Children's home run by Bridge Communities Limited in Stroud

Inspection report children’s home: SC016600 1 SC016600 Registered provider: Bridge Communities Limited

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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 private children’s home is registered for up to five children who have emotional and behavioural difficulties. The home provides individual support and preparation for independent living and offers an educational outreach service to support children.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 29 to 30 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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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: None

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Key findings from this inspection

 Leaders and managers are reliable and committed. They consistently achieve good outcomes for children.  The care team respond to and supports children who go missing effectively. Inspection report children’s home: SC016600 2 This is a strength, and is recognised as such by other agencies.  Leaders and managers convey a strong safeguarding ethos. The care team understands its roles and responsibilities to protect children. Children start to make safer choices and lessen the frequency of going missing and harming themselves.  The care team supports children to set goals and aspirations. Children start to engage in learning and work placements.  Leaders and managers provide children with a welcoming and comfortable, homely environment.

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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

 Monitoring of records by leaders and managers would benefit from further improvement to fully evidence the knowledge and insight employed to review the quality of care.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 16/11/2016 Full Good 01/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 24/11/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC016600 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 with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, improve the quality of leaders and managers’ monitoring systems. 24/01/2018

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders, managers and the care team form caring and trusting relationships with children. They recognise that it takes time to engage each child, and they understand the importance of providing support to children in a way that each child feels comfortable with. Members of the care team help the children to feel at home. The house provides a warm and welcoming environment. Children who move on keep in touch with the team.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The care team spends quality time with children and provides a sense of stability through the team’s commitment to children. Children have positive experiences in the home and the care team does its best to give them as many opportunities as possible. There is an abundance of activities on offer. The care team also recognises that children need time on their own or with their friends, and agrees rules and boundaries about spending time with friends and time outside of home to socialise. Inspection report children’s home: SC016600 4 Children have individual care plans, which demonstrate good depth and understanding of their previous experiences and current needs. The care team supports children to aim high and to think about what they want for their future and how to achieve it.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children begin to engage in learning and education because the team works creatively in planning how to engage each child. The work alongside the virtual school helps to develop bespoke plans that encourage children to participate in work placements, college courses and school.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There are close links with children’s families, which supports children to maintain and build on their relationships. Leaders and managers keep in frequent contact with families and consult with them about the care of their children. The care team advocates strongly on behalf of children when linking with other professionals who provide support to the children from outside the home.

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

Leaders, managers and members of the care team understand about individual risks for each child and how to keep them safe. Risk assessments are detailed and show the progress that children make during their time in the home. Over time children become safer and learn to make positive choices, which increases their safety and well-being.

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

Members of the care team spend a lot of time with children talking to them about risk, educating them and agreeing ways that will keep them safe. Leaders and managers work in partnership with other professionals and agencies. These agencies praise the manner in which the care team helps to keep the children safe in this home.

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

The care team is proactive when a child goes missing from home. Without hesitation a search of the local area commences. On occasions, members of the care team have stopped and boarded trains that they know the children are on to enable them to bring children back home. The local police team utilises the skills of leaders and managers to develop their own services for supporting children who go missing.

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

Leaders and managers assess the impact that a new child will have on the current group of children living in the home including the risks. At times, this process has not been successful and children have become unsafe. Leaders and managers take an active stance to address these concerns swiftly and work with the placing authority to formulate a plan with the child, to move them to another home.

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

Members of the care team have skills in supporting children to achieve positive mental health. Children have access to agencies that supports with their mental health. Leaders and managers utilise the expertise of these professionals to develop supportive care plans. Children become safer because they talk to the care team about self-harm and ask for help when they need it. Over time the severity of self-harm reduces.

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

The care team supports the children to behave positively. Strategies such as praise, encouragement and incentives works well. Restraint does not occur in this home. Inspection report children’s home: SC016600 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are strong and experienced leaders. They commit to providing children with a home that provides them with good outcomes and an environment where they can thrive. Leaders and managers are suitably qualified for their role. Members of the care team always have a senior leader available for support.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The retention of staff is excellent, and the care team regards the home as their second family. As a result, children receive consistent care. This stability supports the team to build good relationships with other professionals in the local area who support the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers provide members of the care team with support through regular supervision. The training programme delivers learning opportunities, which enables the care team to meet the needs of the children living in the home. Members of the care team have their performance appraised annually, and this informs the workforce development plan.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Through monitoring systems, leaders and managers identify effectively the strengths and weaknesses of the home. Leaders and managers’ monitoring is an area for further development as records do not consistently detail the level of information that leaders and managers hold. The home has a development plan that details how leaders and managers commit to make continuous improvements to quality of care.

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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: SC016600 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bridge Communities Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Sutton Dipple, 8 Wheelwrights Corner, Cossack Square, Nailsworth, Stroud, Gloucestershire GL6 0DB

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Inspector

Nicola Lownds, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC016600 7 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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