Children's Home run by Bay Tree House Higham Ltd in Kent

Inspection report for children’s home: 2684211 1 Registered provider: Bay Tree House Higham Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home registered in August 2022. It provides residential therapeutic care for up to six children aged between eight and 17. The home’s statement of purpose describes the home as specialising in working with adolescents and providing nurturing care for children with a range of difficulties, including behavioural and learning difficulties, language and communication difficulties and autism spectrum disorder. There were four children living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has a separate annex that can accommodate up to two children. One child was living there at the time of inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered since January 2024.

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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: 15 February 2023

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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: 2684211 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/02/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2684211 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive care from a skilled and caring staff team. There has been a change in leadership since the last inspection. The new manager made some immediate and significant changes to the home in terms of her expectations for staff and children. This has led to an upskilling of staff and the creation of a more homely environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress in their health, education and overall experiences. A strong staff focus on education ensures that children’s attendance is good. This includes supporting children who have long journeys to school to maintain consistent education placements. For children who cannot yet manage a full education timetable, a bespoke tuition package is in place.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although children are making good progress, recording systems do not support the manager to review this information easily. This is because the information is held in several places. The manager speaks confidently about the progress that children make. However, this detail is not always accessible to the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is a strong focus on supporting children to participate in activities and clubs. These include football, swimming and youth clubs. There are also a range of activities offered within the home. Staff balance the need for children to have fun with the development of their independence skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Social workers speak positively about the care that children receive. They are confident that leaders and staff communicate any concerns or issues immediately. Professionals report that they trust staff to make good decisions and provide good care to children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are well understood. Regular children’s meetings and one-to-one sessions enable children to think about key areas that are important to them. Staff ensure that as well as having discussions about concerns or changes in behaviour, there is planned work undertaken to help children to develop their skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Two children have moved into the home since the last inspection. Their needs were carefully considered. The registered manager ensured that staff had the information they needed to meet the children’s needs. Consequently, the children experienced positive moves into the home.

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

Staff and managers respond well to safeguarding concerns. Leaders ensure good communication with relevant professionals regarding children’s risks, and this helps create a strong team around the child. Leaders ensure that information is communicated to the staff team and that they provide staff with clear guidance. Inspection report for children’s home: 2684211 4 There has recently been an increase in episodes of going missing from home for one child. These are being well managed by staff, who consistently follow protocols and do all that they can to return the child safely. Staff have created missing from care plans with social workers. These plans ensure a consistent approach, which is starting to drive a reduction in this behaviour.

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

When staff support children who have gone missing from home, they do so with a genuine sense of care and worry for them. One-to-one sessions with children help them to understand the risks and why staff are concerned.

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

Consistent care and clear boundaries from staff mean that children’s behaviour is well managed. There have been no physical interventions since the last inspection. Staff respond well when children argue with each other. They support both children to discuss what has happened and repair their relationship.

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

Regular health and safety checks are undertaken. However, the recent fire risk assessment was not completed by someone with the relevant training. In addition, weekly fire check records do not show in sufficient detail exactly what checks have been undertaken and are not completed consistently.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

As previously mentioned, there has been a change of manager since the last inspection. The new manager has worked tirelessly to improve the experience of children by upskilling the staff team. As a result of her work, the team is now able to demonstrate a good understanding of the home’s model of care and always work to it. The manager has also developed staff understanding of the importance of language for children. Through her direction, staff have moved away from using some institutionalised language in both daily records and interactions with the children. This approach has helped develop a more homely feel.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have high aspirations for the children and staff. The registered manager has worked hard with her deputy manager and team leaders to create a culture where high standards of care and positive role modelling are paramount. Children have responded well to this, and they speak positively of leaders.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are also positive about the impact that the change in leadership has had and praise the managers for their availability and support. Staff receive effective supervision that allows them to consider the impact of the work, any developmental needs and how best to support the children. However, there have been occasions when the frequency of these sessions has not been in line with the home’s policy. Consequently, some staff, including new starters, have not always received a suitable level of supervision.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a comprehensive training plan in place to ensure that all staff have the skills needed to meet the children’s individual needs. Specialised training has been introduced that ensures that when children display new behaviours, staff are aware how to respond. However, with a change of recording system and the change of Inspection report for children’s home: 2684211 5 manager, some training certificates have been lost. This does not allow the manager to have full confidence in what training her staff have or have not done.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers share a positive working relationship with other professionals. The manager advocates well for children and appropriately involves other professionals when there are concerns regarding their care. The manager ensures that decisions are in children’s best interests. Inspection report for children’s home: 2684211 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, 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

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment in the children’s home. (Regulation 25 (1)(a)) 30 April 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 30 April 2024

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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

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(f) 30 April 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that there is an accurate record of all training that staff have completed and copies of relevant certification. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11) Inspection report for children’s home: 2684211 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: 2684211 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bay Tree House Higham Ltd

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Inspectors

Mark Newington, Social Care Inspector Chris Warren, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2684211 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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