Children's Home run by Brinscall Care (NW) Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2710949 1 Registered provider: Brinscall Care (NW) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is managed by a private company. It provides care for up to three children who may have social and emotional difficulties or learning disabilities. One child was living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2023. This is the first inspection since registration.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2710949 2

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improvement to be good

Staff promote a positive environment for children. Staff are nurturing and caring in their approach. However, the progress children make has been inconsistent and their progress has not been sustained effectively.

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improvement to be good

The manager’s pre-admission assessment for one child was not robust enough and failed to identify the level of the child’s complexities and vulnerabilities. This led to the child leaving the home prematurely, as staff could not meet the child’s specific needs or ensure their long-term safety. The home is adjacent to a busy main road, and this placed the child at increased risk of harm. The child was supported by staff to move on to a more suitable location.

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improvement to be good

An additional child moved on from the home after three months. The child did well initially. However, there was an increase in unsafe behaviours. This led to the manager serving notice to the placing authority and the child moving on from the home. As a result, the outcomes achieved by children have not been consistently positive.

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improvement to be good

Staff have not been pro-active in promoting children’s continuing engagement in education or other informal learning opportunities. The child is currently receiving independent tuition for two hours, three days a week. However, the child’s engagement in education is sporadic. As a result, the child is not attending education regularly or receiving the education that they need to succeed. A social worker said, ‘We are exploring alternative educational provision.’

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improvement to be good

One child lives in the home currently. The child’s social worker said, ‘The staff have been brilliant and they’re very kind natured. My child’s transition was very positive.’ The child has engaged in some in-house activities and is slowly becoming more socially outgoing. However, staff struggle to engage the child in community-based activities to develop the child’s positive interests and hobbies. The child said, ‘I haven’t been on activities. When staff ask, I have always been busy.’

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improvement to be good

Staff work hard to form positive relationships with children. They support children to see their friends and families. This ensures that children sustain their close relationships with the people who are most important to them. Staff promote the health needs of children and ensure that their health needs are reliably met.

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improvement to be good

The home provides children with a welcoming, modern, comfortable and homely living environment. The child likes their bedroom. However, the bedroom requires minor redecoration because the child had previously written on a wall. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710949 3

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

Staff prioritise the safety of children and have a good understanding of their individual needs and vulnerabilities. Staff are committed to ensuring that the children in their care are protected from harm and have a safe environment to live in.

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

Staff use risk management plans to identify and manage risks to children. This approach has proved to be effective, which means that children are increasingly safer due to the actions staff take to support and protect them. Risks associated with children are managed safely and effectively by staff.

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

Staff have high expectations of positive behaviour and provide children with clear rules and boundaries. Staff are trained in behaviour management and therapeutic parenting to enable them to manage children’s behaviours safely.

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

The use of restraint is a last resort that is only ever used to keep children safe from harm. However, when restraint has been used, children have not always received the support that they need to allow them to express their feelings and reflect on their behaviour.

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

There have been no complaints from children since the last inspection. Allegations of abuse are managed effectively and professionally by staff. Significant incidents are reported to the appropriate authorities to protect children and keep them safe from harm.

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

Staff maintain highly effective partnerships with the police and the placing authorities to promote the welfare and safety of children. A social worker said, ‘I have zero complaints. The manager is fantastic. I can’t fault their commitment.’

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good

The registered manager is experienced and qualified. A stable staff team is employed to provide children with continuity of care. This ensures that children benefit from stability and consistency in their lives.

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good

Staff are caring professionals who genuinely aspire to make a positive difference to the lives of children. However, staff are not yet meeting the aims and objectives, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose, effectively. This means that the desired outcomes for children have not been achieved successfully. Despite the managers best intentions, two of three children have left the home prematurely.

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good

Moving forward, the manager is eager to rectify any shortfalls in terms of future assessments for children to ensure that staff can meet their specific needs and improve the outcomes of children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710949 4 Staff benefit from regular team meetings and performance-related supervision. Staff confirm that they are supported in their roles and have complete faith in the manager. A staff member said, ‘She is an amazing manager.’

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good

The home is visited each month by an independent person who scrutinises the care provided to children. This includes the arrangements for safeguarding children and promoting their well-being. These visits help the manager to understand the weaknesses and strengths of the home. This manager addresses any shortfalls in practice in order to improve the care provided in the home.

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good

The manager is currently in the process of completing a quality-of-care review to cover the experiences of children over the last six months. The report is due to be submitted to Ofsted this month. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710949 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, The 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 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;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

maintain regular contact with each child’s education and training provider, including engaging with the provider and the placing authority to support the child’s education and training and to maximise the child’s achievement;

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to appropriate equipment, facilities and resources to support the child’s learning.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(x)(b)) 14 November 2023

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Requirement Due date

The enjoyment and achievement standard is that children take part in and benefit from a variety of activities that meet their needs and develop and reflect their creative, cultural, intellectual, physical and social interests and skills. 14 November 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2710949 6 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

develop the child’s interests and hobbies;

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Requirement Due date

participate in activities that the child enjoys and which meet and expand the child’s interests and preferences; and

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Requirement Due date

make a positive contribution to the home and the wider community; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to a range of activities that enable the child to pursue the child’s interests and hobbies.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 9 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

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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

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)) 14 November 2023

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the child’s-stained bedroom wall is redecorated. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that following the use of restraint, there is a debrief held with the child to allow them to express their feelings and support their recovery. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 50, paragraph 9.60) Inspection report for children’s home: 2710949 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: 2710949 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Brinscall Care (NW) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Mailboxes Etc, Peel House, 30 The Downs, Altrincham WA14 2PX

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Inspector

Anthony Kyem, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2710949 9 regulates and inspects 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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