Children's Home run by Blackford Education (schools) Ltd in Somerset

Inspection report for children's home: SC485427 1 SC485427 Registered provider: Blackford Education (schools) Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private company. The statement of purpose advises that the home can accommodate a maximum of two children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The care packages usually include the provision of education at the company’s school.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been registered with Ofsted since August 2020.

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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

We last visited this setting on 4 February 2021 to carry out a monitoring 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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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC485427 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/05/2019 Full Outstanding 16/08/2018 Full Good 14/11/2017 Full Good 25/10/2016 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children's home: SC485427 3

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improvement to be good

The progress of the children is mixed. One child has made significant progress within this home. However, another child’s progress has recently plateaued having previously made progress.

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improvement to be good

Children are typically cared for by one staff member within this home. This means that staff have to constantly assess priorities while working in the home to meet the children’s competing needs.

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improvement to be good

Children are not given enough opportunities to form relationships with their peers outside of the organisation. However, relationships between children in the company’s other homes are facilitated, as staff work between the homes.

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improvement to be good

Education is promoted well. One child’s educational attendance has significantly improved since moving into the home.

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improvement to be good

The home is warm and inviting. Children’s photos are on display around the home. One child told the inspector, ‘the inside of the home is perfect.’ Another child has told their social worker that they ‘do not want to leave’.

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improvement to be good

Staff are not always able to implement and work to the guidance in the children’s plans requiring each child to be fully supervised at all times. Having one member of staff solely caring for both children makes this unachievable, creating vulnerability in the care afforded to children.

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improvement to be good

Restraint is used proportionately within this home and the manager reviews incidents thoroughly and in a timely manner. Children receive good debriefs after incidents that are tailored to their needs and understanding. However, one of the home’s techniques for de-escalation is to have a ‘change of face’ and for another staff member take over. This is often not achievable when there is just one staff member present and the on-call manager has to attend.

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improvement to be good

Safeguarding concerns are well recorded and there is positive multi-agency working to keep children safe.

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improvement to be good

The inspector found that one child is helped to understand their feelings and behaviour through educating the child about the brain, which helps to separate the child from the behaviour. Inspection report for children's home: SC485427 4 The managers are strong advocates for children. One social worker told the inspector that the managers are ‘child-centred’ and ‘challenges’ them to improve outcomes for children.

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good

The children’s records do not reflect the caring practices within the home. For example, there is no recorded risk assessment for the decision to reduce staffing from two to one member of staff.

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good

The home’s ambitions for the children, or how these are going to be achieved, are not captured well within children’s records. The inspector found children’s records to be repetitive and to lack personalisation. Leaders and managers are aware of this shortfall and have plans to address this.

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good

The staff team is skilled, stable and consistent in this home.

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good

The registered manager has a keen interest in learning and developing their own understanding, and that of the team, to develop practice within the home.

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good

The registered manager knows the children well and has a hands-on approach. One social worker told the inspector that this has been significant in settling one child into the home.

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good

The impact of COVID-19 has been minimal on this home. When one child tested positive in this home, the manager was creative and maintained contact with the children for the period of isolation to show that they were being kept in mind.

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good

Systems in place to review the care in the home are not critical enough. Additionally, the independent person’s visits are announced and do not provide enough challenge to the home. Inspection report for children's home: SC485427 5

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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 positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful; and

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop the understanding and skills to recognise or withdraw from a damaging, exploitative or harmful relationship. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children are helped to form positive relationships with their peers and helped to develop their knowledge to ensure these relationships are safe. 1 March 2022

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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— 1 March 2022 Inspection report for children's home: SC485427 6 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

In particular, ensure that the child’s risk assessments are followed to keep them safe.

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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 aspire 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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(d)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, review the sufficiency of the staffing to ensure that the staff team is able to help the child reach their potential. 1 March 2022

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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 each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)) 1 March 2022 Inspection report for children's home: SC485427 7 In particular, ensure that each child’s plan reflects their individual needs, is ambitious for the child and details how the staff team will work to achieve the stated outcomes.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the review of the care provided by the home identifies areas of strength and possible weaknesses in the home’s care. The whole review process and the resulting report should be used as a tool for continuous improvement in the home. In particular, ensure that the report is self- challenging to drive improvement. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.4)  The registered person should ensure that the independent person makes a rigorous and impartial assessment of the quality of the home’s care. In particular, ensure that the independent person conducts some visits unannounced to capture the day-to-day running of the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.5)

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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: SC485427 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Blackford Education (schools) Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Blackford House, Blackford, Minehead TA24 8SY

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Inspector

Katie Ratcliffe, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC485427 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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