Children's Home run by Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council in Barnsley

Inspection report for children's home: SC422464 1 SC422464 Registered provider: Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council 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 the local authority. It provides care and accommodation through short-break arrangements for up to 10 children with learning and/or physical disabilities, some of whom have complex health conditions.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in 2011. She has significant experience and knowledge of working with children with disabilities and complex health needs.

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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: 28 September 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 for children's home: SC422464 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/09/2021 Full Good 13/01/2020 Full Good 05/04/2018 Full Good 13/06/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: SC422464 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, refurbishment and redecoration have been carried out at the home. These improvements have enhanced children’s experiences further because the home environment is welcoming and reflects their needs. The well- equipped home and the sensory garden provide children with stimulating and relaxing experiences. Children’s social skills continue to improve as they explore their environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff meet children’s complex health needs. Parents trust the staff to care for their children where their medical conditions mean that sudden changes are detrimental to their health. A nurse who supports the home said, ‘Parents are not nervous about sending their children to the home. The staff handle the children’s complex needs so well.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work closely with parents and education staff, and regularly attend care planning meetings. This provides a consistent approach to children’s care, such as staff working with parents and education staff on toileting and medication programmes. This comprehensive teamwork means that children’s progress is significant. For example, one child continues to make progress with toileting and another child no longer requires night-time medication.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Careful planning and matching give children the chance to stay at the home at the same time as their friends or others with similar interests. Staff focus on making sure that children have fun during their short-break stays. This is demonstrated by the photos of the children around the home. Children’s achievements are celebrated and praised, and staff display these on the walls around the home. This makes children feel proud of their achievements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are effective in consulting with children. Their substantial knowledge of the children helps them to develop personalised communication programmes, including Makaton and Picture Exchange Communication Systems. This means that children are actively involved in decisions about their care and the running of the home.

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

Children are kept safe by a staff team that provides high levels of supervision and support. Staff’s knowledge of the risks to children’s safety is good. Risk assessments contain up-to-date information and provide staff with clear actions to follow to manage and reduce risks. Consequently, the staff’s responses are in line with children’s current information. This is especially important for those children who have severe health conditions that can quickly change or deteriorate. Inspection report for children's home: SC422464 4 Staff’s knowledge and actions help to prevent children’s self-injurious behaviours and help to keep children calm when they are sad, anxious or frustrated. Staff follow children’s plans to ensure that they all use the same approach. This reduces the likelihood of children feeling confused.

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

Physical restraint is used as a last resort to keep children and others safe from immediate harm. Records of these incidents include the actions staff have taken to de-escalate the situation and to keep children safe. Nevertheless, these records do not consistently include children’s views and necessary debriefs, and they are not always signed by managers to confirm that they are accurate. This does not give all involved the opportunity to learn from the incident.

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

Consequences used are proportionate to children’s behaviours. The aim of these is to allow children to reflect on their behaviour and make better choices going forward.

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

Medication errors are quickly identified and addressed, therefore reducing the impact on the children. Staff work and communicate effectively with parents to ensure medication is correct prior to any short-break stays and on discharge. For example, staff identified that a parent brought in medication that was not prescribed for the child. This error was soon rectified, and the correct medication was handed to staff.

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

Professionals and parents spoke positively about this home. They said that children are kept safe while visiting the home and that they have no concerns with the quality of care that the children receive. One social worker said, ‘Children are kept safe. The level of recording from staff has been the best in [name of child]’s life. This has helped medical professionals track patterns of behaviours and triggers to further help them longer term.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The experienced manager is supported by a knowledgeable management team, and strong leadership is provided by this committed team. Their hands-on involvement with the children means that this work ethic filters down to the dedicated staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager successfully managed the refurbishment and redecoration of the home. This included supporting children while work commenced. This careful planning resulted in little disruption for the children and families who access the service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff said that they are supported in their role by the management team. They benefit from regular formal supervision sessions and access to relevant training. Staff said that supervision sessions are reflective and developmental. Nevertheless, supervision records sampled were brief and not reflective of staff practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

All staff are up to date with their physical restraint, safeguarding, first-aid, moving and handling, and medication training. Nevertheless, no staff have the training to Inspection report for children's home: SC422464 5 appropriately apply devices to a child’s head and arms, leaving the child at risk of injury.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is aware of the home’s strengths and areas for development. The monitoring systems in place mean that when shortfalls are found, the manager takes immediate action to ensure that these are swiftly rectified.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff handovers are clear and constructive. Staff reflect on behaviours and discuss effective ways of working with the children on their planned stays. This means that staff can prepare and plan their shift effectively to meet children’s individual needs. Inspection report for children's home: SC422464 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 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; and

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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 staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)) 26 November

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)ii)(c)) 26 November

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that there are systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2) Inspection report for children's home: SC422464 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: SC422464 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Gateway Plaza, Sackville Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire S70 2RD

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Inspector

Gemma McDonnell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC422464 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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