Children's Home run by Bryn Melyn Care Limited in Shropshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC372613 1 SC372613 Registered provider: Bryn Melyn Care

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is registered for three children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. It is owned and managed by a private company.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

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

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Sustained effectiveness

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Key findings from this inspection

 Children make good progress in education because of the support of staff.  Children thrive because of the nurturing relationships they form with staff.  Staff support children to develop interests and hobbies and to become members of clubs. Inspection report children’s home: SC372613 2  Children take on appropriate levels of responsibility.  Children explore further education and work because of staff support.  A child who was historically putting herself at risk by going missing from care has not gone missing since moving into the home.  The registered manager and staff team know the children well and tailor the service to meet the children’s individual needs.  The voice of the child is at the heart of staff practice.

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Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s areas for development:

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Key findings from this inspection

 Managers do not ensure that internal quality assurance audits include the views of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff.  Managers do not ensure that supervision records include how staff have been supported to reflect on their practice, and to meet the needs of the children in their care.  Managers do not ensure that the home’s development plan continues to improve standards and develop staff practice.  Managers do not ensure that children’s individual behaviour management plans are up to date.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 16/05/2016 Full Good 20/01/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 19/05/2015 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children’s home: SC372613 3

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to 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(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered manager must complete a review of the quality of care provided for child (‘a quality of care review’) at least once every 6 months. In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating, the quality of care provided for children. The feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children. 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)(a)(b)(c)) 31/03/2018

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Recommendations

 A record of supervision should be kept for staff, including the manager. The record should provide evidence that supervision is being delivered in line with regulation 33(4)(b). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.3)  The registered person is responsible for deciding what each review should focus on, based on the specific circumstances of the home at that particular time and any areas of high risk to the children that the home is designed to care for, such as missing or exploitation. They will also consider what information or data recorded in the home will form part of the evidence base for their analysis and conclusions. There is no expectation that the registered person will review the home against every part of the Quality Standards every six months – registered persons should use their professional judgement to decide which factors to focus

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Recommendations

on. The review should enable the registered person to identify areas of strength and possible weakness in the home’s care, which will be captured in the written report. The report should clearly identify any actions required for the next 6 months of delivery within the home and how those actions will be addressed. The whole review process and resulting report should be used as a tool for continuous improvement in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.4) Inspection report children’s home: SC372613 4  All children’s case records (regulation 36) must be kept up to date and stored securely whilst they remain in the home. Case records must be kept up to date and signed and dated by the author of each entry. Children’s case records must be kept for 75 years from the date of birth of the child, or if the child dies before the age of 18, for 15 years from the date of his or her death. (‘Guide to the

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Recommendations

children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making good progress in all areas of their development. Children’s confidence and self-esteem have improved significantly. This is because staff spend time with the children, developing their trust and forming strong relationships with them. As a result, children are leading healthy lifestyles, reducing their high-risk behaviours, developing hobbies and interests and engaging well in education. One child has stopped smoking and is beginning to lose weight, which has helped his body image and presentation. Another child has significantly reduced her missing from care risk-taking behaviour. Another child has joined the cadets. He has also developed an interest in carpentry and has a range of projects on the go, including expanding his shed and building a guinea pig cage. Staff listen to children. Staff actively seek children’s views during individual meetings with their key workers. Children engage well with staff and are aware of how to

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

complain. Children express their views and opinions regarding aspects of their care and the running of the home. For example, children are currently involved in choosing a carpet for the sitting room. A social care professional told the inspector, ‘I observe the young person with the registered manager and members of staff and I am impressed with how well the young person interacts with them. There is an easy rapport between them.’ Children’s day-to-day experiences are individualised and of a good quality. Children enjoy a range of interests and activities, which staff actively encourage. For example, one child is supported to go camping and fishing. Another child’s interest in carpentry has resulted in him starting a work experience placement. Staff work in a structured but supportive way with children to develop a range of life skills, including time management, cooking and working towards employment. Staff also

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

work well with children’s families to encourage positive contact. For example, staff supervise contact when needed and provide transport.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children feel safe in the home. This is because the manager and staff have a good understanding of the risks that children face and manage these risks well. Staff are aware of the procedures to take should they become concerned about children’s well- being. Staff are knowledgeable about issues such as child sexual exploitation and Inspection report children’s home: SC372613 5 radicalisation. Staff respond swiftly when children’s behaviours indicate that they may go missing. As a result, there have been no missing from care incidents since the last inspection. This is significant progress for one child, who, before moving into the home, was missing on a regular basis. Overall, staff manage children’s challenging behaviour well. There is a strong emphasis on praising children and rewarding positive behaviour with trust. A consistent core staff team knows the children well. This contributes to a feeling of well-being and security for

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

children. A child told the inspector, ‘When I am in a mood they will help me. They will quietly support me. They will let me have time to myself. They will then come over and join me in whatever activity I am doing. For example, passing me tools while I build my shed. This has meant I have fewer incidents these days. It is really all about trust.’ Over the last couple of weeks, there has been an increase in incidents between children. The manager has a clear understanding as to why these incidents have occurred. She and the staff team have been proactive in using group and individual discussions with children. These are helping the children think about living alongside each other, being respectful towards one another and the appropriate use of mobile phones. The manager is also working with staff to reflect on their practice when supporting children during these incidents and to prevent situations from escalating.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

There is a range of written guidance and information that effectively supports staff to help children. However, one child’s individual behavioural support plan has not been updated to include key information. The home environment is safe and secure. Children and staff are aware of how to keep themselves safe in the event of fire through regular fire evacuations. There is a careful recruitment process for all new staff working in the home to ensure that they are suitable to work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is in the process of completing the level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare (England). The home is well resourced and managed in line with the statement of purpose. The manager has a good awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of the home and a clear understanding of children’s developmental needs and progress. Consequently, children are making good progress from their starting points across many aspects of their development. Staff receive regular support and supervision from the manager and senior members of staff. However, records of supervision sessions do not evidence discussions and action points arising from staff members’ reflection on their practice and how best to meet children’s needs. The company operates a training programme that is relevant to the children that it looks after. Care staff have obtained, or are in the process of obtaining,

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

the appropriate qualification to work with children. The manager is proactive in challenging when the responses from other services are not Inspection report children’s home: SC372613 6 effective and she has good working relationships with other professionals. A social care professional stated, ‘The registered manager worked well with me. Her advice was invaluable in assisting me to make what I considered to be the appropriate recommendation to the court for a young person. I believe that it was her input that ultimately led the court to ensure that the best outcome was achieved for the young person.’ Managers use a range of internal and external quality assurance tools to inform their understanding of the strengths and areas for development for the service and staff team. The registered manager’s internal quality assurance audit does not include the views of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff to influence the direction

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

and development of the provision. There was a six-month development plan in place up until the end of August 2017. It was due for review at the next staff meeting. The development plan for the previous six months has not included, or evidenced, some aspects of good practice that the staff team has developed during this time.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the differences made to the lives of children and young people. They watched how professional staff work with children and young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care provided. Wherever possible, they talked to children and 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.

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Information about this inspection

Using the ‘Social care common inspection framework’, this inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, 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’. Inspection report children’s home: SC372613 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Edward James House, Hadley, Telford TF1 6QJ

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Inspector

Dawn Bennett, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC372613 8 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, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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