St Rose’s School

Inspection report for residential special school – St Rose’s School 1 St Rose’s School St. Rose’s Special School, Stratford Lawn, Stroud, Gloucestershire GL5 4AP Residential provision inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential special school

St Rose’s School is a co-educational, non-maintained, Roman Catholic day and residential school. It provides a service for children who have physical disabilities and/or associated sensory, communication and learning difficulties. Some children have complex healthcare issues, and 24-hour nursing support is available. Children are aged between two and 19 years.

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Information about this residential special school

The residential accommodation is attached to the main school. At the time of this inspection, there were 29 children on roll in the school and the residential provision was supporting six children. The school offers flexible boarding arrangements from one to four nights with alternate weekend care available during term time.

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Information about this residential special school

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 residential special school

We last visited this setting on 22 and 23 October 2020 to carry out an assurance visit. The report is published on the Ofsted website.

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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: 10 June 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good Inspection report for residential special school – St Rose’s School 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive a very good quality of care when staying at the residential provision. The level of personalised care and support is a strength of this school. Children develop a sense of belonging to the residential setting. Staff give a great deal of thought and attention to each child’s individual needs. This is underpinned by the seamless collaboration of all staff, regardless of their roles in the school. The school motto, ‘Inspiring education, therapy and care’, is successfully achieved.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from consistent care from regular staff. This stability ensures that positive relationships are developed between children and those who care for them, leading children to feel comfortable and safe. Children receive appropriate physical affection, and much laughter can be heard during activities. Parents and social workers express high levels of satisfaction with the residential provision. They are confident that the staff understand their child and the child’s particular care and health needs. One parent reported how the staff team had gone the extra mile to assist their child in settling in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The knowledge and skills of the staff team enable them to communicate well with children who have learning disabilities. Creative approaches, such as sign language, pictures, symbols and technology, are used. The increase in the use of technology has led to a games console being adapted, enabling children to participate in games that they would otherwise be excluded from. Voice-activated technology is used and many children benefit from use of a tablet device. The communication passports are generally good documents; however, not all of them detail the technology that children use.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive bespoke packages of care from qualified and trained care staff, nurses and therapists. The availability of a trained nurse at all times enables children with complex health needs to experience a stay away from home. The on-site therapists often work alongside staff in the residential provision to ensure that the therapies are embraced beyond the school day.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The accommodation is arranged to meet the children’s needs. However, the age of the building limits the residential space and the freedom to move about when using a wheelchair. New purpose-built accommodation is under construction and is expected to be available early in 2022. The children have been consulted and have chosen a name for the new building.

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

Risk management is effective and is supported well by comprehensive assessments that are regularly updated. These documents alert staff to the children’s known risks and how to respond to keep children safe, both inside and outside of the residential accommodation. Considering the children’s complex needs and disabilities, the staff Inspection report for residential special school – St Rose’s School 3 are not risk-averse. There is a can-do attitude, meaning that children are able to go swimming, bounce on a trampoline and experience numerous activities and outings.

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

Regular review of restrictive practices has led to the removal of listening devices and consideration of the types of beds used to keep children safe. The focus on children’s behaviour is a recognition that this is communication. Staff strive to support and calm distressed children, to de-escalate any unsettled behaviour. This is effective in that there has been no use of physical restraint in the residential provision. Understanding children’s behaviour is an area where care staff and therapists work closely together.

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

There is a strong safeguarding culture in this school. Leaders and managers strive for a safe environment where vulnerable children are protected from harm. Weekly staff briefings, team meetings and individual staff supervision all have safeguarding on the agenda. This ensures that staff are trained and aware of how to protect children. There has been one incident of a medication error. This was dealt with promptly and robustly to ensure that the child was not harmed and that such a mistake would not be repeated.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have prioritised children’s safety and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. Adopted safe hygiene processes have enabled children to remain at school, where possible.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have high expectations for what all children can achieve. They are visible and involved in the day-to-day operation of the school and residential provision. Through training, supervision and good support, there are expectations for the staff team to ensure that children receive the highest level of care. A new head of care has recently been appointed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the previous assurance visit by Ofsted, leaders and managers have continued to meet the national minimum standards successfully; all standards are now met. Development plans from the overall strategic plan set out clearly what needs to be achieved to meet the aim of providing exceptional care. This school welcomes student nurses and an occupational therapist through an apprenticeship. These additional staff help to bring some current thinking into the school and help staff keep abreast with professional developments in their field.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New recording systems are under development and yet to be fully embedded. Staff can readily give examples of children’s progress; however, these are not always evident in records. For example, one child has not had any behaviour incidents since May. This is celebrated with the child and the staff team, yet records fail to summarise this achievement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The level of monitoring of the residential provision has improved by leaders and managers taking action to enhance the level of scrutiny. An external company is Inspection report for residential special school – St Rose’s School 4 commissioned to visit every half term in addition to the monitoring undertaken by the governing body. Inspection report for residential special school – St Rose’s School 5

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Recommendation

 Ensure that communication passports include the child’s use of technology.  Ensure that all children’s records evidence progress and achievements.

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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 – St Rose’s School 6

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Residential special school details

Social care unique reference number: SC034383

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Residential special school details

Type of school: Residential special school

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Inspectors

Clare Davies, Social Care Inspector (lead) Clare Nixson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for residential special school – St Rose’s School 7 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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