Children's Home run by Castle Care Homes in Bury

Inspection report for children’s home: 2663770 1 Registered provider: Castle Care Homes Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private company. The provider’s statement of purpose states that staff provide care for up to three children with emotional and social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since January 2022.

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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

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected Inspection report for children’s home: 2663770 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is very homely and comfortable. Bedrooms are personalised to reflect each child’s individual taste. A significant amount of care and attention has been taken to make this a warm, calm and welcoming home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff offer children individualised care. Staff are working hard to support the children and understand their individual needs. Children feel cared for and said that staff understand their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have opportunities to influence the care they receive. One child attended a staff meeting and discussed changes to house rules. Another child was able to let staff know how they preferred to be addressed. When children raise issues, they are treated with respect and their views are listened to and acted on.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress from their starting points. Staff have high aspirations for children and support their engagement in education. When children do not attend school, staff support them to access learning opportunities. For those children in school, staff arrange regular meetings with teaching staff to share information. A teacher said: ‘Staff are extremely supportive and this home is one of the best places I have worked with.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff set appropriate boundaries and establish clear routines for children. This provides children with a sense of safety and stability.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have access to different educational and fun activities. Staff encourage children to attend local activities, such as horse riding, the gym and local groups specific to their interests and needs. The opportunities that children are offered are helping them to develop their social skills and make new friends.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family time is promoted and supported when this is appropriate. Parents have been welcomed into the home and one child had the opportunity for their sibling to stay overnight. It is important for children to keep their family connections and will help them to retain a sense of identity and belonging.

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

The staff understand the children in their care well. There are detailed risk assessments which are regularly updated to reflect changes for the children. The risk assessments capture all the known risks and identify strategies for staff to follow that are effective in reducing risks.

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

Staff take an educational and supportive approach to helping children understand and better manage their behaviours, risks and vulnerabilities. Overall, children are Inspection report for children’s home: 2663770 3 starting to make better choices and taking increasing responsibility for their own safety. As a result, missing-from-home incidents have reduced.

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

Staff work alongside the psychologist to understand what the children need individually and put measures in place to support their positive behaviours. Children have regular access to therapeutic support, which builds their self-esteem and helps them manage their feelings.

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

Staff are building up a detailed understanding of each child and offer lots of nurture and support to ensure that children’s emotional needs are met. Children say that they feel cared for and safe. A social worker said: ‘They have helped to turn [name of child]’s missing-from-home behaviour around.’

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

When children do go missing from home, staff are tenacious in following detailed individual plans for each child. Staff know where to look for children and understand who they need to contact. As a result, children have been located quickly and brought back home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is passionate and child-focused. She knows the children and the staff team extremely well. She is aware of the home’s strengths and weaknesses and uses effective monitoring systems to identify when change or improvement is needed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have regular, reflective supervision with the manager or senior staff members. Staff speak very positively about their manager. They feel that she is a calm and approachable leader who is supportive and consistent.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have access to therapeutic consultations and training which supports them to provide a good quality of care to the children. Children know the staff who are caring for them well and are aware who is going to be there for them all the time. The stable staffing arrangements and consistent rota system provide a predictable environment and help children feel safe and secure.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have good working relationships with partner agencies, schools and family members. A social worker spoke about the ‘excellent’ communication they have with the staff and the manager. Inspection report for children’s home: 2663770 4

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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: 2663770 5

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Flint Glass Works, 64 Jersey Street, Manchester M4 6JW

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Inspector

Cathy Wilkins, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2663770 6 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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