Vinney Green Secure Unit

Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 1 Vinney Green Secure Unit

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Registered provider: South Gloucestershire Council Provider address: Vinney Green Secure Unit, Emersons Green Lane, South Gloucestershire BS16 7AA

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this secure children’s home

This home is managed by a local authority. It is approved by the Secretary of State to restrict children’s liberty. The home can accommodate up to 24 children aged between 10 and 18 years. At the time of this inspection, 22 children were living at the home.

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Information about this secure children’s home

All places available at the home are commissioned on a contractual basis by the Youth Custody Service (YCS). The YCS may, under certain circumstances, permit local authority children’s services to spot-purchase a vacant bed at the home, to enable a local authority to place a child on welfare grounds under section 25 of the Children Act 1989. Admission of any young person under section 25 of the Children Act 1989 who is under 13 years of age requires approval of the Secretary of State.

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Information about this secure children’s home

The commissioning of health services at this home is the statutory responsibility of NHS England under the Health and Social Care Act 2012. Education is provided on site in dedicated facilities.

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Information about this secure children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since January 2023.

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 January 2025

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 January 2025

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 2

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Information about this inspection

At this inspection, the inspectors evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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’. Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 3

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Findings from the inspection

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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Findings from the inspection

Leaders have taken steps to restructure the way they record their response to safeguarding concerns and continue to strengthen staff practice. The provider is making good progress against the agreed plan, which is steering the direction of safeguarding and security. The registered manager continues to make progress with improvement plans forward. This will need to be embedded into daily operations to foster continuous development and resilience.

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Findings from the inspection

A serious incident recently occurred, during which staff attempted to de-escalate the situation before involving the police. When critical incidents occur, the follow-up process focuses on reflection, learning and fostering stronger relationships and mutual understanding with the police. The decision to involve the police was carefully reviewed to ensure it was a defensible and well-considered action. Clear actions and lessons learned have been identified and are actively being implemented since the incident. Managers have acknowledged both strengths and areas for improvement, with specific steps being taken to address shortfalls and build on existing strengths.

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Findings from the inspection

The use of restraint and single separation is systematically recorded, ensuring that all measures taken are proportionate and necessary. There is a monthly audit undertaken by an external party to bolster the level of scrutiny and oversight. While the manager welcomes these valuable insights, they are also able to discern which recommendations they act on according to the needs of the service and the children. There are some areas where the embedding of this learning and decision- making into practice are ongoing.

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Findings from the inspection

Responses to complaints are generally child-friendly, using simplified language with clear explanations for the decisions made. The manager actively monitors these responses, incorporating them as part of the broader feedback analysed in the monthly reports.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff supervision is reflective, with formulation meetings and multidisciplinary team discussions providing essential support to enhance staff practice. These efforts focus on improving the effectiveness of care plans and achieving better outcomes for children.

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Findings from the inspection

Managers are working to create a culture of learning, reflection and curiosity. Trauma-informed practice and approaches are becoming embedded. Further work is required in regard to using language that cares in records of and for children.

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Findings from the inspection

Several requirements and recommendations were set following the home’s last inspection. One requirement and four recommendations have been restated. Three Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 4 of these were not considered in detail during this visit and will remain in place and will be reviewed at the home’s next inspection. Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 5

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/07/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 18/04/2023 Full Good 02/08/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 20/04/2022 Full Inadequate Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 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

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

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.

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Requirement Due date

that the effectiveness of the home’s child protection policies is monitored regularly. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v)(vi)(vii)(e))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to managers ensuring safeguarding matters are responded to promptly and in line with policies and procedures. 16 June 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered manager should remind the Local Safeguarding Children Partnership (LSCP) of their statutory duties, in that the LSCP should review the use of physical restraint, single separation and managing way and include this in their annual report. The findings of the review should be reported to the Youth Justice Board and the Youth Custody Service. (‘Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023’, page 41, paragraph 108) Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 7  The registered person should ensure that the necessary support is given to children to enable them to access their education or training. Specifically, children should benefit from appropriate careers information, advice and guidance that is relevant to their school year and/or sentence length. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.13)  The registered person should ensure that medicines are prescribed safely and in

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Recommendations

line with current evidence-based practice and local protocols, including National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance. Specifically, the registered manager should ensure that leaders deliver the medicines management improvement plan at pace and monitor impact through regular audits and reviews. (‘Healthcare Standards for Children and Young People in Secure Settings 2023’, page 37, paragraph 6.4.1)  The registered person should ensure that support staff are ambitious for every child in the home and that they gain skills and experience that enable them to actively support each child to achieve their potential. Specifically, staff would benefit from being trained and skilled in trauma-informed practice. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.5) Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 8

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Secure children’s home details

Registered provider: South Gloucestershire Council

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Secure children’s home details

Registered provider address: South Gloucestershire Adults, Children’s and Health, PO Box 1955, Bristol BS37 0DE

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Inspectors

Thirza Smith, Social Care Inspector Tash Williams, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for secure children’s home: SC035500 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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