Children's Home run by Birtenshaw in Bolton

Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 1 SC470797 Registered provider: Birtenshaw Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home provides care and accommodation for children and young people with physical disabilities, learning disabilities and sensory impairment, which includes those with autistic spectrum conditions.

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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: 14 November 2018

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/11/2018 Full Good 04/09/2017 Full Outstanding 09/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 01/09/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

This children’s home provides care and accommodation for young people who have complex needs. The young people receive individualised care from a child-focused staff team. The staff know the young people well and this is contributing to the young people feeling secure.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help young people to make progress from their individual starting points. Staff identify goals for the young people to meet. These goals are individual and in line with each young person’s abilities. For example, a young person’s social skills have improved to the point where he can now go out to eat in a cafe. This is an achievement for this young person who previously struggled to manage in these situations. Staff also help young people to develop skills in different areas. For example, the inspector observed staff supporting young people to clean up after mealtimes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some young people communicate non-verbally and staff use various tools to find out what they like, such as pictures of different foods so that young people can choose their meals. The staff’s understanding of young people contributes to this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some young people have complex health needs. The staff know what these needs are. They speak to young people’s parents and social workers to ensure that the young people’s care is consistent. There is an effective system in place for managing medication. This ensures that all medication is administered both safely and correctly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people, including those who communicate non-verbally, are encouraged to enjoy a range of activities inside and outside the home. These include bowling and trips to the zoo. This gives young people the opportunity to learn new skills and spend time with each other.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have good relationships with young people’s parents. Staff support young people to have contact with their families in line with their care plans. Staff have effective relationships with professionals. This means that young people receive a range of care specific to their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although staff work hard to promote a nurturing environment, parts of the physical environment require work, such as chipped paintwork and a bed frame left in the garden. This is a potential hazard for young people and staff. A requirement has been made to reflect this shortfall.

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

There are thorough individual risk management plans in place. These outline the risks in respect of the young people and strategies to manage these risks. Staff Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 4 understand these risks, and this is helping the young people become increasingly safe.

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

Although there have been incidents of physical restraint, these have decreased since the last inspection. When staff have used physical restraint, these incidents seem to be proportionate to ensure young people and staff’s safety. However, some of these incidents have not been evaluated within 48 hours.

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

Some young people require a mechanical restraint to keep them safe when being transported in a vehicle. Although the use of this restraint appears to be proportionate and appropriate, the acting manager has not appropriately reviewed this practice. This means that chances to reconsider whether this type of restraint is needed are missed. A requirement has been made to reflect these shortfalls.

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

Staff receive training in managing behaviour and de-escalation techniques. These techniques are included in young people’s behaviour support plans. These plans include professionals’ advice on how to manage some young people’s behaviour. For example, some plans include input from a learning disability nurse. This helps staff manage young people’s behaviour consistently. These clear and consistent boundaries are helping young people feel secure.

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

There are effective safeguarding systems in place. Staff contact the necessary professionals if they are concerned about a young person. For example, one young person was unwell, and staff persisted in taking him to medical professionals. This was crucial intervention for this young person because he became critically ill. The staff’s intervention meant that this young person was treated in a timely manner. A social work professional described staff’s intervention as instrumental in safeguarding this young person.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The deputy manager has been acting as manager since October 2019. She needs to apply to Ofsted to be the registered manager. The acting manager is committed, and she provides a child-centred approach. The acting manager has a clear understanding of the progress that the young people are making. She is involved in plans for some young people to leave the home. She has suggested techniques that may help one young person when he leaves; for example, she asked staff at the young person’s new home to provide photographs of the staff team. This is to help the young person see who he will be living with. This may help the young person settle in his new home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The acting manager is ambitious. She is focused on making improvements within the home, for example in respect of monitoring systems. These improved monitoring systems are further supported by independent monthly monitoring. This contributes to the oversight of the home and outcomes for young people. Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 5 Some staff have not consistently received supervision in line with the statement of purpose. A requirement has been made to reflect this shortfall. However, this has not impacted on the young people’s overall progress and experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

All staff spoken with during the inspection were positive about the acting manager and her leadership. Some staff describe improvements since she has been acting as manager. Staff say that morale has improved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff maintain records about the young people; on some occasions these records are not kept up to date. While this has not impacted on the young people’s overall experiences, it does not provide a record for the young people or consistently evidence their progress. A recommendation has been made to reflect this improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from professionals was positive. The acting manager has developed effective relationships with all professionals involved in the young people’s care. This means that staff can provide the best all-round care for young people. Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 6

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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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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 the premises used for the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(c)(i)(ii)) 12/05/2020

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (1)(4)(b)(c)) 12/05/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy (‘the behaviour management policy’) which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home. 12/05/2020 Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 7 The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (‘the user’), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (‘the authorised person’)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure;

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Requirement Due date

Paragraph (3) does not apply in relation to restraint that is planned or provided for as a matter of routine in the child’s EHC plan or statement of special educational needs. Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 8 (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b)(2)(3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)(4))

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Recommendations

 Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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 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: SC470797 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Darwen Road, Bromley Cross, Bolton BL7 9AB

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Inspector

Catherine Fargin, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC470797 10 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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