Children's Home run by Wessex College Limited in Bath and North East Somerset

Inspection report children’s home: 1241840 1 Registered provider: Wessex College

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home can provide care for up to four children aged over 11 years who may have experienced trauma, abuse and attachment difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is one of six homes operated by a private organisation. The organisation also owns a school and farm which children from this home may attend.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been registered with Ofsted since 2018.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 24 to 25 September 2019

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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 requires improvement to be good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 22 January 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: improved effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1241840 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/01/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 03/09/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 14/03/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 29/11/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 1241840 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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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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

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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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

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(c) and (h)) 06/12/2019

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff successfully create a family-style home for the children. Children are provided with experiences dependent on their likes and interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children move into the home in a careful and well-planned way. Consideration is given to the current group of children, and the impact that any new children may have on the group. Similarly, children move on in an equally planned manner. Staff maintain frequent contact with and provide support for children who have moved on, and continue to involve them in days out.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Once children move in they are quickly supported to engage with some form of education. Leaders and managers plan this support carefully with the child, school and Inspection report children’s home: 1241840 4 virtual school to ensure its success. Attending school is an achievement for children, as most of them have been out of education for a substantial amount of time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress. Staff provide the support so that children can continue to build on their identities and make their own choices with regards to their future, career and education. Children learn skills that will help them in later life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Maintaining and building on children’s relationships with their family and friends is a strength. Leaders and managers support children effectively to ensure that they have quality time to spend with safe people who are close to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a good understanding of the home’s ethos and therapeutic model of care. The provider has its own therapy team which is consistently involved in the care and support provided to children. Care plans are frequently reviewed with input from the therapy team, and this enables staff to respond instantly to children’s therapeutic needs. .

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The quality of the home continues to improve. Most areas of the home now have a homelier and calming atmosphere. Particular attention has been made to the garden, with the addition of swings and climbing frames.

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

There have been some serious incidents and safeguarding concerns, but leaders and managers consistently have managed these with rigour and in line with statutory guidance.

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

Swift action is taken when there is a concern about a child’s welfare. Child protection referrals reach the statutory agencies as required and without hesitation. Good management oversight of safeguarding keeps the concerns live and reduces the risk of drift. Outcomes to child protection referrals are always received, and actions are addressed sufficiently.

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

Relationships with other agencies that promote children’s welfare and safety are good. Individual strategies for allegations management are implemented when required and reviewed regularly. Children receive effective support to access specialist support services if necessary, for example to help them stop smoking, or discuss substance misuse or online safety.

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

The frequency of serious incidents is reducing over time. Children no longer go missing from home. On the few occasions when children have gone missing they always receive an independent return home interview. The registered manager receives feedback from these interviews to ensure that she has sufficient information to safeguard the children.

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

Leaders and managers’ monitoring of serious incidents is robust. Insight from good quality reflection and discussions following incidents is used to better inform children’s care. Leaders and managers take effective action when they identify any concerns about staff practice. Inspection report children’s home: 1241840 5

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

Leaders and managers fully understand the strengths and weaknesses of the home. Progress with the home development plan is consistently good. Leaders and managers appropriately prioritise those areas of development that require improvement to be good. Leaders and managers identify that their monitoring is not yet good. While the majority of monitoring is carried out to a high standard, some gaps remain in the quality. Examples of this include:

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

 Lack of confident oversight of the frequency of staff supervision and appraisals  Not yet fully evaluating the impact of sanctions that staff impose on children  Not yet demonstrating how the views of other agencies have informed the review of the premises. Children benefit from the positive culture within the home that sets high expectations for them. Leaders and managers prioritise children’s progress and support them to achieve and have positive experiences. Despite not all staff having their performance appraised annually, staff feel supported and receive good development opportunities. A robust induction and ongoing training programme provide staff with the necessary skills to fulfil their role. Regular team meetings provide good opportunities for reflection and learning. Relationships with other professionals are a strength. Leaders and managers confidently hold others to account when necessary and advocate on behalf of the children living in

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

the home. One professional said, ‘They really advocate strongly for the child and their views.’

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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: 1241840 6 Inspection report children’s home: 1241840 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Wessex College Limited, 4 Cedar Park, Cobham Road, Ferndown Industrial Estate, Wimborne BH21 7SF

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Inspector

Nicola Lownds, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1241840 8 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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