The Banyan Tree

Inspection report for children’s home: SC396186 1 SC396186 Registered provider: Living Life (UK) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a private provider. It provides care for up to five children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, two children were living at the home. Two children had moved out since the last inspection.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 2021.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 14 February 2023

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC396186 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/02/2023 Full Good 02/03/2022 Full Good 30/12/2019 Full Good 14/08/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC396186 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children build safe and trusting relationships with staff. Both children living at the home said that they felt listened to and cared for.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children’s health needs are met quickly. They receive additional and specialist training where children have more acute health needs. As a result, children are cared for by staff who understand their health needs and vulnerabilities well.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are well supported with their education. When children are out of education, the manager works alongside social workers and education professionals. They advocate for children to attend a provision that meets their specific needs. One child had not felt safe enough to attend education for a number of years. They were supported to attend a specialist provision on a full-time timetable. The child’s education officer attributed this progress to the manager’s advocacy and proactiveness.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff are proud of the home. They work hard to make it a welcoming and cosy home for the children. The children have spaces where they can choose to spend time alone if they want. They can also sit with staff and watch their favourite television shows. There is also a dedicated room for home education. Children’s pictures are displayed on the walls on entering the house and up the stairways. Children sleep in bedrooms personalised with letters and cards from their family and staff members. Each child has a pet.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and staff have fun together outside the home environment. Children enjoy trips to the seaside; they go swimming and bowling with staff and also walk together. Staff consider children’s varied interests when planning this time. For example, one child has sat and watched cows with staff, while another has been stargazing.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children spend meaningful time with family and friends. Staff understand the importance of building and maintaining children’s relationships with their families. Parents are positive about the care the manager and staff show their children. One parent expressed gratitude for ‘everything you are doing for my child.’ Another parent spoke of how the manager had gone ‘above and beyond’ in arranging for them to cook together with their child like ‘we used to when they were at home.’

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s moves into the home are exceptionally well supported and assessed by the manager. Children leaving the home have an equally personalised experience. The manager works alongside the clinical psychologist. This minimises the potential for children to experience any rejection. As a result, children still maintain their connection with the home, and they visit staff after they have left. They are also invited back for Christmas meals and other special occasions. Inspection report for children’s home: SC396186 4

p.3

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

Children say they feel safe. Social workers agree that children are kept safe and offered consistency and care. One child’s social worker said that this was the longest their child has stayed at a home. She attributed this to the manager and her staff’s understanding of the child’s needs and vulnerabilities.

p.4

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

The registered manager and staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities and ensure that they work together with other professionals. Incidents are managed extremely well, and all necessary actions are taken to ensure that children are safeguarded effectively.

p.4

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

Children rarely go missing from the home. When they do, staff are proactive and curious. When a child went missing, staff worked with the child to understand the factors that led to their disappearance. They also worked with the child’s social worker to agree that the child could spend time with someone special to them. As a result, this child has not been missing since.

p.4

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

Staff confidently understand children’s vulnerabilities. They talk to children about what they are worried about. Strategies to help keep children safe are clearly set out in children’s individual risk assessments. These risk assessments are reviewed frequently. As a result, children can talk about how to keep themselves safe. One child explained how they had been supported to contribute to risk assessments around their acute health needs. As a result, the child felt heard and listened to and better understood staff’s actions.

p.4

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

Physical intervention is only used rarely. Staff look beyond the children’s behaviour. With the help of a clinical psychologist, they try to understand and empathise with how the children are feeling. This helps staff to meet the children’s attachment needs.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is a tenacious advocate for the children. Both children talked of how the manager ‘has my back’ or is ‘always fighting for me’. The manager is unapologetic about the high standards of care that she expects staff and professionals to provide to the children. As a result, children are cared for consistently in line with the home’s ethos and statement of purpose.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows the strengths and weaknesses of the home. She has robust quality assurance measures in place and an effective development plan that identifies relevant actions to improve the quality of care provided to children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff consistently say that they are very well supported by the registered manager and enjoy working at the home. Staff receive regular and effective supervision that is further enhanced by regular team meetings and reflective space within the clinical Inspection report for children’s home: SC396186 5 consultations. This helps staff to feel fully supported in their roles and with their continual professional development. Furthermore, new staff are motivated throughout the induction and probation process. This gives staff a sense of being appreciated and valued. Consequently, staff morale appears high.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are provided with a balance of online and face-to-face training. They are trained to understand and respond to the needs of the children. For example, they receive training in areas such as transgender issues, restorative practice and trauma-informed care. Learning from this training is embedded in practice. Staff are given opportunities to develop their skills further.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and her staff have good working relationships with professionals. These professionals, such as police officers and social workers, consistently praise the manager and her staff. One child’s independent reviewing officer praised the manager for her ‘dedication and commitment to doing the right thing’. They said that she always ensured the child’s voice was ‘front and centre’. This means that the children have a wide network of relationships with adults. This keeps them safe and increases their relational resilience. Children will benefit from this support as a skill that they can take into their adult lives. Inspection report for children’s home: SC396186 6

p.5

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: SC396186 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Living Life (UK) Limited

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 60 Overstone Road, Sywell, Northampton NN6 0AW

p.7

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Lorraine Andrews-Miller

p.7

Inspector

Majella Russell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC396186 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.

p.7

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8