Children's Home run by Bay View Child Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children's home: 2533956 1 Registered provider: Bay View Child Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately operated children’s home. The home is registered to provide care for up to four children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2020 and is appropriately qualified.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, there were four children living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 24 January 2023

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2533956 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/01/2023 Full Outstanding 15/02/2022 Full Good 11/03/2020 Interim Improved effectiveness 21/10/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2533956 3

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outstanding

Children are supported to move in and out of the home in a planned way. One child was helped to develop their independence skills, using an achievable plan in preparation for returning to live with their family. They were involved in reviewing their own progress against the plan, giving them a sense of ownership and responsibility. The child said, ‘[Name of home] is the best thing that has happened to me,’ and shared happy memories of their leaving party. The child’s parent said the staff team is compassionate and helped them to feel included in their child’s life, and their child now has aims and ambitions for the future.

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outstanding

Children make excellent progress in education from their starting points. The manager proactively escalated concerns for one child who did not have a school place when they moved into the home. In the interim, staff work meticulously to support the child’s engagement in educational activities at home. The staff have a thorough understanding of the impact of this on the child and regularly seek their views and wishes. External professionals commended the manager for her persistence in finding a solution to the situation.

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outstanding

Children’s health needs are thoroughly understood by staff, who support children to attend health appointments. One child who was anxious about attending dental appointments was referred for specialist support to overcome this. Staff continue to work hard to understand the impact of a historic diagnosis for one child and have made timely referrals for further assessment and support for the child.

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outstanding

Children benefit from the input of a person-centred counsellor who visits the home regularly. The counsellor says a particular strength of the home is that staff are able to anticipate and plan for children’s behaviours. As a result, children’s emotional health and well-being have greatly improved.

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outstanding

The home has recently undergone several improvements that have been designed with children in mind to create a calm and nurturing environment. There are areas for children to relax and to engage in their interests, either individually or together.

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outstanding

Children are encouraged to try various activities, including horse riding, boxing and learning to swim and to drive. This provides them with new experiences. A great deal of effort goes into celebrating special occasions and supporting local charities. Children’s passion for music is nurtured through opportunities to play musical instruments at home and to go to live music concerts.

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outstanding

Children are involved in creating and decorating their own memory books with photos that record special events and shared activities. These are regularly updated and accessible for children to look through and add to. Inspection report for children's home: 2533956 4

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outstanding

The manager makes excellent use of available information to produce effective care plans for children. The staff have a clear understanding of the risks to children and use detailed plans and assessments to help them to minimise risk. Risk assessments include extensive analysis of incidents to understand potential risk factors and these are consistently reviewed. Monthly monitoring tools show how risks have reduced significantly for most children.

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outstanding

A recent change made to one child’s plan by the placing authority, without the knowledge of the manager, led to an increase in the child’s risk-taking behaviours. The manager responded appropriately to address concerns with professionals and to provide reassurance to the child by providing highly nurturing care.

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outstanding

Occasions when children go missing from the home are rare and are limited to one child’s specific circumstances. The staff team works consistently with external professionals to ensure the child’s safe return and to reduce the risk of further incidents. Physical intervention has been used rarely, to keep children safe, and there are clear, detailed records with management oversight of incidents. Clinical supervision records demonstrate that staff have reflected on incidents and intensive follow-up work is carried out with children to reinforce a sense of stability and security.

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outstanding

External professionals gave overwhelmingly positive feedback about the staff team. They report that staff advocate well for children and prioritise their safety. Also, that communication from the team is timely and detailed and that staff provide comprehensive chronologies that help to analyse patterns of behaviour.

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outstanding

Incidents are managed well. There are detailed records and debriefs with children and staff that enable them to reflect on incidents. The manager has robust oversight of incidents, ensuring that any follow-up actions are progressed in a timely way. This ensures that children receive the support they need. Staff carry out thorough follow-up work with children to enhance their understanding and awareness of appropriate behaviours.

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outstanding

Complaints and allegations made by children are taken seriously, investigated thoroughly and responded to in a timely way. Safety plans are used to ensure that children and staff are safeguarded. There is appropriate follow-up work with children that includes direct and restorative work to manage relationships.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is an excellent leader who has high standards and demonstrates a passion for her role that she passes on to her team. She has a detailed understanding of the children in her care and is hands on at the home. She is nurturing and playful in her approach with the children and encourages a culture of curiosity in her team. Inspection report for children's home: 2533956 5 Staff are overwhelmingly positive about the manager. They feel they are supported to develop and progress professionally, with several staff either being promoted or learning new skills. The manager gives dedicated one-to-one support to individual staff members around personal matters when needed, which helps them to feel valued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a strong team ethic, with staff encouraged to share their views, contribute and to take ownership of their roles. This is reflected in the strong professional relationships between the staff team and external agencies, which are well embedded and contribute to better outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff benefit from regular detailed team meetings and supervisions that are reflective and make use of theory and research. This has included research around attachment issues and global developmental delay that led to further specialist training for the team. Staff feel that the meetings are engaging, with interactive ways to consider the care they provide, as well as a strong focus on developing in their roles. Staff supervision records demonstrate that any performance concerns are addressed and feedback given to staff is constructive and supportive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Annual appraisals include feedback for staff members from their colleagues and from the children in their care. As staff work closely with the person-centred counsellor, it would be beneficial to include their feedback, as they closely observe staff practice and provide specific advice to help them to meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a strong focus on staff training which is tailored to meet the needs of the children in their care. Staff also receive ongoing support from professionals, such as the counsellor, who provides advice and guidance about the team’s use of therapeutic, child-centred approaches such as the PACE (playfulness, acceptance, curiosity and empathy) model of care and attachment theory.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has robust monitoring and review systems to ensure that she has good oversight of the home. She ensures that staff take responsibility and are accountable for their role in the running of the home. There are safe recruitment practices in place to ensure that staff working in the home do not pose a risk to children. Inspection report for children's home: 2533956 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff appraisals take into account, where reasonable and practical, the views of other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year, such as the person-centred counsellor. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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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: 2533956 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bay View Child Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Core Assets, Malvern View, Saxon Business Park, Hanbury Road, Stoke Prior, Bromsgrove B60 4AD

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Christopher Thompson

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Inspector

Andrea Foreman, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2533956 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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