young people achieve significant personal growth in this home. Their complex needs are seen as positive traits of their characters, as an essential part of their ‘being’. In keeping with the ethos of the home, young people are valued as unique individuals, and staff practice is highly sensitive to their needs. Every aspect of the young people’s lives – educational, intellectual, physical, psychological and spiritual – is not compartmentalised, but attended to in a holistic way. This approach recognises that each aspect can influence the others. As a result, planning and intervention are highly individualised. They provide a strong focus in identifying young people’s potential for change and personal development. The help and support that young people get to achieve their goals are delivered in a soothing atmosphere of affection, tolerance and respect. Staff are calm, attentive and very alert to young people’s emotions. This contributes significantly to young

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Outstanding

people’s sense of security and promotes their emotional well-being. The overlap between the home, school and the Trust’s colleges of further education, has enormous benefits for young people. The home and education facilities share the same philosophy of helping young people. This gives young people a high level of consistency in response, guidance and support. Excellent communication ensures that any concerns for young people, either at the home or in education, are quickly highlighted and resolved. This reduces the chance of problems escalating into barriers to learning. Supporting young people to work and function in the wider community is a fundamental aspect of the home’s statement of purpose. There is a strong emphasis on acquiring practical skills, such as cooking, gardening, woodwork, textiles and metalwork. Young people enjoy great successes in these areas that complement the academic qualifications that they achieve.

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Outstanding

These are accomplishments that will be useful to young people in securing employment, as well as being, for them, a source of pleasure, pride and fulfilment. There is the additional benefit of learning about and managing the risks inherent in these types of occupations. Young people like to take part in after-school activities and enjoy visits to local and national attractions, such as museums and wildlife sanctuaries. They also take pleasure in quieter pastimes such as reading, playing chess and other board games, or going out for a walk. This gives them valuable one-to-one time with staff and each other, helping to reinforce relationships as well as providing opportunities for informal key working. Young people’s rights to self-determination are a key element of the ethos of the home. Their opinions carry weight in terms of decisions made about them and their choices on how to use their spare time, food preferences and refurbishment

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Outstanding

of the house. The views of parents and carers are also influential, whether young people are looked after on a full-time or shared-care basis. Staff work very closely with families on these matters. This ensures that the preferences that young people express are not detrimental to their safety or well-being. Young people live in a home that is comfortable, safe and secure. There is investment in the fabric, maintenance and equipment in the home. It is well resourced in terms of food, activities, transport, toiletries, spending monies and clothing.

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Outstanding

Young people are very safe in this environment. They rarely leave the home without the permission of staff. If they do, staff follow them and implement agreed local protocols. No young person is at risk of child sexual exploitation and there is no involvement in drug or alcohol misuse. The use of physical restraint in minimal and, when necessary, undertaken appropriately. Staff have an excellent understanding of how young people’s complex needs can affect their behaviour and an appreciation of risk. Staff use this knowledge to reach a careful and considered approach to behaviour and risk management. This supports young people to learn how to assess dangers and hazards. It also helps them to develop a measure of independence as part of their growth and development. Staff provide a reassuring presence to young people. They stay close to hand, ready to listen and alert to any concerns. As a result, young people choose to

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Outstanding

behave well for the majority of the time. Since the last inspection, the home has experienced a short, but very unsettled, period of extremely challenging behaviour. Staff responded appropriately, with care and attention, and extra staff were employed. When it became apparent that, even with these additional measures, the safeguarding needs of all young people could not be met, the placement of one young person was brought to an end. There has been considerable reflection and learning from this event, and actions have followed. For example, although the process for new admissions was already sound, this is to be given greater scrutiny. This could be further improved by clearer analysis of rationale for admitting young people to the home, and the impact on young people who already live there. Young people live in a home that is safely maintained and free from avoidable hazards. The home is safe and regularly checked for defects. All required checks

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Outstanding

on electrical and gas installations are in place. The manager ensures that any defects are swiftly identified and resolved.

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Outstanding

A new manager, who has a wealth of experience in residential care, has been appointed to manage the home. She is currently undertaking her level 5 award in leadership and management, and her application for registration with Ofsted is underway. She ensures that the home operates in keeping with the statement of purpose and the general philosophy of the organisation. One of the immediate benefits of this appointment is that the new manager already knows young people very well. Having worked alongside young people in the Trust’s education facilities, she has an exceptional understanding of their needs. This has ensured that the home’s consistent track record for providing high- quality care for young people is maintained. Partnership working with parents and other professionals is firmly embedded in practice. Staff respect parents as the people who know their children best. This contributes strongly to ensuring that young people are safe and fulfilling their

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Outstanding

potential. Staff feel very well supported to do their jobs. All the team members have the national qualification for working with children and young people. They make good use of training opportunities. This adds to their repertoire of skills and improves young people’s experiences. Some deficits were identified at this inspection, none of which has any detrimental impact on young people. The independent visitor’s scrutiny of the home is in depth and gives an accurate reflection of what it going on for young people. Although implicit in the information contained in the report, there is no clear statement about whether young people are safeguarded or their welfare promoted. The provider’s six-monthly overview fails to capture the enormous amount of consultation that takes place with young people, parents, staff and other professionals. It is overly focused on describing processes rather than evaluating

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Outstanding

young people’s experiences. This is an opportunity lost to reflect and build on the excellent good practice and to set actions for further improvement over the next six months. The home’s child protection policy has a slight omission in that it does not make reference to the arrangements in place for the risk of self-harm and suicide.

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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, 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,

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Information about this inspection

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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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