Children's Home run by City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council in Bradford

Inspection report children’s home: SC065552 1 SC065552 Registered provider: City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A local authority operates and runs this home. It provides care and accommodation for up to six children and young people aged between 8 and 18. Children above the age of 13 are not admitted. The children currently living in the home are under 16 years old and have a range of social, emotional and behavioural needs. The manager was registered in August 2008.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 26 to 27 November 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 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: 16 October 2018

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC065552 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/10/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 24/07/2018 Full Inadequate 12/12/2017 Full Good 27/02/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC065552 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children make good progress in all aspects of their development. This is due to the consistent care, boundaries and routines that the nurturing staff team provides. The children respond well to this. They enjoy stability in their lives and receive good levels of emotional support. Good and trusting relationships with staff have led to some children engaging in therapy. This has resulted in improved emotional stability.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children all attend school and staff regularly reinforce and instil the importance of education. The staff work closely with the schools to help children settle and promote good behaviour in class. They often bring children to school in the morning, to ensure good attendance, and allow some children to walk home, increasing their independence and allowing them to take age-appropriate risks. Children have a positive experience at school and, consequently, their educational outcomes improve. The children receive additional support from a tutor who visits the home weekly to help with their homework.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have regular discussions with staff and have ample opportunities to talk about issues affecting them. This includes both formal and informal discussions, including chatting together at the dining table at mealtimes. The individual structured sessions are a particular strength of the staff team. The staff produce high-quality creative worksheets to encourage the children to talk to express their feelings. A child’s key worker has prepared an imaginative book of work they have completed together. This will act as an educational memory book when he leaves the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy spending time with staff and enjoy making gifts for their families. They are encouraged to take part in a range of leisure activities. Some children benefit from regular attendance at the local gym, which has developed their independence skills in relation to travelling as well as keeping fit. Other children are supported to follow their own individual interests, such as playing the drums or having singing lessons. The home has a well-stocked arts and crafts room, games room and large climbing frame in the garden. These allow children time to relax at home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Regular contact with children’s family and friends is facilitated by the staff and promotes children’s identity.

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

The children have developed strong relationships with staff and have learned to be more tolerant of each other, with some good friendships being formed. The children are more settled and enjoy harmonious living. High staffing levels for some of the younger children provide them with the supervision needed to keep them safe.

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

The number of physical interventions have reduced as the children learn to regulate their emotions better. For those still needing to be held to de-escalate their behaviours, this is Inspection report children’s home: SC065552 4 carried out in line with their positive support plans. The staff respond sensitively to help children manage their heightened anxiety. There is rarely any damage to the home.

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

The manager and staff have an excellent understanding of the children’s history and respond to them individually. They know and understand the triggers and are proactive at preventing aggression. The staff are supported to better understand children’s behaviours and how to respond. This is through regular sessions with clinicians who provide guidance, insight and advice. This helps the staff adapt their behaviour management strategies to meet the children’s individual needs and behaviours, including self-harming behaviours.

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

Children enjoy spending time with staff and each other at the home. This has led to a reduction in missing-from-home episodes. Staff take immediate action if children are late returning home, in line with the children’s individualised protocols. They go out looking and try to find the children first and work closely with police to help locate the children if needed. Return to home interviews help reduce further incidents and provide intelligence about where children go and who they associate with. The children are not known to engage in criminal activities and do not misuse substances. There is no evidence of them being at risk of exploitation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has significant experience in children’s residential care. She manages the home well, has good management oversight and provides effective leadership. A recent redecoration and refurbishment programme has made the home a more comfortable and welcoming environment. The children make regular suggestions about how to improve the running of the home. The children’s bedrooms are personalised to reflect their interests. This helps the children to feel valued and take some responsibility and ownership of their home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has robust auditing and recording systems that promote her monitoring and oversight of the home and the staff. This helps her to make sure the staff are completing tasks in a timely way. This is further enhanced by the independent visitor’s reports. However, not all of the children’s files are up to date. This shortfall is mitigated by the staff having a comprehensive understanding of the individual children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff feel supported by the manager. They benefit from reflective team meetings where the discussions focus on the children and their specific needs. The staff are open with each other and use the opportunity for group supervision to discuss their own emotions and responses to incidents. Individual supervisions enable the manager to address any practice or development issues and promote reflection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff are committed, experienced and have a variety of skills that the children benefit from; for example, one staff member is particularly artistic and creative. Staff have access to a variety of training. Their professional development is promoted. This has led to some staff moving on to more senior positions. Inspection report children’s home: SC065552 5

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Recommendations

 Regulations 35-39 detail the records that must be kept in children’s homes. All children’s case records (regulation 36) must be kept up to date and stored securely whilst they remain in the home. Case records must be kept up-to-date and signed and dated by the author of each entry. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)

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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: SC065552 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, City Hall, Centenary Square, Bradford, West Yorkshire BD1 1HY

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Inspector

Tina Ruffles, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC065552 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 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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