Brompton Hall School

Inspection report for residential special school - Brompton Hall School 1 Brompton Hall School Brompton Hall School, High Street, Brompton-by-Sawdon, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO13 9DB Residential provision inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential special school

Brompton Hall School is a local authority maintained residential special school for 61 boys, near Scarborough, North Yorkshire. All children have education, health and care plans, reflecting social, emotional and mental health difficulties.

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Information about this residential special school

Children are between eight and 16 years of age when they attend the school. The residential provision accommodates up to 43 children, offering weekly boarding places. There are four residential units in the main building, one of which is not in use.

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Information about this residential special school

The school has an interim headteacher. The residential lead has been in post for 18 months.

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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 11 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 requires improvement to be good

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Overall experiences and progress of

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

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Overall experiences and progress of

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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Overall experiences and progress of

Date of previous inspection: 27 January 2020

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Overall experiences and progress of

Overall judgement at last inspection: good Inspection report for residential special school - Brompton Hall School 2

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improvement to be good

Significant changes have taken place in the school since the last inspection. This includes the appointment of a new, interim, headteacher. She is overseeing new ways of working with children. Staff are now using a more nurturing and restorative approach. Children had experienced a very unsettled time during the school day, which meant that some children did not feel safe. Due to the new approaches now being used, children are more settled. Children said they are happier, and this view is shared by parents and staff.

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improvement to be good

Children’s learning was disrupted because staff were unable to manage their behaviour during the school day. Incidents included children climbing onto roofs and running out of the school. Children were violent towards each other and towards staff. The interim headteacher is helping staff to feel confident in managing children’s behaviour positively. As a result, incidents of challenging and unsafe behaviour have reduced significantly since the interim headteacher came into post.

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improvement to be good

Children enjoy good relationships with the staff in the residential provision and like to stay in the residence. They make friends with other children and enjoy a wide range of experiences. Children’s favourite activities include riding motorbikes, going swimming and attending music clubs. The variety of evening activities improves children’s confidence and social skills.

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improvement to be good

Children’s physical well-being is promoted by residential staff. Staff speak to parents about any health concerns. When required, they work alongside parents to make appointments for children to see a doctor. This means that children’s medical needs are met quickly. Staff follow arrangements to administer medication safely, meaning errors rarely occur.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand children’s mental health needs. They refer children to specialist agencies when there are concerns about their emotional well-being. Staff follow up referrals if the response is slow. As a result, delays in children receiving the right mental health support are minimised .

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improvement to be good

Children provide their views about staying in the residential provision. They regularly meet as small groups and as a student council. This means that staff learn about children’s preferences, including what they like to eat and what activities they enjoy. Children also use these opportunities to talk about the changes in the wider school. This helps them to understand the recent developments and gives them a chance to offer additional suggestions. Children learn that their views matter and that they have a right to influence their world.

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improvement to be good

Staff are helping children to reduce incidents of discriminatory language. Some children are part of an equalities and diversity group, where they talk about specific Inspection report for residential special school - Brompton Hall School 3 concerns and devise solutions to educate other children about the impact of such language. This group is recently set up and it is too early to measure its impact.

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improvement to be good

The residential provision uses sleeping night staff. To supplement these staff, there is closed-circuit television (CCTV) in the residential corridors. This does not safeguard children effectively at night. Unless children contact sleeping night staff about any issues, they are unsupervised. This strategy to managing groups of children cannot prevent an incident from occurring. The policy on the use of CCTV does not clearly set out the expectations of staff or management oversight.

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improvement to be good

Action is taken when children are at risk of harm. Appropriate referrals are made to other agencies, such as children’s social care, when required. Information is shared with professionals, including the local authority designated officer. This means that steps to keep children safe are taken quickly and in children’s best interests.

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improvement to be good

Staff complete a range of training to provide them with the skills they need to care for and protect children. This includes mandatory and additional safeguarding training, for example around peer-on-peer abuse. In addition, staff are trained in using the case management system for reporting concerns. Staff said that training opportunities are much improved compared to their previous experience. They value this learning.

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improvement to be good

The role of the designated safeguarding lead is currently delegated to the interim headteacher. This does not follow statutory guidance and is confusing for staff. The interim headteacher accepted these concerns during the inspection. She is in the process of making new arrangements for this statutory role.

