Children's home run by Birtenshaw in Bolton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC467796 1 SC467796 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 is privately owned and is registered to provide care for up to three children. Children may have autism spectrum disorder, physical disabilities, learning disabilities and/or sensory impairment.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19, at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers carried out under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF) on 17 March 2020. We returned to routine SCCIF inspections on 12 April 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager of the home was registered with Ofsted in October 2021.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC467796 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/10/2019 Full Good 11/12/2018 Full Outstanding 11/10/2017 Full Good 22/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC467796 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is warm, comfortable and welcoming. It is decorated to a high standard and is very child friendly. There is a large playroom, which contains lots of sensory lights and toys, that the children love to spend time in together. There are many photographs of the children and staff on the walls, giving the home a family feeling.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have progressed very well in relation to their ability to communicate their independence skills and demonstrate a settled and calm behaviour. One child, who would previously regularly self-harm, has not done so for over eight months. The inspector saw happy and calm children who are settled into clear routines.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is a stable staff team. Children know the staff who are looking after them, and they enjoy spending time with them. Children have warm relationships with each other.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Each child has their own individual plan, and their own independence goals, which are regularly reviewed and updated. The goals are displayed on the walls in the playroom. Children know what their goals are, and staff help them work towards them. This means that the manager and staff are consistently supporting the children to progress and learn new skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to attend school every day. Staff cooperate with school staff and share information about the children. This provides the children with consistent care, which helps them to feel safe and secure.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children’s health needs. They take children to the necessary health appointments. Medication is managed well, and all of the permanent staff are trained in first aid.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents are pleased with the quality of care that their children receive. Parents visit their children regularly and are made to feel welcome in the home. A parent told the inspector, ‘Staff are doing a great job. My son is really happy. If he’s happy, I’m happy.’ Children benefit from the very regular visits they have from their families.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have weekly meetings, and their input is sought about activities, home furnishings and what they want to eat. The recording of activities do not routinely capture the detail of the leisure time that staff spend with the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Recently, one child has moved out of the home. The inspector saw that the staff had supported this move, which was challenging, and helped to prepare her new carers with detailed information about her needs. This supported the carers to meet the needs of the child quickly in her new setting. Inspection report for children’s home: SC467796 4

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

Children in this home are kept safe. There are comprehensive risk assessments for each child. The assessments are live documents and are reviewed routinely. When a new potential risk emerges, it is analysed and added to the risk assessment. There is a system in place to ensure that all staff are kept informed of any changes to the children’s records.

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

Children do not go missing from this home. Staff know what to do if children do go missing from home. There are clear behaviour management plans in place. The plans include triggers for self-harm. This means that staff can recognise if children are going to become upset, and they are usually able to prevent this.

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

There has been a physical restraint since the last inspection. This was appropriate and was recorded and analysed by the manager. Physical restraint has not been required for over eight months. This shows the progress that the staff have made in understanding children’s behaviours and their triggers, and the progress children have made in managing their emotions.

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

Staff communicate well with each other. Staff were able to tell the inspector how they hand over information, and there are clear records of communication. This ensures that the children’s needs continue to be met, and that they have consistency of care.

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

Through observations, it is clear that the children know their routines very well, and they are encouraged to do some things for themselves. This promotes independence as the children approach adulthood.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager knows the staff and the children in the home very well. She is confident, and staff told the inspector that she is ‘visible’ and ‘leads from the front’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has an ambitious vision for the children, the appearance and facilities in the home and the staff. There is a plan in place to develop the garden area of the home into a more child-friendly space, and this is due for completion in the coming weeks. The manager encourages the progression and independence of the children, and she has high expectations of the staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are supported through regular formal supervision and informal supervision. Staff say that their manager is approachable and supportive. However, supervision records are not always recorded in a timely way, and therefore staff do not have access to the notes from supervision to support their development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is training in place for the staff, and most staff are appropriately qualified. Feedback from professionals suggests that staff contact them for advice rather than Inspection report for children’s home: SC467796 5 using their own skills and knowledge. Staff would benefit from revisiting important training to refresh their skills more frequently than they do currently. This will give them confidence in their understanding of how to respond to children’s behaviours. Some of the children the staff care for have very complex needs. Training available to staff should reflect the complexity of the children they are caring for.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals say that the manager and staff communicate well with them and ensure that they are kept up to date with the children’s progression. A social worker for one of the children told the inspector that they were very happy with how their child was progressing.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager follows up with professionals to ensure that the children’s needs are met and that their pathway plans are in place and up to date.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager communicates well with parents, who felt well informed about how their child was progressing and happy with their care. A parent told the inspector, ‘They [the staff] are A* as far as I’m concerned.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager does not currently have a deputy manager in place, although some of the senior staff support her. This means that she has less time to spend on developing the home because the majority of management tasks and all of the supervision are her responsibility.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, a child has moved out of the home. Professionals agree that this was the right decision due to the child’s changing needs. There is now an opportunity to reflect on the recent past, to review this experience and take on board any relevant learning. Inspection report for children’s home: SC467796 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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children to fulfil their potential; and

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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 staff have the experience, qualifications, and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to staff having access to an increased frequency of relevant training, including support for children who may have autism spectrum disorder, complex communication and positive behaviour support. 20 December 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—

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Requirement Due date

helps children to fulfil their potential; and

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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. (Regulation 13 (1) (2)(f)) 20 December 2021 Inspection report for children’s home: SC467796 7 In particular, that learning from placement breakdowns is disseminated to staff and acted on.

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Requirement Due date

The enjoyment and achievement standard is that children take part in and benefit from a variety of activities that meet their needs and develop and reflect their creative, cultural, intellectual, physical and social skills.

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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

develop the child’s interests and hobbies;

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Requirement Due date

participate in activities that the child enjoys and which meet and expand the child’s interests and preferences. (Regulation 9 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to staff helping children to expand their interests, and ensuring that there is a wide variety of opportunities offered. This support should be clearly recorded and evaluated for its efficacy. 20 December 2021

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that supervision discussions are appropriately recorded and shared with staff. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)  The registered person should ensure that the home is sufficiently staffed to include a deputy manager to support the registered manager. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 54, paragraph 10.15)

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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 for children’s home: SC467796 8

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Children’s home details

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

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Inspector

Cathy Wilkins, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC467796 9 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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