Children's home run by Birtenshaw in Bolton

Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 1 SC373044 Registered provider: Birtenshaw – company number 02978546 Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is part of a charitable organisation. It provides care and accommodation for up to four young people who have learning disabilities and/or sensory impairment.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a condition on this home that they must reduce the number of children by the number of people aged 18 and over who are provided with care and accommodation in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 21 to 22 November 2017

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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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Enforcement action since last inspection:

None Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 2

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people benefit greatly from stable and permanent placements, which enable them to make great progress across many areas of their lives.  The manager and staff understand young people‘s individual needs implicitly. They advocate for young people well and ensure that they receive the support and services that they require from children‘s services.  Parents and professionals are highly complimentary about the care and support that young people receive. A parent wrote, ‗[Name‘s] behaviour and quality of life has improved considerably.‘ Feedback from professionals include, ‗We have excellent working relationships which are clearly benefiting [name].‘  Staff feel supported and listened to by the manager and leadership team. The staff confirm that the manager has an open-door policy. This approach ensures that the staff can continue to seek assistance and advice as they require to ensure that they can continue to provide a high level of care and support to

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Key findings from this inspection

young people.  The manager is visible and committed to ensuring that young people receive a high standard of care, which allows them to grow and flourish in a safe and supportive environment.  Effective use of monitoring systems ensures that the manager has a good understanding of the home‘s strengths and areas for continued development.

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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

 Young people‘s known risks are not identified in their individual risk assessments and staff do not undertake direct work with young people around these risks to support young people to become increasingly safe.  Young people‘s access to the conservatory is limited to the daytime hours, as the lights in the conservatory do not work. Furthermore, the ceiling in the lounge and kitchen require attention, as these appear unsightly and do not provide a warm and welcoming environment.  The manager has not ensured that the full staff team‘s details are included in the home‘s statement of purpose. Furthermore, the quality of staff appraisals is poor and the supervision arrangements for the manager and staff do not keep in line with the commitments identified within the provider‘s policy.  Young adults do not move into adult services quickly as the manager does not challenge local authorities effectively when they fail to carry out their pathway

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Key findings from this inspection

planning responsibilities. Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 02/08/2016 Full Outstanding 14/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 18/11/2015 Full Outstanding Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 4

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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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— (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 necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child; (ii) help each child to understand how to keep safe; (d) that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child‘s health.

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Requirement Due date

This is in particular reference to ensuring that all young people‘s known risks are identified in their individual risk assessments, that young people are supported appropriately to undertake direct work to improve their understanding and knowledge of their particular behaviours and associated risks, and that the home environment is maintained to a good standard. In particular, that the lights in the conservatory are repaired and the ceiling in the lounge and kitchen are addressed. 29/12/2017

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the care planning standard the registered person must ensure—

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Requirement Due date

(2) (b) that arrangements are in place to—

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Requirement Due date

(iii) plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child‘s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

(e) that the child‘s placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child‘s relevant plans is requested, if—

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Requirement Due date

(i) the registered person has concerns that the care provided for 29/12/2017 Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 5 the child is inadequate to meet the child‘s needs.

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Requirement Due date

This is in particular reference to ensuring that young people are emotionally and practically prepared for their transitions out of the home, by ensuring that robust and thorough pathway plans are undertaken as required, held on young people‘s files and are implemented.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children‘s home a statement (―the statement of purpose‖) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1, and ensure that any revisions of this document are sent to HMCI within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16(1)(3)(b)) In particular, this document must include the experience and qualifications of all care staff, including the flexible support team staff and learning support assistants who are used in this home. 29/12/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience and have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33(4)(b)(c)) In particular, the registered provider must ensure that the manager and all the care staff who are used in this home receive supervision in line with the timescales identified within the home‘s supervision policy and procedures and that annual appraisals take place. 29/12/2017

