Children's home run by Bayleaf Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2781144 1 Registered provider: Bayleaf Care Limited

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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 provider. The home was registered with Ofsted in August 2024. It is registered to provide care for up to three children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Two children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. No other children have moved in or out of the home since it was registered.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager left in September 2024. The newly appointed manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2781144 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a home that is warm and welcoming. Staff build trusting relationships with children and moves into the home are well planned. As a result, despite the short time they have lived at the home, both children have settled quickly and are making good progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are promoted. Staff support children to develop their understanding of personal care and independence through well-planned discussions. Children’s engagement is encouraged and rewarded through tailored incentive schemes. As a result, children are developing their independence and personal skills and this is having a positive impact on their experiences. One child had a history of anxiety about food. The child has made exceptional progress, particularly given the short period they have lived at the home, and now enjoys home-cooked meals together with others at the table.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers and staff foster positive relationships with other professionals and communicate with them well. Professionals working well together helps to ensure that children’s needs are assessed and that they receive the right support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers and staff promote education. Staff provide a tailored programme of activities for children who do not have formal education placements and there is a clear plan for children to access education that meets their needs. One child accesses tuition at the home. A tutor commented that the care the child receives is ‘first class’ and that staff are committed to helping the child to engage with their education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote healthy routines for children and set clear expectations which are reflected in children’s plans. Staff are in tune with children and children are supported to be involved in their planning. For example, audio books were purchased for one child after he said they help him to relax. However, children are not yet engaging in healthy sleeping patterns. This is an ongoing area of focus for the manager and staff.

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

Staff involve children in planning their care. Children’s voices are captured throughout their plans and children contribute their own ideas for strategies to manage risk. As a result, children’s plans are highly personalised to them. Involving children in their planning supports them to feel valued and listened to.

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

Children’s plans and risk assessments do not always include all the steps that staff need to take to keep them safe. For example, a child who has experienced risks on the internet had access to an internet-accessible mobile phone with no checks in place. For another child, a system of consequences was not clearly recorded in their plans. As a result, staff were unsure what they should be implementing. The manager took Inspection report for children’s home: 2781144 3 immediate action in response to this shortfall, including implementing checks, and has a clear plan for ensuring that documents remain up to date.

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

Children benefit from the company of animals at the home and enjoy helping with their care. Staff received consultation prior to a puppy being brought to the home and risks relating to animals are well considered. There is good contingency planning for who will take over the care of animals if concerns arise and risks are kept under regular review.

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

Managers and staff respond well to children’s complaints. Children receive handwritten responses to their complaints and are kept up to date on the actions that are being taken. Managers ensure that records relating to complaints and allegations are clear and detailed.

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

Staff receive training on how to de-escalate incidents and physical intervention is only used a last resort. Staff and children are spoken to after physical intervention and the manager completes evaluations after any incident. However, the manager’s evaluations are not always detailed and do not always identify areas for development. For example, the manager had not identified, in their evaluation, that a record was completed by a staff member who was not present at the incident. Evaluations are brief, and do not always identify learning from incidents and how it will inform practice. The manager acknowledges the shortfall and has a clear plan for how she intends to improve evaluations. A new monitoring tool has been introduced that will help support ongoing development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager left at short notice in September 2024. The deputy manager took over managing the home. This helped to ensure a seamless transition for staff and children and minimised potential impact. The manager has applied to register with Ofsted and is enthusiastic about the home and providing high-quality care. She is aspirational for staff and the types of experiences she wants for children at the home. The manager knows children well and advocates well to ensure that their needs are met.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from regular supervision sessions. Supervision sessions are reflective and help to support staff to continually develop. Staff say that they feel well supported. A staff member said that they feel they can go to the manager at any time and called the home ‘fantastic’. Another staff member commented on the positive support they receive and said they did not think anything could be improved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Effective systems ensure that recruitment of new staff to the home is safe. The manager has good oversight of recruitment and is supported by a human resources team who complete comprehensive checks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is supported by a wide team of senior leaders who have a good understanding of the home and help to drive progress. Regular quality assurance audits help to set clear targets for development. When the registered manager left, the Inspection report for children’s home: 2781144 4 responsible individual completed a comprehensive review alongside the incoming manager which helped ensure that they were up to date on what needed to be done. Inspection report for children’s home: 2781144 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children’s plans and risk assessments provide staff with clear guidance around the steps they need to take to safeguard children from harm, including risks relating to internet access, and that staff take action in response to children’s identified risks. 11 December 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 11 December 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2781144 6 promotes their welfare.

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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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they use monitoring and review systems, including evaluations after incidents, to reflect on and improve practice.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that care fosters positive relationships, encouraging strong bonds between children and staff in the home on the basis of jointly undertaken activities, shared daily life, domestic and non-domestic routines and established boundaries of acceptable behaviour. This specifically relates to children having appropriate routines and structure in line with their age and development. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 6, paragraph 1.10)

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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: 2781144 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bayleaf Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 7 Bankside, The Watermark, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear NE11 9SY

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Inspectors

Laura Norcop, Social Care Inspector Hayley Booth, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2781144 8 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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Inspectors

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

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