Children's home run by Keys Child Care Limited in Telford and Wrekin

Inspection report for children’s home: SC480318 1 SC480318 Registered provider: Bryn Melyn Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The service is owned by a private company. The home is registered to provide care for up to four children. It provides a 12-week assessment for children in crisis. Children come to live at the home because of family or placement breakdown. Some children have difficulties that make it very hard to live in a family setting, or they choose not to. Some children have experienced early childhood trauma.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager of this home has been in post since February 2022. She is in the process of registering with Ofsted.

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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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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 requires improvement to be 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: SC480318 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/08/2019 Full Good 07/08/2018 Full Good 02/11/2017 Full Good 08/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC480318 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children move into this home when they are experiencing a time of crisis. Staff ensure that they provide children with care that is sensitive to their complex needs. They use reassurance and empathy to help them work through their difficulties and develop coping strategies. Because of this, children experience a stable and caring environment, sometimes for the first time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff are resilient and consistent in their care of children. They remain determined to support children and build relationships with them, even when children are unable to manage their emotions. Staff regularly consult with members of the provider’s therapeutic service. This helps staff to understand the challenges they face by using reflective practice to identify underlying causes for changes in children’s behaviour. As a result, children receive care from staff who fully understand their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Most children make progress from their starting points when they come to live at this home. This is because the care they receive has helped them to feel safe and provides them with a period of stability. One social worker said that the work completed with a child ‘has quickly proven to be successful and my young person is doing better now than he has done in the last couple of years’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children engage in therapeutic support and have made some good progress as a result. This is because the care they receive has helped them to feel safe to explore trauma and difficult experiences. This support is central to formulating recommendations for children’s longer-term care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work closely with education staff from the provider’s own school, which operates a satellite provision at the home and provides on-site education to children. Staff creatively adapt children’s days when they find engagement difficult. One child who has not been in education for a long time is now engaging in education every day.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work hard to provide the children with memorable experiences. These are captured in memory books, which include personalised messages from staff. This is a reminder to children of the progress they make. One child who returned to the home after several placement breakdowns had treasured the book, as this reminded him of a positive period in his life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work in a transparent way with children who have complex needs. They listen to them and help them understand decisions that are made about them. However, there are occasions when children’s views are not responded to. For example, one child raised a concern when she completed an evaluation of her care. This concern was not responded to. This does not provide children with reassurance that their views and feedback are listened to. Inspection report for children’s home: SC480318 4 The interior of the home has sustained damage during recent incidents. The home environment is not welcoming throughout and there is limited personalisation of children’s bedrooms. This does not help children feel valued. The new manager has recognised this and has begun to make improvements in this area. The personalisation of children’s bedrooms was a recommendation at the last inspection and so has not been met.

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

Children are cared for by staff who know them well. Staff work hard to build positive relationships with children because they know that this is key to keeping them safe. The children’s plans address their individual needs. However, records do not incorporate information about all strategies that are being used to safeguard children.

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

Two children living in the home have similar risks. Thorough impact risk assessments and planning informed the decisions made about the children living together in the home. However, the influence the children have on each other has resulted in the staff team managing several incidents involving high-risk behaviours. This has included children causing significant damage to the home, being verbally abusive and displaying threatening and intimidating behaviour. When incidents occur, staff show a high level of resilience. They use strategies from risk assessments to manage and de-escalate situations. Staff do everything they can to maintain positive relationships. Children are shown unconditional positive regard and are supported well through debriefs and key-work sessions.

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

The manager recognises that partnership working with safeguarding agencies is pivotal to keeping children safe. She has challenged agencies when she has been concerned that their response does not support children’s safety. Regular meetings have taken place with partner agencies. Children are included in these meetings and helped to understand the impact of their behaviours on themselves and other people. Records and actions from these meetings are clearly documented. This supports effective risk management.

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

When children go missing from care, staff follow protocols and risk assessments. They work in partnership with other agencies to ensure that children return quickly and safely. One child’s episodes of going missing have decreased since he moved into the home. As a result, risks associated with criminal exploitation have also reduced.

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

Because staff have a good understanding of de-escalation techniques, physical interventions are used as a last resort. The manager’s oversight is evident and she reflects upon whether the restraint was proportionate. Children and staff participate in debriefs after the incident and any follow-up actions are set. This supports future learning that may need to take place with the team. Inspection report for children’s home: SC480318 5 Children receive key-work sessions from staff who have a good understanding of their risk and vulnerability. They cover a wide range of topics. Key-work sessions are approached creatively with children to promote engagement. This work is carefully reviewed and monitored due to the short-term nature of assessments. This helps to inform future planning.

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good

The new manager has been in post for five weeks and is experienced and passionate. She has submitted her application to register with Ofsted. The manager has a good vision for the service and has plans in place to drive up standards. However, prior to the new manager starting work at the home, the provider did not take sufficient steps to ensure that the previous manager submitted a timely application to register with Ofsted. This has contributed to the judgement of requires improvement to be good in leadership and management.

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good

Managers have a good understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. They have reviewed the current model of care and developed a more structured approach to assessment that will support improved care planning. This helps to ensure that children receive well-planned care that contributes effectively to their longer-term plans.

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good

There is a culture of learning and development in the home. The manager and staff are committed to training. Staff benefit from monthly reflective sessions with the provider’s clinical team. This means that children receive care from staff who are continually invested in improving their practice.

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good

The manager is an excellent advocate for children. She has ensured that all children have access to an advocate. This means that children are provided with essential support when difficult decisions are being made about their future. The manager has also supported a child to make a complaint about the service she received from his social worker. As a result, this support to the child has improved and he now feels his wishes and feelings are being listened to.

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good

Feedback from external stakeholders is good. Managers and staff know that it is important to build strong working relationships and this is a pivotal part of safeguarding children. One social worker told the inspector, ‘They [the manager and staff] keep the child at the centre of everything they do.’ Another professional said, ‘From the beginning I was impressed with the level of detail and planning put into considering how they would work together to meet the needs of my young person.’

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good

On the whole, records kept about children are thorough and detailed. However, care is not always taken by managers and staff to ensure that all records include the correct information. For example, records relating to sanctions for children did not contain the correct information, and there was confusion over actions taken. This is not helpful to children who may want to access their records in the future, and may prevent them from understanding their journey at the home. Inspection report for children’s home: SC480318 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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 the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that improvements are made to the home environment. 21 April 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children are consulted regularly on their views about the home’s care, to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided. Children should be able to see the results of their views being listened to and acted upon. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 22, paragraph 4.11)  The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children’s home: SC480318 7

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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: SC480318 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bryn Melyn Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Atria, Spa Road, Bolton BL1 4AG

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Inspector

Natasha Skinner, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC480318 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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