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are safe, happy and well cared for in this home. Young people benefit from high levels of care, support and supervision from a dedicated and committed core staff team whose members understand young people‘s complex and diverse needs. As such, young people grow and flourish in all aspects of their lives as they benefit from sustained care and accommodation and a sense of stability and permanence from living in this home. Young people achieve good outcomes in relation to their education, health and emotional well-being. Furthermore, they are increasing in confidence and enhancing their independent living skills, which will equip them in their preparation for adulthood. One professional who wrote, ‗[Name] has shown great improvement around his understanding of money and working out how much he needs when purchasing items. He is making progress cooking meals and chores around the home,‘ confirmed this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people benefit from sustained and positive working relationships with their core Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 6 staff team. Staff understand young people‘s needs extremely well. Staff support young people sensitively and consistently to ensure that all their needs are routinely met and that they reach their full potential. The core staff team understands young people‘s emotional and health needs implicitly. Staff appreciate young people mannerisms, behaviour and methods of communication well, and they recognise and respond to any changes to these quickly. Staff seek medical advice promptly and ensure that any changes to young people‘s medication regimes are shared quickly and effectively with parents and other agencies. This ensure that young people‘s health needs are known, understood and managed well, which aids with young people‘s improved health outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people continue to make good educational progress. Positive and effective working relationships with the provider‘s education provision ensure that staff know and understand young people‘s individual targets and goals. Regular meetings and daily handovers between the care staff and education staff ensure that young people‘s emerging needs are known and understood. Shared goals and plans, and cohesive and effective working relationships, ensure that young people continue to make great strides forward in achieving their individual education targets. This was validated by one headteacher, who wrote, ‗[Name] has been a lot more settled this term and is engaging well in lessons. His progress across the curriculum is varied but it is good to see areas where he has made outstanding progress.‘

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are central to their care planning and detailed placement plans ensure that they are cared for consistently according to their individual needs. The manager and core staff team have high aspirations for young people and are passionate and committed to ensuring that they can succeed. Staff champion young people‘s needs and rights to ensure that they receive the help, advice and support required to reach their full potential. Staff are creative in obtaining young people‘s wishes and views. Staff clearly understand young people's communication methods and use this to good effect to ensure that young people remain central to their care planning. As such, young people are involved in choosing their activities and menus and have a say in the holidays that they take.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff enhance young people‘s experiences as they are fully supported to participate in a wide range of enjoyable activities, which promote their general growth and development. Staff support young people to undertake activities such as indoor skydiving, scuba diving, attending trampoline parks and visiting theme parks of their choice. The pictures of these activities that are displayed proudly within the home evidence that young people enjoy these exciting and varied opportunities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people benefit from increased visits to those who are important to them. Staff consistently promote and support young people to keep in contact with their family and other important people, in line with their individual care plans. When necessary, staff transport young people to their places of contact and provide the necessary support to ensure that it is a positive experience. This ensures that they can maintain relationships with their families and retain their personal identity. Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 7 As the young people mature, they gain independence in accordance with their abilities. Examples include involvement in menu planning and preparation, budgeting and undertaking household tasks and chores. Although staff support young people to increase their independent living skills in line with their abilities, there have been some difficulties in relation to securing appropriate accommodation for young adults who live

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

in this home. Although the manager has made some steps to address this with the placing authorities, his challenge regarding the lack of pathway planning has not been thorough or vigorous enough to ensure that these plans are in place within a suitable time frame. Consequently, suitable long-term placements have yet to be secured for two young adults living in the home. Despite this, there is a commitment by the manager and staff for these young adults to remain in the home until an alternative provision is available. During this time, the home strives to meet the needs of these young adults alongside the other two young people in this home.

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

Young people‘s safety is maintained sufficiently in the home and parents and professionals report that young people are safe and kept safe. Due to the complex and diverse needs of the young people within the home, young people receive a high level of close support and supervision by suitably trained staff who demonstrate a good understanding of their safeguarding roles and responsibilities.

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

The high level of close support and supervision that staff provide to young people enables the staff to gain an intrinsic understanding of young people‘s needs. This means that staff are attuned to young people behaviours and mannerisms and identify and respond to any changes in their behaviour quickly. Staff are skilled at de-escalating incidents and respond calmly to young people when they become distressed. This, and positive and effective communication with young people, means that young people become more tolerant of their surroundings, and become more skilled at managing their own emotional responses. Consequently, the use of physical intervention is rare in this home.

