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

Assurance visit report: SC411142 1 SC411142

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Information about this children's home

The service is owned by a private company. The home is registered to accommodate one child who exhibits complex behaviours.

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Information about this children's home

The manager of this home has been registered with Ofsted since July 2018. She has completed the level 5 diploma in leadership and management for health and social care children and young people’s services (residential management pathway).

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Information about this children's home

Previous inspection date: 5 November 2019

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Information about this children's home

Previous inspection judgement: Outstanding

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Information about this visit

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), Ofsted suspended all routine inspections in March 2020. As part of a phased return to routine inspection, we are undertaking assurance visits to children's social care services that are inspected under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF).

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Information about this visit

At these visits, inspectors evaluate the extent to which:

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Information about this visit

 children are well cared for  children are safe  leaders and managers are exercising strong leadership. This visit was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000, following the published guidance for assurance visits.

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Information about this visit

Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Education, Children's Services and Skills is leading Ofsted's work into how England's social care system has delivered child-centred practice and care within the context of the restrictions placed on society during the COVID-19 pandemic. Assurance visit report: SC411142 2

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Findings from the visit

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance visit.

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The care of children

The home is registered to accommodate one child. Since the last inspection, three different children have lived in the home. The one child currently living in the home is progressing well in the key areas of his life. He is happy and has positive relationships with staff. He informed the inspector that he, ‘loved living at the home.’

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The care of children

Staff complete key-work sessions to help children understand the impact of their behaviour. The work completed is specific to the needs of children and captures their wishes and feelings effectively. These sessions help children to develop trusting relationships with adults in the home.

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The care of children

Staff promote the importance of education and support children to attend school. One child has recently started a placement at a new school. Following some difficulties with the transition, staff are remaining in school to support the child to settle. This assurance helps the child to feel safe and has helped to reduce the number of incidents at school.

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The care of children

Staff have worked hard to create a homely environment for children. One child’s toys and games were on display throughout the home. This allows the child to feel secure and to invest in the home. However, there are some areas of the home that require redecoration and maintenance to repair damage.

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The care of children

Staff support the complex health needs of children well. Medication records are audited regularly, and staff manage the administration of controlled medication for children effectively. Furthermore, staff have received additional training to assist them in supporting one child’s medical condition. This allows children to receive specific and specialised care relevant to their needs. However, during the national lockdown, staff took a child, who should have been shielding, to the local supermarket. This compromised the safety of the child and placed her at risk of harm.

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The safety of children

Children’s risk assessments are linked to support plans and staff were able to explain to the inspector how they keep children safe. However, these plans and strategies are not always reflected in children’s records. There was no risk assessment in place for one child to demonstrate how staff protect her from exploitation. Consequently, during one incident where a child was missing from home, staff failed to identify and act upon signs that the child was at risk of harm.

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The safety of children

Staff work hard to keep children safe. As a result, the number of occasions where children are missing from home are low. For one child, the support provided by staff Assurance visit report: SC411142 3 has resulted in a reduction in missing-from-home incidents. In contrast, on two occasions, a child was able to go missing from the home as a result of staff not following the risk assessment in place. Furthermore, staff did not adhere to the missing-from-home protocol and there were delays in reporting the child missing to the police. This shortfall had a significant impact on the safety of the child.

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The safety of children

Staff have completed a range of training to enable them to manage different risks and behaviours. Staff training needs are reviewed when any new children move into the home. This helps staff keep children safe.

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The safety of children

There have been a number of incidents requiring the use of physical restraint with children in the home. The registered manager has ensured that staff and children have been spoken to following every incident. This reflection provides children with the opportunity to express their wishes and feelings after a significant incident. However, there have been shortfalls in the recordings. During two incidents, the records did not state whether the child had sustained any injuries and it was unclear whether medical attention was needed. In her evaluation of the incidents, the registered manager has failed to pick up on these shortfalls.

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The safety of children

When appointing new staff, the registered manager has not consistently followed safe recruitment practice. For example, the full work history for one member of staff has not been thoroughly checked prior to commencing work in the home. As a result, it was unclear whether the member of staff had previously worked with children. This has the potential to compromise the safety of children when recruiting new staff.

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Leaders and managers

There is an experienced and suitably qualified registered manager working in the home. She is approachable, supportive and is a positive advocate for children. One child described the registered manager as, ‘the best manager I have ever had’ and ‘I love her as she looks out for me.’ This supportive approach allows children to feel comfortable and safe in the home.

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Leaders and managers

There is a stable and consistent staff team in place in the home. Staff work well together, and they have worked hard to cover gaps in the home’s rota. This ensures that children have consistent and predictable care.

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Leaders and managers

The manager and assistant manager provide regular supervision to all staff. This is a supportive process which helps staff to develop their skills and understanding of the children’s needs. This impacts positively on the care that children receive.

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Leaders and managers

Overall, the registered manager has a good oversight of the home. She ensures that files and records are audited on a weekly basis. In doing this, she seeks the views of children in making improvements. However, the actions identified from her monitoring tools are not always captured in the quality of care report produced. This prevents the regulator from having oversight into the care received by children. Assurance visit report: SC411142 4

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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

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of 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)(2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This refers to areas and furniture in the home that were damaged and required repair work and replacement. The kitchen area and a children’s bathroom also require updating and redecoration. 7 January 2021

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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.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(iii)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff understanding and implementation of each individual child’s risk assessment, and their role in keeping children safe, particularly with regards to missing from care and risks of exploitation. 7 January 2021

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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— 7 January 2021 Assurance visit report: SC411142 5 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

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to shortfalls in the monitoring systems used in the home. These monitoring systems failed to identify that a risk assessment around exploitation was not in place for one child, and whether a child had suffered any injuries as result of an incident requiring physical restraint.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1)(2)(a)(b)(3)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the recruitment of staff and matters highlighted in Schedule 2. In the recruitment of staff, the registered manager is to ensure a full employment history has been provided and validated before any individual commences work in the home. 7 January 2021 Assurance visit report: SC411142 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should only accept placements for children where they are satisfied that the home can respond effectively to the child's assessed needs as recorded in the child's relevant plans. The Statement of Purpose is an important document in the process of care planning as it sets out the needs of children the home is set up and equipped to care for. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 56, paragraph 11.4)

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Recommendations

This refers to the admission process for one child and the fact that the home admitted a child before receiving the required information and paperwork from the previous placement.

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Recommendations

 The registered person is responsible for deciding what each review should focus on, based on the specific circumstances of the home at that particular time and any areas of high risk to the children that the home is designed to care for, such as missing or exploitation. They will also consider what information or data recorded in the home will form part of the evidence base for their analysis and conclusions. There is no expectation that the registered person will review the home against every part of the Quality Standards every six months – registered persons should use their professional judgement to decide which factors to focus on. The review should enable the registered person to identify areas of strength and possible weakness in the home's care, which will be captured in the written report. The report should clearly identify any actions required for the next 6 months of delivery within the home and how those actions will be addressed. The

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Recommendations

whole review process and the resulting report should be used as a tool for continuous improvement in the home. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 65, paragraph 15.4)

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Recommendations

This refers to the quality of care review completed by the registered manager and the lack of identified actions in the report for improving the quality of care received by children. Assurance visit report: SC411142 7

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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: Atria, Spa Road, Bolton BL1 4AG

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Inspector

Dean Wilton, Social Care Inspector Assurance visit report: SC411142 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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