Children's Home run by GBA Care Limited in Kirklees

Inspection report for children’s home: 2732583 1 Registered provider: G B A Care Limited 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 private organisation. It provides care for up to four children who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, two children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 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: not previously inspected

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2732583 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children benefit from consistent care. There is a cohesive team of carers who are committed and focused on their role. These carers understand the need to be good role models for the children. These components give the children a sense of belonging and love.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The carers are creative and intuitive and are skilled at tapping into the children’s interests. The carers provide incentives that encourage the children to learn new skills. In doing so, the children have learned important life skills while having fun.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The value of formal and informal education is skilfully applied throughout the care team. The manager was affectionately described as being ‘pushy’ by a social worker who talked about a child’s access to school. The carers record important conversations with the children that show good examples of parenting that, when read back, will be meaningful for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The organisation has resources that support the children to have positive mental health. This investment gives the children access to therapists who help the children to build resilience. Additionally, the therapists actively support the carers to understand the child’s world. In doing so, the carers have developed the art of reflective practice. Collectively, this has enhanced the children’s quality of care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although there is good support for the children to visit, and keep links with, their respective families, important information about a child’s background is lacking. This oversight prevents the carers from being fully equipped to better support the child. Additionally, the arrangements to ensure that all of the family members receive verbal updates on their children’s progress are inconsistent.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The carers ensure that the children are consulted on important aspects of the children’s care. Although this is done well verbally, the children’s written care plans use language that is not relatable to the child. This increases the risk of undermining the positive dialogue that the carers have with the children.

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

The carers are consistent with promoting socially acceptable behaviour with the children. The carers do not dwell on incidents involving the children. However, they are clear with the children why the children’s behaviour caused concern or upset. This better supports the children to learn, adapt and recover from incidents, while keeping positive relationships in the home.

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

Significant incidents that involved the children have decreased since the children have moved into the home. When the children have been in a state of crisis, the carers have independently been able to support the children to recover in the safety Inspection report for children’s home: 2732583 3 and familiarity of their home. This is testament to the positive relationships that the children have built with their carers.

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

The staff provide good support and clear boundaries that teach the children how to better manage their electronic devices. This includes building the children’s awareness around safer access to the internet. The boundaries and routines that are in place for the children’s internet use promote the children to have healthier sleep routines.

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

There is good anticipation of risk associated with the children’s lives. The manager and carers actively anticipate risk. This enables the carers to respond better if they are concerned about the children’s welfare.

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

Although the carers respond effectively to incidents involving the children, this is not always clear in the children’s written records. The records of some of incidents do not reflect the good and effective response that the children have received from their carers. This diminishes accountability and, when the record is read back, does not provide a clear overview of the event.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has nurtured the carers to be accountable for their role in the team. This means that, in the manager’s absence, the children continue to receive consistently good care from the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Although the manager raises perceived shortfalls with the children’s respective local authorities, this has failed to have the desired effect. Consequently, the manager does not have important information that would better influence the children’s care. Furthermore, there are gaps in the manager’s challenge to the local authority in the home’s written records. This undermines the manager’s ability to effectively escalate concern.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The carers feel valued and involved in the decision-making process around the children’s care. Team meetings are meaningful and well attended by the carers and the therapists. This shared approach produces fruitful discussion and awareness of the child’s world.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is good planning and preparation around the children moving into the home. The manager works collaboratively with leaders, therapists and her team to achieve this. This enables the manager to better evaluate whether the staff are equipped with the skills to care for the child. This approach enables the children to succeed in their new home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New carers receive a thorough induction that better supports them at a vulnerable point in their role. Staff value their supervision sessions and the access to training. From the outset, this enables new staff to be emotionally and practically supported. This helps to raise the staff’s confidence, retain carers and improve the children’s quality of care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2732583 4

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (a)(c)) 1 March 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all staff consistently follow the home’s policies and procedures for the benefit of the children in the home’s care. Everyone working at the home must understand their roles and responsibilities and what they are authorised to decide on their own initiative. There should be clear lines of accountability that are made clear in the home’s written records. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 54, paragraph 10.20)  The registered person should promote careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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) Inspection report for children’s home: 2732583 5 Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2732583 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2nd Floor Brian Royd Mills, Saddleworth Road, Halifax HX4 8NF

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Inspector

Steve Guirey, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2732583 7 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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