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

Staff understand the potential risks and dangers that face young people, and they are committed to promoting positive behaviour. Through discussion with the manager and staff it is clear that the staff know young people well. Staff are clear about young people‘s strengths, needs and vulnerabilities and work hard with young people, their parents and other agencies to support young people in managing their emotional responses more appropriately while keeping young people safe. That said, young people‘s individual risk assessments do not routinely identify young people‘s known behaviours which may present difficulties for themselves. Consequently, the manager cannot be assured that the staff team is managing and addressing these behaviours consistently as there are no clear guidelines identified in young people‘s risk assessments.

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

Staff are aware of the potential risks for young people who access the internet and reduce the potential of risk for harm by supervising and limiting their use and access. However, the manager has missed an opportunity to aid young people in becoming Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 8 increasingly safe. This is because staff have not completed any direct work with young people about the dangers associated with the online world, as they have overlooked an opportunity to educate young people about the risks associated with the known behaviours. This limits young people‘s ability to make safer decisions to enable them to make safer choices about what they access online.

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

Young people live in a safe home, and feel increasingly safe as a result of the care that is afforded to them by staff. There have been no complaints or allegations made, and a range of health and safety checks are routinely carried out to ensure that young people and staff are kept safe. This, along with safe recruitment practice, ensures that only those who are deemed safe and suitable provide care and support to vulnerable young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has been registered with Ofsted since December 2015. He is in the process of obtaining the required management qualification and is experienced and committed to undertaking his role well. A registered manager designate and three team leaders support the manager effectively. The manager and his leadership team offer an open-door policy to the staff team, and they are all committed and focused to ensure that young people receive the best possible care and support. This ensures that young people benefit from positive and enjoyable experiences in this home and that they continue to progress in all areas of their lives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff are committed to working collaboratively with parents, placing local authorities, specialist health advisers, such as speech and language therapists, and education colleagues in their care planning for young people. Their positive and effective working relationships with parents and a wide range of other professionals, such as health and education colleagues, ensure that young people receive a high level of consistent care which particularly improves their health, education and social development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff confirm that they receive sufficient support and training to carry out their work safely in caring for young people. The majority of staff have the required childcare qualifications and suitable plans are in place to ensure that others achieve this within the required time frame. Shift leaders support the manager well as they take responsibility for the running of their shift. The shift leader oversees the individual care and support that is delivered to young people by their identified support worker. This provides continuity of care and reassurance for the young people who are wholly reliant on staff to meet their needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

While the manager provides permanent staff with annual appraisals, the quality of these is poor. Annual appraisals do not consider how the actions from the previous appraisal have been addressed, nor do they clearly identify future training needs. This hinders staff‘s ability to progress and develop sufficiently in their roles. Furthermore, the manager, core staff team and the staff that provide regular flexible cover to the home do not receive supervision in line with the commitments identified in the organisation‘s Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 9 policies. As such, staff and the manager are not monitored or supported effectively to develop their practice as their performance is not reviewed and considered regularly. In addition, the arrangements for supervising and monitoring the additional staff that work in this home, such as the learning support assistants and the flexible support staff, are

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

questionable. This is because there are no clear processes in place to ensure that these staff have the required childcare qualification or receive regular supervision of their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has not challenged the placing authorities effectively when they have failed to undertake pathway planning meetings to prepare and plan for young people to move on into adult services. As a consequence, the manager is unable to hold any agencies to account when services and support are not identified, nor provided in a timely way. As such, two young adults remain in the home despite being 19 years of age.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Although the manager ensures that his staff team delivers the outcomes as set out in the home‘s statement of purpose, this document does not identify the flexible support staff and the learning support assistants who work regularly in the home. Consequently, parents, commissioners and Ofsted are unaware of the details, qualifications and experience of the staff to satisfy themselves that young people are receiving a high standard of care and support from an experienced and qualified staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is clearly aware of the strengths and areas for development in his service. The manager‘s monitoring is sufficient and is supported well by the external scrutiny that the independent person provides. Following the one requirement made at the last inspection, the home environment has now been improved as a new carpet has been fitted to the stairs and landing. That said, further work is required to ensure that young people are provided with a homely and nurturing environment as the lights in the conservatory need to be repaired and the ceiling in the kitchen and lounge area require further work.

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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: SC373044 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Birtenshaw – company number 02978546

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Birtenshaw Darwen Road, Bromley Cross, Bolton BL7 9AB

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Inspector

Janine Shortman-Thomas, social care inspector Inspection report children‘s home: SC373044 11 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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