Children's home run by Hollybank Trust in Kirklees

Inspection report for children’s home: SC034415 1 SC034415 Registered provider: Hollybank Trust 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 operated by a charitable trust. It provides a mix of short breaks and long-term care for up to seven children and young people with complex physical disabilities and associated communication, sensory and learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child, and three young people who had turned 18 years old, were living at the home on a permanent basis.

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Information about this children’s home

No children were present under the short-break arrangement at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

Ofsted registered the manager of the home in March 2023.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC034415 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/03/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 16/03/2022 Full Good 18/02/2020 Full Good 05/08/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC034415 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is situated in the sprawling grounds of Hollybank Trust. Children and young people who live at the home permanently access the school that is also situated in the grounds. This has built a sense of community that is focused on meeting the children and young people’s complex needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is good collaboration between the carers and the multi-disciplinary team of professionals who work in the grounds of the trust. As a result, children and young people have swift access to expert input when it is needed, such as occupational therapy. This means that when issues emerge, such as with the children and young people’s aids and adaptations, they are quickly addressed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The carers are competent and confident in using the children and young people’s mobility aides to effectively support their movement. Carers bring joy and laughter to the children and young people through singing nursery rhymes and playing games with them. This practice increases the children and young people’s quality of life and improves their connection to their carers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager has improved the referral process for children who use the home for short-break care. This has enabled the manager to be thorough when assessing the children’s complex needs. Therefore, the manager and her team are better prepared to care for children who use the home on a short-term basis.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are knowledgeable and confident about managing the children and young people’s complex health needs. Health professionals seek the carers’ knowledge of the children and young people to ensure that their health and care needs are well met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The carers understand the need to keep the children and young people’s families up to date. There is good collaboration between the carers and the children and young people’s parents. One parent described the communication with the carers as ‘constant’. Another parent said that the written information about their child was ‘relatable’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager appropriately challenges the children and young people’s respective local authorities when statutory documents are not updated. Carers work in a coordinated manner with education professionals who work alongside the children and young people, and, collectively, they contribute to the statutory meetings. Following these meetings, the staff and education professionals compile their own review report. This reduces the risk of carers and professionals overlooking the children and young people’s identified support needs through a lack of up-to-date information. Inspection report for children’s home: SC034415 4

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

The manager has introduced a clearer safeguarding process. This helps the carers to have a better understanding of the actions that they must take when concerns about the children and young people’s welfare are identified. This process has improved the communication between the manager, carers, parents and social workers. However, this process has yet to be embeded, and has failed to ensure that all significant incidents are consistently shared with Ofsted in line with the regulation.

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

Children and young people’s written records give clarity on all aspects of their care. There is good management oversight and follow-up action to significant events that occur in the home. This ensures that there is objective scrutiny concerning the children and young people’s care. This promotes accountability and improves reflective practice.

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

Occupational therapists compile detailed plans for carers to follow in respect of using the children and young people’s aids and adaptations. However, important information from two of the young people’s plans were missing. Although this did not affect the young people’s care, it creates unnecessary vulnerabilities for carers to navigate.

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

Children and young people’s care plans provide clear information that is current for carers to follow. Although these care plans signpost the carers to other useful information, such as the children and young people’s communication passports, there is little information about the children and young people’s diagnosed health conditions. This oversight hinders the carers’ ability to better understand the children and young people’s needs.

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

There is an established process to help carers to plan and prepare for excursions out of the home. The process is improved by senior carers who have oversight of the planning. The system keeps the children and young people safer and more comfortable when they experience activities away from the home.

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

There is good transition planning for young people who are transitioning into adulthood. The manager ensures that the young person’s capacity is assessed by qualified practitioners. This ensures that a qualified assessor can make a judgement about promoting the young people’s human rights against the need to deprive aspects of the young people’s liberty to keep them safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has improved team cohesion. This has enhanced the communication between carers. As a result, team meetings and children and young people’s key meetings are more productive. This has galvanised team morale and promoted individual accountability. Inspection report for children’s home: SC034415 5 The trust ensure that parents receive Ofsted’s annual survey. This enables the parents to share their experience of the service with the regulator. However, the lack of an effective internal consultation system means that the manager was not aware of the shortfalls that several parents had raised with Ofsted. The manager is developing a system that may remedy this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has improved the supervision process for the staff. Supervision sessions are structured and cover pertinent issues. Carers value these sessions and find them productive. Supervision sessions promote the carers’ accountability to their role and encourage their learning and development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New carers embark on a structured and well-organised induction programme. The manager ensures that new carers are gradually introduced into the home. This enables inexperienced carers to develop their confidence in caring for the children and young people with complex needs. Additionally, it better supports the children and young people to build a rapport with new members of the care team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Auditing systems are focused and meaningful. The manager has played a pivotal role in developing these systems so that management oversight is more effective. This improves the setting’s ability to practice in the relevant legal framework. Additionally, the manager’s scrutiny better protects young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The trust make every effort to support the children and young people’s families to enjoy quality time with their children. The trust arrange seasonal concerts and events that parents are invited to. This creates the opportunity for parents to spend memorable moments with their children in a safe and accessible environment. Inspection report for children’s home: SC034415 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the manager and staff have the relevant skills and knowledge to be able to meet the specific individual health needs arising from a child or young person’s disability, chronic condition or other complex needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 34, paragraph 7.12)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the manager and staff notify Ofsted if one of the situations specified in regulation 40(4)(a)-(d) occurs, or if there is an incident relating to the protection, safeguarding or welfare of a child or young person who lives in the home, that the registered person considers to be serious (40(4)(e)). (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.10)

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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: SC034415 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hollybank Trust, Far Common Road, Mirfield WF14 0DQ

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Inspector

Steve Guirey, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC034415 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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