Children's Home run by Bryn Melyn Care Limited in Telford and Wrekin

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 1 SC372630 Registered provider: Bryn Melyn Care Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private company and is registered to provider care for four children. The home consists of two two-bedded houses. Both houses are detached and share the same garden.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager is in the process of applying to be registered.

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This monitoring visit

Ofsted visited this home on 11 May 2022 to carry out a full inspection. The home was judged to be inadequate. Serious failings were found in respect of the safeguarding of children and the leadership and management of the home. As a result, two compliance notices were raised, under regulation 12, the protection of children standard, and regulation 13, the leadership and management standard.

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This monitoring visit

This visit examined the progress made in meeting the compliance notices raised at the last inspection.

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This monitoring visit

Since the last inspection, the home has continued to experience a period of significant instability due to inconsistent staffing arrangements. This lack of staff continuity has had a detrimental impact on the quality of children’s care.

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This monitoring visit

One child was living in the home at the time of this visit. A shortage of staff and poor relationships with some staff led to another child moving on from the home suddenly. Leaders told the inspector that they made the decision to move the child as they could not keep him safe.

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This monitoring visit

Staff do not always supervise children effectively in the home. This has resulted in one child going missing from the home on three occasions. This inadequate staff Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 2 practice has left the child vulnerable to exploitation and using substances. These shortfalls mean that staff do not always prioritise the safety and welfare of children.

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This monitoring visit

Staff do not consistently follow children’s plans and guidance to keep children safe. Poor planning and risk management result in children being exposed to risk. For example, staff did not follow one child’s missing-from-home protocols as per the guidance. They did not search known locations used by the child and they did not carry out room searches of the child’s bedroom. This ineffective practice left the child vulnerable and exposed to potential harm.

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This monitoring visit

However, on other occasions, the home’s manager and responsible individual have led shifts and taken effective action to safeguard children. For example, during two incidents, one child did not go missing from the home because leaders followed the child’s plans effectively. Furthermore, the home’s manager has worked effectively and consistently with the police to safeguard one child at risk of exploitation.

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This monitoring visit

Children do not receive return home interviews within statutory timeframes following incidents of them going missing. One child has not had a return home interview with an independent person despite having been missing on three occasions. Furthermore, leaders do not consistently challenge the relevant professionals about these concerns, and this means that potentially important intelligence to safeguard children is missed.

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This monitoring visit

Leaders do not always ensure that staff receive support to manage children’s anxieties. Staff are not routinely spoken to or debriefed following significant incidents involving children. This means that leaders fail to provide staff with adequate guidance and learning to support them in keeping children safe. As a result, they cannot be assured that staff are confident in carrying out their duties to keep children safe.

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This monitoring visit

Since the last inspection, staff have completed some training courses which are relevant to the needs of the children. For example, they have completed child exploitation, substance use and self-harm training. These courses help to increase staff’s knowledge and understanding of children’s needs. However, staff have yet to complete formal missing-from-home training or emotional well-being training. This means that staff are not yet fully equipped with the specific skills and knowledge to promote children’s welfare.

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This monitoring visit

At the last inspection, Ofsted raised six requirements. The provider has failed to meet five of these requirements. This does not reassure the regulator that leaders and managers have the skills and oversight to take action to improve the care received by children.

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This monitoring visit

Leaders are fully aware of and acknowledge the shortfalls. As a result, they have begun to make improvements to the home. For example, a more stable staff team has been put in place. Staff are beginning to put in place boundaries and are providing a better structure for the one child living in the home. This has meant that Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 3 incidents have reduced significantly, and the child is starting to engage with more meaningful activities. However, these improvements are in their early stages and are not yet fully embedded into practice. Consequently, it is too early to see their impact.

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This monitoring visit

As a result of this inspection, compliance notices were reissued under regulation 12, the protection of children standard, and regulation 13, the leadership and management standard. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/05/2022 Full Inadequate 23/08/2021 Full Good 12/06/2019 Full Good 15/01/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 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

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should work effectively with the relevant professionals to ensure that return home interviews are completed with children by an independent person. Also, leaders should challenge the relevant professionals’ performance when they have failed to provide children with the opportunity to receive a return home interview following missing-from-home incidents.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 20 August 2022

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans; 20 August 2022 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 6 support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally; and

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(x))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the need for staff to provide a proactive and creative approach to ensure that children consistently engage in education.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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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; 20 August 2022 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 7 encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding; and

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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. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the need for staff to equip children with the knowledge and skills to understand their feelings and manage the risks that they may be exposed to.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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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—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and 20 August 2022 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 8 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)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the provider should ensure that staff understand and follow strategies in children’s risk assessments to keep them safe. This relates specifically to the supervision of children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the provider should ensure that the home’s rota is planned and delivered to ensure that staff working with children are suitably assessed to protect children from harm.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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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;

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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 have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(d)(e)(f)) 20 August 2022 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 9 In particular, senior leaders and managers should have clear systems in place to ensure that staff have the knowledge, skills and experience to safeguard children. Furthermore, leaders should implement systems to improve practice and ensure that sufficient numbers of staff understand children’s progress.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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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

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the provider should ensure that children have a positive experience of moving on from the home and that the plans are consistent with agreements with children’s placing authorities. 20 August 2022

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 10

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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

Dean Wilton, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC372630 11 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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