Children's Home run by The Ryes College Limited in Suffolk

Inspection report children’s home: SC429748 1 SC429748 Registered provider: The Ryes College Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned home provides care for up to four children who have experienced trauma that has left them vulnerable.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2011.

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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: 2 December 2021

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC429748 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/12/2021 Full Good 17/12/2019 Full Good 29/08/2018 Full Good 19/12/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC429748 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, three children were living at the home. Children’s moves into the home are positive and well planned. A child who moved on from the home experienced a smooth and well-planned move.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are experienced and confident. They provide the children with emotional warmth and nurturing support. Staff know the children well and speak openly with them about their difficulties. This has helped the children to confidently share how they feel and seek out help and advice from staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to attend education. Two children are in full-time education and are progressing well. Another child is supported by a teaching assistant to attend full-time education and physical activities. As a result, the children are working towards their academic potential.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the children’s health needs well. The staff receive support from external agencies to help children with their emotional well-being. One child is being helped with his diet and physical exercise to improve his health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to participate in enjoyable activities, such as the going to the cinema, trampolining and boxing. The staff are arranging activities for the children during the school holidays. This helps children to build positive relationships with their peers and increases their confidence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to spend time with their family and friends. The staff work with parents and professionals to ensure that the children’s experiences are positive. This helps the children to improve their self-esteem and retain their identity.

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

Staff understand the risks for children and use agreed strategies to improve children’s safety. Risk assessments are detailed. These contain presenting risks and are regularly reviewed. This helps the staff to provide a consistent approach.

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

Staff are familiar with the safeguarding and whistle-blowing policy. They are confident about who to contact should they have concerns about a child.

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

Staff support children to be independent and take age-appropriate risks. One child has a local part-time job and is encouraged to use public transport. The children spend time in the community with their friends. This helps the children to develop their life skills and understand their personal safety.

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

Staff know the children well and recognise when children are feeling anxious or worried. The staff help the children to understand how they feel and to make Inspection report children’s home: SC429748 4 positive decisions. As a result, there has only been one missing-from-home incident since the last inspection and physical interventions have significantly reduced.

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

The children are helped to understand how their behaviours impact on others. Restorative work is carried out with children and, when appropriate, financial sanctions are used. However, some sanctions do not detail the monetary amount or the duration and are not reviewed by the manager. As a result, restorative learning for children is not always effective.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and suitably qualified. The manager and the deputy manager work well together and have high expectations for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has established a stable and committed staff team. The managers work effectively with staff to ensure that children’s experiences are positive and that the home is run efficiently.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff participate in regular team meetings to share information about the children, reflect on the children’s progress and discuss the running of the home. These forums provide opportunities for staff to share practice ideas. This has helped staff to meet the needs of the children consistently.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff value the manager’s knowledge and experience and are positive about her availability to give support and advice. Supervision sessions are regular and give staff the opportunity to discuss the children’s needs and share any concerns that they have.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are qualified to a level 3 diploma. The staff access training in core areas, including safeguarding, physical intervention and first aid. However, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder training has not been provided. Therefore, the staff do not always have the understanding and skills to fully meet the individual needs of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff have their performance and fitness appraised once a year. However, the appraisals do not clearly demonstrate targets for their professional development or consider the views of other professionals who have worked with staff. As a result, the evaluation of staff’s performance and their development needs is not effective.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring systems provide oversight of the care provided. The manager responds to recommendations made by the independent person to improve the quality of care. However, the independent person has not provided feedback from professionals who work with the children. As a result, professionals’ opinions are not used.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The statement of purpose has not been updated or shared with Ofsted. This prevents Ofsted from being aware of any changes. Inspection report children’s home: SC429748 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

Keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3) (a)(b)) 8 August 2022

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(iv)(vii)) 8 August 2022

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44 (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the independent person should consult with external professionals to inform their view of the quality of care for the children. 1 September 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs, and they should understand the key role they play in the training and development of staff in the home. In particular, staff should complete relevant training to help them to understand the Inspection report children’s home: SC429748 6 individual needs of the children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The registered person should ensure that annual appraisals take into account, where reasonable and practical, the views of other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year and children in the home’s care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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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 children’s home: SC429748 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Ryes College Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 3 Skyview Business Centre, 9 Church Field Road, Sudbury CO10 2YA

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Inspector

Laraine Edmondson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC429748 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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