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

Inspection report children’s home: SC372661 1 SC372661 Registered provider: Bryn Melyn Care 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 home is owned by a private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for one young person who has a variety of challenging behaviours and complex needs. There is a manager in post who is also managing another home. The manager started in February 2019 and has submitted an application to become registered with Ofsted. She is currently working towards completing her level 5 qualification in leadership and management. At the time of this inspection, there are no children living in the home as one young person has recently left.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 31 July to 1 August 2019

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account requires improvement to be good

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Overall experiences and progress of

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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Overall experiences and progress of

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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Overall experiences and progress of

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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Overall experiences and progress of

Overall judgement at last inspection: declined in effectiveness

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Overall experiences and progress of

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC372661 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/03/2019 Interim Declined in effectiveness 08/05/2018 Full Good 15/01/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 13/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC372661 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that staff 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. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

With particular reference to risk assessing activities outside the home. 06/09/2019

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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. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that staff have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(iii)) 06/09/2019

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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. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that staff understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(v))

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Requirement Due date

With particular reference to following individual risk assessments and behaviour management plans at all times. 06/09/2019

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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 that helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(e)) 06/09/2019

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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 that helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided 06/09/2019 Inspection report children’s home: SC372661 4 in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(h)) The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints

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Requirement Due date

received. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(g)(ii)) 06/09/2019

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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 that helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

With particular regard to staff training in topics such as child sexual exploitation and internet safety. 06/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purpose of preventing injury to any person (including the child); or serious damage to the property of any person (including the child). Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate. (Regulation 20(1)(a)(b)(2)) 06/09/2019

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Recommendations

 Staff need to demonstrate that they fully understand the risks associated with any restraint technique used in the home. Techniques used for restraint that may interfere with breathing and holds by the neck that may result in injury to the spine are not permissible in any circumstances. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.56)

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improvement to be good

There were no children or young people living at the home at the time of the inspection. Since the last inspection, one young person with highly complex needs has lived at the home.

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improvement to be good

Aspects of the young person’s experiences were positive, and she made some progress. She was able to form warm and trusting relationships with core staff and felt secure enough to disclose significant information to them. Unfortunately, talking about such important personal issues led to a decline in the young person’s behaviour and emotional well-being. Staff struggled to keep the young person safe, and she subsequently moved Inspection report children’s home: SC372661 5 out of the home.

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improvement to be good

At times, the young person experienced a lack of consistent care, with 21 different staff, from different homes, covering shifts over a three-month period. This was mainly due to her increased need for three staff to support her. However, the young person was unhappy with the number of ‘new faces’ that she had to get used to and this had a negative impact on her daily experiences.

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improvement to be good

Staff and the manager ascertained the young person’s views, wishes and feelings and she knew how to make a complaint. However, following two restraints, her views were not explored in enough depth. One of these involved staff continuing to hold her after she had lain on the floor. Although the hold was initially used to protect the young person from significant risk, she was not given the opportunity to fully discuss her feelings or be informed that she had potentially been held inappropriately.

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improvement to be good

The young person engaged in therapy for the first time. She attended school and received certificates evidencing her engagement and progress in education. She benefited from a welcoming environment in a quiet location. Staff provided her with emotional warmth and nurturing. She made progress in developing her independence skills and enjoyed cooking for staff on occasion. Staff promoted her interest in animals and took her to a local riding stables for lessons. The young person enjoyed walking a dog and fundraising for a local charity. She was undertaking a course in caring for horses. She engaged in key-work sessions which provided her with good support. Staff also enabled her to have regular contact with her family.

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improvement to be good

The core staff and the manager worked hard to provide the young person with stability, routines and boundaries. Once the manager recognised that this was not enough to meet her needs, she informed the young person’s placing authority. The manager advocated on behalf of the young person to find the right placement for her to move to.

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improvement to be good

Staff were strongly supported by the company’s therapist and worked with the child and adolescent mental health services. However, there were not always enough staff who were sufficiently experienced and skilled in supporting young people with mental health needs or who harm themselves. Towards the end of the young person’s placement, the manager demanded that staff with specialist mental health training worked with the young person to help keep her safe.

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improvement to be good

Staff worked with the young person to help her to understand some important issues. She engaged in key-work sessions about relationships, emotional well-being, self-harm and behaviour. She was also able to reflect on incidents to see how she could have behaved differently. However, not all staff were trained in internet safety or child sexual exploitation. Consequently, some staff were not confident to discuss these subjects with the young person. Inspection report children’s home: SC372661 6 When the young person went missing, staff followed her and made sure that she got back safely. The local police provided very positive feedback regarding the manager’s response to their advice and her support to the young person.

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improvement to be good

The manager liaised closely with the designated officer when unsafe staff practice came to light. For example, on one occasion the young person was able to get some paracetamol tablets, when the three staff that she was with allowed her to go into a shop by herself to buy sweets. The manager ensured that the shortfall in staff practice was robustly investigated and responded to appropriately. Staff were interviewed, and additional training was provided. However, staff had not followed the young person’s risk assessment with regard to supervision when she was outside the home.

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improvement to be good

Sometimes, managerial reviews of physical interventions and staff practice in other areas lack evaluation and do not identify learning points. For example, on one occasion, staff used a restraint technique that involved holding the young person on the floor. They were not trained to use this hold and it was not in the young person’s behaviour management plan. The young person was not harmed. However, the manager did not challenge this practice or ensure that the young person was given the opportunity to thoroughly discuss the incident afterwards.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager also manages another home owned by the company. She works hard to try and raise standards in this home. However, she has not received adequate support and guidance from her managers to address shortfalls in staff consistency and skills. This led to her being unable to provide the young person with consistent care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

When the manager started in February 2019, she had a deputy manager. The deputy manager left in June 2019. This left the manager without support at a point when the young person was extremely distressed. The manager is currently in the process of recruiting a new deputy.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager has a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of her own team and has strategies in place to drive up standards. However, she had less control over the practice and development of the staff from other services in the organisation that were working at this home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager provides her team with regular supervision and team meetings and has now established a good training programme. Complaints are logged and responded to appropriately and work with other agencies is strong.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff and the police speak very positively about the manager and her commitment. She has worked hard to raise standards in the home, including covering shifts herself to monitor staff practice. She is ambitious for young people and the staff. Inspection report children’s home: SC372661 7

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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: SC372661 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bryn Melyn Care Limited

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Children’s home details

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

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Inspector

Louise Whittle, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC372661 9 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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