St Rose’s School

Inspection report for residential special school - St Rose's School 1 St Rose’s School St Rose’s Special School, Stratford Lawn, Stroud, Gloucestershire GL5 4AP Residential provision inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential special school

St Rose’s is a co-educational, non-maintained, Roman Catholic day and residential school. It provides a service for children who have physical disabilities and/or associated sensory, communication and learning disabilities. Some children have complex healthcare issues, and 24-hour nursing support is available. Children are aged between two and 19 years.

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Information about this residential special school

Students stay in purpose-built accommodation attached to the main school, with capacity for four students to stay. At the time of this inspection, there were 38 students on roll in the school. The residential provision was supporting two students, both aged 18. The school offers flexible boarding arrangements, from one to four nights, with alternate weekend care available during term time.

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Information about this residential special school

The head of care has been in post since May 2023. She has stepped into the role following the departure of the previous head of care, having previously been in the role. The head of care is a registered nurse.

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Information about this residential special school

The inspector only inspected the social care provision at the school.

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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 outstanding

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good

The residential special school provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 28 February 2023

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good Inspection report for residential special school - St Rose's School 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Students receive support from a stable and committed staff team. Staff support students with the recognition that ‘there is always the potential for more’. Students continue to make good progress. Both students receive support to develop their communication skills. This means they can make choices about their care. One student no longer uses a high-sided bed for sleeping. This offers them more opportunities for care and support as an adult, as specialist equipment is no longer needed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Students benefit from their time in fully accessible accommodation. They access all their living space, moving freely between rooms or to the outside spaces. The statement of purpose is adapted for the students. This is displayed on a colourful and interesting board as students enter the residence. Interactive talking panels mean students can ask to speak to the head of care or the independent person, or simply ask for help.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff treat students with dignity and respect. Both students have been staying in residence for a number of years and are very familiar to staff. Importantly, staff respect that they are both now young adults and treat them as such. Staff offer students choices about their daily care and what they would like to do. Students enjoy a wide range of interesting activities, including in the on-site swimming pool, immersion room and newly built sensory garden. Students also enjoy visiting the local town at weekends.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Students receive support which improves their health and well-being. The school therapy team ensures care staff receive the support they need to help students. Leaders welcome other professionals to the school to hold clinics, helping to ensure they contribute to meeting students’ health needs. The integrated approach across the whole setting means children make excellent progress. However, leaders do not always capture how care staff contribute to that progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents value the support the stays in residence offer their children. They say they feel confident their children are well looked after and see the progress they make. Staff provide parents with the level of communication and support they want, meeting the individual needs of families.

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

There have been no safeguarding concerns since the last inspection. However, staff remain confident about how to identify and report concerns. Staff receive regular training and updates relating to safeguarding. The designated safeguarding lead ensures that safeguarding remains at the centre of practice. Inspection report for residential special school - St Rose's School 3 The therapy team takes the lead on behaviour support for students and places communication at the centre of the support offered. This recognises that behaviour is often linked to students’ difficulties in expressing themselves. Students have clear plans which staff follow consistently across the whole setting. This means students experience clear and predictable responses from those who support them.

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

Staff maintain a physically safe environment for children to spend time in. Staff undertake regular fire evacuations to understand what they need to do in the event of a fire. Leaders ensure appropriate equipment is in place to support safe evacuation. Staff receive training to use this specialist equipment.

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

Staff recruitment follows safer recruitment processes. A recruitment checklist helps to ensure the correct information is gathered and checked before employment. During the recruitment process, one staff member provided information about their past relating to potential risk. While this was known and discussed by leaders, there was no record of this consideration and how it did or did not impact on their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

A stable and consistent senior leadership team promotes a culture of positivity and inclusion. Leaders understand their provision well. They ensure there are plans and systems in place to deliver a consistently stable service, characterised by high expectations. Leaders foster a strong interconnectedness between all aspects of the school. This is most notably seen with the integration of therapy services. As a result of this, students receive seamless, joined-up and ambitious support that focuses on individual ability.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The impact of a change of head of care has been well managed, to minimise disruption for students. Leaders have ensured a skilled and knowledgeable head of care is supporting students. Leaders use creative recruitment strategies to consider further appointments. These recognise the issues previously identified and explore how to overcome them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff feel well supported and speak highly of the support they receive from the head of care. They feel encouraged to learn and develop. Managers challenge staff, to promote development of their practice. They expect staff to prepare and plan for supervision. This then leads to meaningful, reflective conversations. Well-planned refresher training ensures staff maintain the skills needed to support students to be safe and well cared for.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The independent visitor provides leaders with feedback and information. Leaders use this to drive continuous improvement and progress. They welcome the scrutiny offered and make improvements on the basis of advice given. Governors use these reports to review the effectiveness of leadership. Inspection report for residential special school - St Rose's School 4

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Points for improvement

 School leaders should ensure they capture the contribution care staff make to the progress children make.  School leaders should ensure they clearly record decisions made relating to employment risks.

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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 Children Act 1989 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 national minimum standards. Inspection report for residential special school - St Rose's School 5

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Residential special school details

Social care unique reference number: SC034383

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Residential special school details

Headteacher/teacher in charge: Sheila Talwar

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Residential special school details

Type of school: Residential special school

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Inspector

Clare Nixson, Social Care Inspector (lead) Inspection report for residential special school - St Rose's School 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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