Brompton Hall School

Inspection report for residential special school – Brompton Hall School 1 Brompton Hall School Brompton Hall School, High Street, Brompton-by-Sawdon, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO13 9DB Residential provision inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential special school

Brompton Hall School is a local authority maintained residential special school for 70 boys, located near to Scarborough in North Yorkshire. The residential provision accommodates up to 34 pupils and provides extended days for a number of pupils who do not board. All pupils have an education, health and care plan in respect of their complex needs. There are four residential units within the main building. The youngest pupils are accommodated in a separate house within the school grounds. At the time of inspection, there were 30 boarders. The age of pupils ranges from eight to 16 years old.

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

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good

Date of previous inspection: 23 October 2018

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good

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

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy staying in the residential provision. For some children this is the first time they have been in formal education for a long time. It is a big achievement for children when they make progress in all areas of their development. One professional commented: ‘I have seen the impact first hand of children coming into this school. The difference in the educational progress and their social and emotional health is amazing.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children learn how to spend their free time positively. Some children make friendships for the first time and they learn how to sustain the relationships. The children build good relationships with the staff and they like to spend time with them. The children’s emotional well-being improves. The school has recently received an award for its new well-being hub. The well-being hub is providing the children with access to emotional support which is tailored to their needs. The children benefit from talking to the school’s specialist counsellor and specialist support worker. One child commented: ‘It’s good you can talk to a counsellor. They listen to you and help you think of ways to solve things.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children learn the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle. Their physical fitness improves from accessing sporting activities such as the school gym, the school motocross bikes, community walks, futsal, hockey, rock climbing, swimming, archery and mountain-bike riding.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy lots of positive experiences. Some children receive opportunities they would be unlikely to experience at home or in other schools. The activities they enjoy include bodyboarding, charity work, photography, woodwork and design.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children’s independence improves. They learn life skills for when they leave. The skills they learn across the 24-hour curriculum include getting dressed, cooking, independent travel and careers planning. One parent commented: `That school has made him the man that I always hoped for. It’s made him so independent. I am a lot less worried about his future.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children feel a sense of value and they learn the importance of helping others. Many older children support their peers with their reading, through the school’s new reading-buddy scheme. The children also raise money for a range of charities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The 24-hour curriculum helps to continually reinforce the children’s learning. The school staff and residential staff work together to ensure that the skills children are working on are consistent in the school and the residential setting. For older children who are transitioning on from school, the specialist careers advice and support from the staff prepare them well to move on to college courses and apprenticeships. Inspection report for residential special school – Brompton Hall School 3

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

The designated safeguarding lead communicates well with the local authority’s designated officer. The designated safeguarding lead is quick to share information to protect children. The school’s designated safeguarding lead follows the local authority’s advice and acts to safeguard the children.

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

The children learn how to keep themselves safe. The children learn about risks and they undertake work on a range of topics such as the dangers of crime and substance misuse. The staff understand the risks to children. Individual risk assessments provide staff with clear instructions to follow to avoid and manage any risks.

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

The children respond well to the structure. The children’s independence improves as their worries reduce because they know the routines. The children understand the expectations around positive behaviour. The positive reward schemes motivate children to maintain good behaviour. The staff use their strong relationships with children to try and prevent any challenging behaviour. The use of physical intervention is a last resort to protect the children and the staff.

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

The staff follow safeguarding procedures and they confidently report any concerns using the school’s reporting system. The designated safeguarding lead takes effective action to manage safeguarding incidents. However, the records of incidents do not demonstrate the full range of actions leaders take to improve practice following concerns. This means that the senior leaders do not always have a comprehensive overview of the action taken to address shortfalls in care practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The dedicated headteacher is constantly striving to continue improving the quality of care. She knows the strengths of the service and the areas she wishes to develop. She is child focused and leads by example. There are now five house leaders who each manage one residential house. This new house-leader role is ensuring that there are clear lines of support for the staff. The house leaders are working hard to continue to develop the quality of care and to ensure the children have a good experience.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff feel well supported by the house leaders and the headteacher. They feel they can talk to them anytime. The staff receive regular supervision. The quality of the supervision varies in relation to the focus on children’s experiences, needs and plans. Consequently, the leaders and the staff are potentially missing learning opportunities to develop and improve care practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The dedicated board of governors supports the headteacher and the leaders to monitor the quality of care. The governors offer support and challenge where necessary to ensure that the children have a good experience. The independent Inspection report for residential special school – Brompton Hall School 4 visitor supports the headteacher to monitor the quality of care. The independent visitor provides a report which evaluates the children’s safety and care practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The systems for monitoring the children’s progress are effective. Focused targets are set and monitored in line with the children’s plans. In addition, the innovative use of a software application is helping to capture the children’s progress through photos. The photos help the children to understand their progress and see their achievements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The headteacher is proactive in designing the staff training development plan to meet the needs of the children. The plan does not evaluate the impact of the staff’s training. This potentially hinders future progress in improving the quality of care. Inspection report for residential special school – Brompton Hall School 5

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special schools

The school does not meet the following national minimum standard for residential special schools:

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special schools

 19.4 The learning and development programme is evaluated for effectiveness at least annually and is updated if necessary.

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the recording of safeguarding issues details fully the action taken to improve shortfalls in care practice. Ensure that the audit trail provides an assessment of the work undertaken with staff and the experiences of children.  Consider improving the quality of supervision to ensure that it focuses on reflecting on staff practice, children’s experiences, needs, plans and feedback.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people 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 – Brompton Hall School 6

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Residential special school details

Social care unique reference number: SC007923

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Residential special school details

Headteacher/teacher in charge: Sharon Young

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Residential special school details

Type of school: Residential special school

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Residential special school details

Email address: headteacher@bromptonhall.n-yorks.sch.uk Inspection report for residential special school – Brompton Hall School 7

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Inspector

Jamie Richardson, social care inspector Inspection report for residential special school – Brompton Hall School 8 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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