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good

The interim headteacher is new in post. She arrived at a very difficult and unsettled time in the school. Children’s behaviour was often out of control and staff morale was low. The interim headteacher is working hard to improve children’s experiences and learning opportunities. She leads by example and her positive approach is starting to become embedded. As a result, children are settled, and staff feel more confident in their roles. The situation for children has improved so much that one parent commented, ‘The new headteacher is a miracle worker.’

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good

The role of the residential lead is not well defined. The residential lead does not have an up-to-date job description. Neither the residential lead nor staff understand what this role involves. This reduces the ability of the residential lead to understand the functioning and development of the residential provision. Inspection report for residential special school - Brompton Hall School 4 The residential lead’s oversight of the service is poor. Other priorities in the school have taken precedence over the monitoring of the residential provision. As a result, the organisation of children’s documents and files is inconsistent. Some risk assessments are incomplete. This means that staff do not have up-to-date guidance on safeguarding children in their care.

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good

Staff look to the interim headteacher, rather than the residential lead, for support. Staff feel that they can go to the interim headteacher at any time. One member of staff commented, ‘She actually listens.’ The lack of direct management oversight from the residential lead leaves residential staff without formal supervision. This is a missed opportunity to provide support and development opportunities for staff.

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good

The interim executive board does not have a meaningful focus on the residential provision. There is insufficient oversight of the effectiveness of the residential leadership and the quality of care provided. This lack of monitoring does not allow the strengths of the service to be identified, and leaves areas of weakness unaddressed.

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good

Leaders are supported by the independent visitor, who provides evaluative feedback following his visits to the residence. Children know the independent visitor well and tell him their views about their experiences. The independent visitor recognises the difficulties in the management of the residence. He makes useful recommendations to improve practice.

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good

The interim headteacher recognises that improvement is needed across the school. She prioritises issues that matter most to children. This means that, while children are now safer and are improving their learning, other changes, including in the residential provision, are not yet complete. She accepts this and is committed to continuing the progress already made. Inspection report for residential special school - Brompton Hall School 5

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special schools

The school does not meet the following national minimum standards for residential special schools:

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special schools

 The school ensures that: arrangements are made to safeguard and promote the welfare of children at the school; and such arrangements have regard to any guidance issued by the Secretary of State. (Residential special schools: national minimum standard 11.1)  The school’s governing body and/or proprietor monitors the effectiveness of the leadership, management and delivery of the boarding and welfare provision in the school, and takes appropriate action where necessary. (Residential special schools: national minimum standard 13.1)  There is clear leadership and management of the practice and development of residential and care provision in the school. (Residential special schools: national minimum standard 13.2)  The school’s leadership and management demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role. This particularly relates to the residential provision. (Residential special schools: national minimum standard 13.3)

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special schools

 The school’s leadership and management consistently fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the standards are met. (Residential special schools: national minimum standard 13.4)  All staff have access to support and advice for their role. They also have regular supervision and formal annual appraisal of their performance. (Residential special schools: national minimum standard 19.6)  Whilst the activities of the designated safeguarding lead can be delegated to appropriately trained deputies, the ultimate lead responsibility for safeguarding and child protection, as set out above, remains with the designated safeguarding lead. This responsibility should not be delegated (‘Keeping children safe in education’, page 27, paragraph 91)  Governing bodies and proprietors should ensure an appropriate senior member of staff, from the school or college leadership team, is appointed to the role of designated safeguarding lead. The designated safeguarding lead should take lead

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special schools

responsibility for safeguarding and child protection (including online safety). This should be explicit in the role-holder’s job description (see Annex C, which describes the broad areas of responsibility and activities related to the role). (‘Keeping children safe in education’, page 27, paragraph 89) Inspection report for residential special school - Brompton Hall School 6

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Recommendation

 All children and staff are given an opportunity to discuss with a relevant adult (who was not directly involved) within 24 hours incidents of restraint, including reasonable force, they have been involved in, witnessed or been affected by. (Residential special schools: national minimum standard 12.5)

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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 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 - Brompton Hall School 7

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Residential special school details

Social care unique reference number: SC007923

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Residential special school details

Headteacher/teacher in charge: Elaine Mallen (interim)

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Residential special school details

Type of school: Residential special school

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Residential special school details

Email address: admin@bromptonhall.n-yorks.sch.uk

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Inspectors

Jamie Richardson, Social Care Inspector (lead) Jane Titley, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for residential special school - Brompton Hall School 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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