Elemore Hall School

Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 1 Elemore Hall School Elemore Hall School, Littletown, Durham DH6 1QD Residential provision inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential special school

This is a maintained residential special school for up to 86 boys and girls aged 11 to 16 years. All pupils have an education, health and care plan to meet their complex needs.

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Information about this residential special school

The school is located a few miles outside the centre of Durham. It is a converted country house in its own grounds. The school has a residential facility for up to 25 residential pupils split between two units.

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Information about this residential special school

The school offers a residential provision for boys, who can stay for up to four nights a week, excluding weekends and school holidays.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and children, taking into account

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good

How well children and children are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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good

The residential special school provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of previous inspection: 20 February 2018

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 2

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Key findings from this inspection

This residential special school is good because:

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Key findings from this inspection

 The children enjoy a wide range of activities. As a result, their social skills and confidence improve.  The children are well supported emotionally because they have excellent relationships with the staff. The children trust the staff and feel they can talk to them.  The children learn a range of skills, which help them to be more independent.  The children’s health improves because the staff help the children to learn how to lead healthy lifestyles.  The children’s safety is prioritised. Consequently, they feel safe.  Safeguarding arrangements are effective.  The senior leaders and heads of care lead by example. They offer a nurturing approach to caring for the children.  The senior leaders and heads of care work closely with a variety of professionals to make sure that the children have the support they need.

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Key findings from this inspection

The residential special school’s areas for development are:

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Key findings from this inspection

 The learning and development programme for the staff is not evaluated to ensure its effectiveness. Consequently, gaps in training and opportunities to enhance staff skills could be overlooked.  The staff do not have regular supervision or formal annual appraisal. This is not helping staff to reflect on their care practice. It is a missed opportunity to keep improving staff performance and the delivery of care.  The school’s governing body does not have a focus on monitoring the leadership and delivery of care in the residential provision. This is not assisting the heads of care to recognise the strengths of the service and it is not helping them to recognise areas that they need to develop.  The administration, recording and auditing of controlled drugs is not robust. As a result, any errors are not likely to be quickly identified and addressed.  There is no specific development plan to support progress of the leadership and

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Key findings from this inspection

care practice in the residential service. Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 3

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special schools

The school does not meet the following national minimum standards for residential special schools:  19.4 The learning and development programme is evaluated for effectiveness at least annually and is updated if necessary.  19.6 All staff have access to support and advice for their role. They also have regular supervision and formal annual appraisal of their performance.  13.1 The school’s governing body and/or proprietor monitors the effectiveness of the leadership, management and delivery of the boarding and welfare provision in the school, and takes appropriate action where necessary.

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Recommendations

 Revise the administration, recording and auditing of controlled drugs to fit with best practice from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (Handling of Medicines in Social Care)  Complete training around county lines.  Consider a specific development plan to support the residential facility, which covers developments for the care of children and the development of the leadership role and duties. Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy excellent trusting relationships with staff who know them very well. The staff work both in the residential provision and in the school. This helps the relationships to grow between the staff and the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children’s attendance in education has improved due to staff supporting children to attend school. If the children are struggling in lessons, the residential staff will also assist them in lessons. This helps the children to stay in the classroom and learn.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children’s life experiences are enhanced because of their residential stay. The children enjoy the opportunity to socialise with peers. Some children make friends for the first time. The children undertake a wide range of activities, which some would not get the opportunity to do anywhere else. Activities include horse-care, skiing, meals out, film clubs, arts, crafts and music. One child commented: ‘I choose to stay because there is always something to do here.’ As a result, the children’s social skills and confidence improve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children are active in their care planning. The children assist the staff to monitor their personal progress. This helps the children to feel included in their care planning and it demonstrates to them that their voice is valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The recording and auditing of controlled drugs does not follow best practice guidance. There is no written evidence of the auditing of controlled drugs. In some instances, such as when controlled drugs are taken off-site and administered to the children, this is not always recorded. As a result, it is not always clear whether medication has been safely administered or not.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children’s physical health improves because the staff help the children to understand the importance of an active lifestyle. The children’s health needs are also supported through the school nurse. The children’s emotional well-being is well supported by the staff. When the children are upset or distressed they have especially strong relationships with their personal tutor, who they can go to at any time for emotional support. The children also have the option to take part in other programmes to improve their health, such as smoking cessation. The children are piloting a programme with the police to try to prevent them from becoming involved with substance misuse.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children gain skills which will help them to be as independent as possible in later life. The skills they learn include cooking, developing understanding about personal hygiene and learning to tie their shoes. Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 5

