Children's Home run by City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council in Bradford

Good

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

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 Children make good progress and enjoy stable placements. This offers them the chance to rebuild trusting relationships with adults. Staff persevere and work hard to reduce risks to children and help them to improve their behaviour.  The manager provides clear leadership to a committed, caring and skilled staff team. Partnership working is effective and helps to bring about improved services for children.  The manager has a good oversight of the quality of care that children receive. She communicates well with other professionals about risk, progress and joint planning for the future. This ensures a care provision that is responsive to the needs and views of children.

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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 within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the independent person produces a report about a visit 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 44(4)(b)) 17/08/2016

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45(5)) 31/12/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  The registered person and staff must work closely with the placing authority so that the child is supported and enabled to resume full-time education as soon as possible. In the interim, the child should be supported to sustain or regain their confidence in education and be engaged in suitable structured activities. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.15)

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Recommendations

 The registered person’s review should focus on the quality of the care provided by the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64–65 paragraph 15.2)

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Information about this children’s home

This is a local authority children’s home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to eight children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

14/03/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

03/02/2015 Interim Declined in effectiveness

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Good

Children make definite progress with the help and support of staff. This progress is not always straightforward, but staff persevere to get children back on track in the face of often very challenging situations. One parent said: ‘I can’t praise staff enough. They keep going — despite what he’s done to them — and they’ve not given up on him.’ Children are unanimous in their view that staff look after them well. They think that there are a lot of good things about living in this home. One child commented that ‘the activities and food are good.’ Children’s physical health has improved through better diet, increase in immunisations and better management of conditions such as bed-wetting. Children enjoy and gain a lot of social benefit through activities such as swimming, cycling, walking and martial arts. One independent reviewing officer (IRO) thought that, for one child, ‘This has done her confidence a world of good.’

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Good

Children’s emotional health is improved by the thoughtful intervention of staff to repair earlier damage to self-esteem and problematic relationships with others. This helps to provide a good foundation from which to make progress. A professional noted that one child ‘has blossomed during her time at the home.’ Children who are new to the home settle in very quickly. Staff make sure that there is as little disruption as possible to their education during this transitional period. The majority of children maintain very good attendance at school. They get additional support through the ‘virtual school’ homework club, and specialist external support with subjects such as mathematics.

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Good

Staff work closely with teachers and take their advice on how best to support children with their learning. For example, staff take advice about age-appropriate reading materials, and make enquiries about how the pupil premium is spent. Support needs to improve for those children who do not attend school full time. There is little structured activity for them outside their planned hours of education. This limits their opportunities for the further learning and routine they will need on their journey to mainstream education. Judgement grade

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Good

Risks that emerge for children, either through their own behaviours, or from those posed by others, are well understood. The level of risk can fluctuate, as some children do not accept that they need help and protection. Their behaviour at these times can be very challenging but is ultimately well managed by staff. For example, an IRO explained that staff had challenged a young person who was using social media in an unsafe way: ‘Although she did not appreciate being told to stop, she understood that staff have a responsibility to keep her safe. Staff stayed firm and stood their ground.’ When children do go missing, staff are proactive in locating them, keeping in touch and persuading them to come home. The manager works effectively with other safeguarding professionals to try to reduce the risk of child sexual exploitation and other dangers. This includes escalation, for example, to IROs so that the

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Good

appropriateness of individual care plans can be reviewed. Children feel that one of the good things about living at the home is that ‘staff look after you and keep you safe’. One parent said: ‘Staff are brilliant – I know he’s in safe hands. They are doing all they can to protect him.’ A sense of safety is promoted because staff provide stability and consistent boundaries for children, who have often experienced unsettled and troubled lives. An IRO noted that one young person ‘appreciates the clear boundaries and routines that have been put in place for her. This has been very effective and her behaviour has changed dramatically.’

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Good

The registered manager has managed this home since 2008. She has a level 5 management award and considerable experience in childcare. All members of staff have qualifications appropriate to their role in the home. The manager closely monitors the quality of work provided by staff, and its impact on children. She holds her staff to account, and takes assertive but respectful action to challenge others to adapt and improve planning and outcomes for children. A recommendation to improve the recording of these matters has been met. The manager’s monitoring report could be improved to include the views of children and others, and offer a more critical evaluation of the home’s performance. This would encourage further improvement in the quality of care provided. A requirement for the independent visitor to evaluate children’s safety and well- being has not been met. This has no adverse impact on children but must be

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Good

immediately addressed in order to give an accurate assessment of the home. Children see the availability of staff and staff spending time with them as very important. Although pressures on staffing continue, a requirement to improve staffing has been met. This is managed in a way to ensure that children’s needs come first, and are given priority over the completion of paperwork. Staff work effectively in partnership with other professionals and parents. This is an area of improvement, following a recommendation made at the last inspection. One parent said: ‘It is easy to express my concerns about my son to staff. They are sympathetic and supportive to me personally.’

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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 the ‘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 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 adults that 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

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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.ofsted.gov.uk . 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

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

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Information about this inspection

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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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.ofsted.gov.uk

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