Children's Home run by Brinscall Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report children’s home: 2534436 1 Registered provider: Brinscall Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private company. The home provides care and support for four children who can no longer live at home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted on 8 February 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers on 17 March 2020.

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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: 17 December 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2534436 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/12/2019 Full Outstanding Inspection report children’s home: 2534436 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a caring, friendly and supportive home. Staff give children the help that they need in order to grow, by being patient and understanding. Children said that they are happy and safe and enjoy living at this home. One child said, ‘It is great.’ Social workers were unanimous in their praise for the home and the care that their children receive. One said, ‘They go beyond what is expected of them.’ Another said, ‘I would place all my children here if I could.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move into and out of the home, a good transition is planned. An impact risk assessment shows that the home considers the child’s history and behaviour and the needs of the existing children in the home. However, the manager has not taken into account the home’s location area report as part of this process. As a result, she has not considered any identified potential risks and whether these would have any bearing on the suitability of the placement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children said that their views, wishes and feelings are taken seriously. They have opportunities to talk to staff and they are encouraged to comment on all aspects of their care. Records that are kept in the home show the progress that children are making. However, there is little information on how this progress is achieved. Therefore, this does not show the child’s journey throughout their stay at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to regularly attend and engage in education. Children know how important education is and respond well to the education incentives in place. Consequently, children’s education outcomes improve. For example, one child has sat her mock exams and received good results.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported well with their individual health needs and have good access to local services when they need them. When children need additional help with their emotional health or with risk-taking behaviour, specialist help is sourced quickly. For example, staff have called on substance misuse projects to complete work with children around the effects of substance misuse.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have individual arrangements to see their parents or people who are important to them. Some children were missing out on seeing their family because of the different arrangements for each family member. Staff have helped to bridge these contact arrangements by inviting parents, foster carers and the children’s siblings to meet at the home. Staff make this a fun time with activities and refreshments.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities. They like to spend time with the staff team baking, listening to music and going out for walks. Previously, children have enjoyed going to the cinema, theme parks, horse riding and playing pool. Children have earned extra activities, for example going out to restaurants or having beauty Inspection report children’s home: 2534436 4 treatments. Children are looking forward to going to an adventure park and visiting a football stadium.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

An outstanding area of practice is how children are prepared for independence. Extensive plans show each child’s skill set, their areas for improvement, what additional support is required and who is responsible for executing each stage of the plan. The manager has challenged decisions on behalf of a child when a college was found for them that was not in an area where he wants to live.

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

Children said that they are safe at the home. Staff complete regular training in a range of safeguarding topics. As a result, they understand their roles and responsibilities in protecting the children. When serious incidents occur in the house, the staff team is adept at managing them safely.

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

An outstanding are of practice is how the manager has brought multi-agency teams together. The manager found that, when numerous agencies were involved in a child’s care, they did not know what one another was doing or what the outcomes were from individual meetings. Therefore, the manager put together a pro forma that records all information, and this is sent to all the agencies involved. This means that everyone involved in individual children’s lives is informed and is working towards the same plan.

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

Good individual risk assessments identify each child’s vulnerabilities, triggers and warning signs, and include strategies and actions for staff to take if an incident were to occur. This means that any potential incident is de-escalated quickly.

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

There have been incidents when children have left the home without permission. Staff have followed the child’s missing-from-home protocol and searched the local areas for them. Staff work closely with external agencies and the children to try to reduce these incidents. Children have a return home interview with an independent person. This means that the children can share the reasons why they went missing and any concerns they have.

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

Some children are vulnerable to child sexual exploitation and child criminal exploitation. Staff work with a range of agencies to secure the support children need. A social worker commented, ‘The staff do everything in their power but sometimes the draw to the child’s community, friends or unsuitable adults is too strong.’ However, the staff have had some successes in breaking these ties and links with some of the children. Multi-agency working is a strong feature in this home.

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

Behaviour-management plans show how children would like to be supported if they become anxious or distressed. Children are given opportunities to put things right. For example, if they damage property, they are given the opportunity to help repair it. This helps them to learn that there are consequences to their actions, and builds skills in property maintenance. Inspection report children’s home: 2534436 5 Safe recruitment and health and safety practices at the home mean that only suitable staff work with children and that the home is a safe place to live.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by a suitably qualified manager who has the experience to undertake her role. She is supported by a deputy manager and two team leaders. There is a clear management structure. They work together to support one another and complement their skill sets, which has a positive impact on the staff team and the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are experienced, and there is a clear plan for new staff members to progress to their National Vocational Qualification level 3 when they have passed their probationary period. The staff team receives regular supervision that is reflective and is underpinned by development and individual strengths. Appraisals focus on the development of individual staff members. This is in addition to monthly team meetings, where staff share examples of good practice, training and development information to aid their learning. As a result, staff say that they are supported, valued and motivated.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive training to support their learning, and the manager has a clear system in place to make sure that staff have received mandatory training. Staff receive a detailed induction, which identifies their training needs and is reviewed regularly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The managers are aware of children’s plans and make child-centred decisions to support these. They regularly advocate for the children and often challenge other agencies to make sure that children receive the best care and support. Relationships with partner agencies, families and children are strong. One professional said, ‘The wrap-around care that the child receives is exceptional. They go the extra mile.’ This is evident in the home’s child-focused approach.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring and review systems help the manager to identify the home’s strengths and areas for improvement. She is able to alter her practice accordingly. However, the manager has not sent her six-monthly review report to Ofsted within timescales. This reduces the regulator’s oversight of the home. Inspection report children’s home: 2534436 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 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

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This is specifically in relation to ensuring that the safer area report is used in conjunction with a child’s impact risk assessment, to ensure that the area is safe for them. 30 September

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Recommendations

 The registered person should make sure that the home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. This is specifically in relation to ensuring that the steps taken by staff to secure good progress and outcomes are clearly recorded within the children’s documents. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)  The registered person should undertake a review that focuses on the quality of care provided by the home. Specifically, ensure that the report is sent to Ofsted within timescales. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.2)

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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: 2534436 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Brinscall Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 27, Barnfield House, Sandpits Lane, Accrington Road, Blackburn, Blackburn with Darwen BB1 3NY

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Inspector

Pam Nuckley, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2534436 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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