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

The staff have a positive approach to managing challenging behaviour. The staff use their relationships and knowledge about each child and their needs to positively manage any challenging behaviour. Consequently, physical intervention is used as a last resort and is rare in the residential part of the school.

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

Risks to the children are well managed. The children have up-to-date individual risk assessments that help the staff team to identify risks to the children and take appropriate action to avoid harm.

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

The staff are aware of the procedures for keeping the children safe. The staff feel confident to report safeguarding issues. The school’s designated safeguarding officer shares information appropriately with relevant professionals, such as designated officers. No children go missing from the residential section. The staff are aware of the procedures to follow if the children do go missing.

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

The staff are aware of the wider risks the children could encounter, such as child sexual exploitation and radicalisation. The staff have not had training on other associated risks, such as county lines.

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good

The leadership role in the residential facility is new. The dual role of two new heads of care is still embedding in practice. The senior leaders and heads of care are clear on the strengths of the service. There is a development plan for the whole school, which covers the new initiative of evidencing social progress. There is no focused plan for improvement in the residential facility. As a result, this could hinder the effectiveness of embedding the new dual leadership role and does not provide focus on continually improving care practice.

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good

The staff are not given the opportunity to reflect on their care practice or to explore their professional development. The staff have not been receiving regular reflective supervision or annual appraisals. As a result, this is hindering staff consultation. The senior managers and heads of care are aware of this shortfall. The senior managers and heads of care are putting plans in place to address the issue. Despite not receiving formal supervision, the staff feel that they can approach seniors at any time to ask for help.

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good

The staff receive regular training. The school’s learning and development plan for residential staff is not evaluated for its effectiveness. As a result, the impact of the staff training is not clear, and it is not helping leaders to identify any gaps in staff learning.

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good

The leaders and managers focus on the children’s strengths. The introduction of a new social progress tracking system is helping the senior leaders and the heads of Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 6 care to monitor individuals’ social progress. This system is new, and the effectiveness of the system cannot yet be assessed.

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good

The governing body is active in monitoring the school. There is no specific allocated governor focus for the residential service. Consequently, this is limiting oversight of residential leadership and the delivery of care from the governors’ perspective. The independent visitor’s report supports the senior leaders and the heads of care in monitoring the safety, progress and the experience of the children.

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good

The senior leaders and heads of care value the children’s opinions. The senior leaders and the heads of care make sure that they tailor care towards each child’s individual needs. They demonstrate a caring and understanding approach towards the children. The staff team follows this example.

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good

The senior leaders and the heads of care are strong advocates for the children. The senior leaders and the heads of care work closely with other professionals, such as social workers, the police, the school nurse and specialist mental health services to make sure that the children get the services they need. Where support is lacking, the senior leaders and the heads of care provide appropriate challenge to other professionals.

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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 school 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 Children Act 1989 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 national minimum standards. Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 7

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Residential special school details

Social care unique reference number: SC040508

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Residential special school details

Headteacher/teacher in charge: Mr Richard Royle

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Residential special school details

Type of school: Residential special school

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Residential special school details

Email address: elemore@durhamlearning.net Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 8

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Inspector

Jamie Richardson, social care inspector Inspection report for residential special school - Elemore Hall School 9 to 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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