Windlestone School

Progress monitoring inspection residential special school report

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Windlestone School Chilton, Ferryhill, County Durham DL17 0HP

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Context of the inspection

This residential provision was judged inadequate at the last inspection. This inspection was to monitor progress towards meeting the national minimum standards.

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Summary of the progress made in implementing the action plan

There are new procedures for the recording, auditing and administration of medication. The procedures are embedding in the school, but these have yet to be tested in the residential setting.

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Summary of the progress made in implementing the action plan

The staff have been retrained to fulfil specialist roles in relation to the safe administration, storage and recording of medication. The training has enhanced the safety of the administration of medication. The improved quality of the recording is allowing the managers to have oversight of medication practice.

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Summary of the progress made in implementing the action plan

The school now has a designated safeguarding lead who is experienced to undertake the role. There is now a more focused approach to safeguarding practice, although this is yet to fully embed. The recording of actions taken by the school when following the safeguarding procedures has been identified as requiring more work. This will enable managers to improve the quality of the monitoring of safeguarding

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Summary of the progress made in implementing the action plan

The school’s leadership team has an action plan in place to continue to improve its oversight of the residential provision. The improvement work has started and is an ongoing area of development. The arrangements for the governance of the school are about to change over the summer break.

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Summary of the progress made in implementing the action plan

The training for staff is improving. It is now more focused on safeguarding and on improving the quality of care for the children and young people. This training is new, and the impact of it in practice cannot yet be assessed.

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Summary of the progress made in implementing the action plan

Supervision for the staff is now taking place. The system for supervision of the designated safeguarding lead is not yet robust. Inspection Report Windlestone School, 17/07/2019 Page 2 of 5 There is an induction in place for new staff. The effectiveness of this cannot be evaluated during this inspection, as there have been no new staff since the last inspection.

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Summary of the progress made in implementing the action plan

The recording systems for monitoring the progress and experience of the children and young people are undergoing development.

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residential special schools:

 3.8 All medication is safely, and securely stored and proper records are kept of its administration. Prescribed medicines are given only to the children to whom they are prescribed. Children allowed to self-medicate are assessed as sufficiently responsible to do so.  11.1 The school ensures that: arrangements are made to safeguard and promote the welfare of children at the school; and such arrangements have regard to any guidance issued by the Secretary of State.  13.2 There is clear leadership and management of the practice and development of residential and care provision in the school, and effective links are made between academic and residential staff.  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. This is specifically in relation to the designated safeguarding lead receiving formal supervision in this role.

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residential special schools:

 22.1 Every child has an accurate, permanent record of their history and progress which can be read by the child at any time (except where the data controller is not obliged to supply the information to the child), and add personal statements or statements correcting errors. Inspection Report Windlestone School, 17/07/2019 Page 3 of 5

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Inspection team

Jamie Richardson Lead social care inspector Sue Atkinson-Millmoor Regional Inspection Manager

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Information about this school

Windlestone School is a residential special school maintained by Durham County Council for 70 children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. It is situated in a semi- rural environment in Chilton, County Durham. The school provides 20 residential places on weekdays for boys and girls, aged from 11 to 16 years old. Accommodation comprises a purpose-built residential block with two 10-bedded mixed-gender units. Most bedrooms are single-bedded and all bedrooms have en-suite showers and toilets. Residential students have access to the extended day facilities provided at the school until 7.30pm each weekday. The residential provision was last inspected in May 2019. Inspection Report Windlestone School, 17/07/2019 Page 4 of 5

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School details

Unique reference number SC007615 Social care unique reference number SC007615 DfE registration number 840/7030

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School details

This inspection was carried out under the Children Act 1989, as amended by the Care Standards Act 2000, having regard to the national minimum standards for boarding schools.

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School details

The inspection was conducted at the request of the Registration Authority for independent schools in order to monitor the progress the school has made in implementing its action plan following the previous inspection.

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School details

Type of school Residential Special School Number of boarders on roll 73 Gender of boarders Boys and girls Age range of boarders 11 to 16 Headteacher Mr Tim Bennett Date of previous boarding inspection 13/05/2019 Telephone number 01388 720 337 Email address t.bennett@durhamlearning.net Inspection Report Windlestone School, 17/07/2019 Page 5 of 5 guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.co.uk/ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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School details

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School details

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School details

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School details

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School details

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School details

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School details

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