Children's Home run by Bridge2Future Ltd in Bradford

Inspection report for children’s home: 2773929 1 Registered provider: Bridge2Future 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 managed by a private provider. The home has re-registered following a change of ownership. The manager and location of the home have remained the same.

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Information about this children’s home

The home provides care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children's home: 2773929 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The three children remained in the home following its re-registration. Children say that they enjoy living there and have done so for significant periods of time. One child praised staff for their commitment to them, saying, ‘I couldn’t believe how much faith they had in me.’ The home has a relaxed and family feel to it, with children and staff eating and socialising together. The home is attractive, clean and tidy. Staff enable children to personalise their bedrooms in their own way. Children have access to books and games of their choice whenever they have free time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress while living in the home. A parent said that their child has ‘come on leaps and bounds’. Children attend school and staff have supported them well through transition periods. The children are in good health. Staff are proactive in ensuring that they receive the right support when needed. Staff promote children’s emotional well-being, such as arranging psychotherapy for them if needed. Staff help children to develop their independence and self-care skills appropriate for their age and developmental stage.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children feel that staff and managers listen to them and act on their views. Staff provide children with lots of opportunities to express themselves. These include formal and informal occasions such as children’s meetings. Staff have referred children for independent advocacy support where needed. Children know how to make a complaint. When this has happened, the manager has investigated and resolved the matter quickly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and managers celebrate children’s individualism and identities. Staff help children to explore their sense of self and identity in a reassuring and positive way. Staff have supported two children to explore their faith in line with their wishes. This includes writing prayers, attending worship and commemorating religious festivals. Staff have also helped a child explore their gender identity, such as trying new clothing. This has resulted in children feeling that they can be true to themselves.

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

Children say that they feel safe living in the home. They feel able to raise any concerns with trusted adults. Staff and managers understand children’s needs and risks. They take action to keep children safer from significant harm. There has been a reduction in the number of incidents of concern in the home.

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

Staff and managers promote positive relationships in the home. Staff help children to talk about their thoughts and feelings in a supportive manner. Staff use restorative approaches to reflect on incidents of concern. They use praise and encouragement for children to reinforce positive behaviour. Furthermore, staff provide clear and consistent boundaries for children. As a result, children’s relationships with one another and staff have improved. Inspection report for children's home: 2773929 3 There have been fewer incidents of physical restraint. However, staff do not always physically hold children appropriately and with justifiable reasons. On one occasion, staff restrained a child due to concerns about confidentiality from entering an office. On another occasion, staff gave firm instructions for a child to remain in the ‘chill out’ room to calm themselves. As a result, staff may have deprived the child of their liberty. This

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

approach also led to the child feeling more distressed.

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

Staff do not always respond effectively to children going missing. Staff categorise children as ‘absent’ when they should record them as ‘missing’. On one occasion, staff did not report a child missing for several hours, despite expressing concern for their welfare. On another occasion, staff did not correctly record a child’s episode of going missing from care. This resulted in the child receiving a slower and less urgent multi- agency response to locate them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children and staff enjoy stable and experienced leadership. The manager has addressed historic challenges with staffing levels. There are enough staff in the home to support children and manage incidents of concern. The manager has recruited new staff safely, with all relevant background checks completed. Leaders provide staff with the training and knowledge to carry out their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager cares for the children and knows them well. They track children’s progress routinely and celebrate their achievements. The manager challenges multi-agency partners and advocates for children to ensure their needs are met. Professionals commented that staff and managers communicate well with them and seek advice as needed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. They use feedback from a range of sources, as well as the independent person and internal audits, to monitor standards of care. The manager appreciates the importance of learning and development for their staff. The manager has a clear plan to support staff to achieve their qualifications, and to promote wider knowledge of relevant topics.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say that the home is well run, and they feel supported by managers. The manager facilitates lots of conversations and reflection on practice with staff. This includes formal and informal occasions, such as handovers and team meetings. Staff feel they can raise any queries or issues with managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff do not always keep records up to date. Some records do not reflect the quality of conversations held between staff and with children. The manager acknowledges this and has already taken some action to address performance issues, as well as raising this on a whole-team level. This is not yet embedded to ensure consistency of recording by all staff. Inspection report for children's home: 2773929 4

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the action 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

Restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purpose of preventing—

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Requirement Due date

injury to any person (including the child); or

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Requirement Due date

serious damage to the property of any person (including the child); or

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Requirement Due date

a child who is accommodated in a secure children’s home from absconding from the home.

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate.

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Requirement Due date

These Regulations do not prevent a child from being deprived of liberty where that deprivation is authorised in accordance with a court order. Regulation 20 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2) (3) 24 April 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should have regard to the relevant aspects of the document ‘Statutory guidance on children who run away or go missing from home or care’ as well as local protocols. These set out the steps local authorities and their partners should take to prevent children from going missing and to protect them when they do go missing. In particular, the registered person should ensure that all staff understand when a child should be treated either as absent or missing from care and the appropriate action to take as a result. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.25)  The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. In particular, the registered person should ensure that records are kept up to date and that the justification for taking any action in relation to a child is made

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Recommendations

clear. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children's home: 2773929 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: 2773929 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bridge2Future Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Bridge2future, Surestore, Ninth Avenue, Burton-On- Trent DE14 3JZ

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Inspector

Sam Saxby-Brown, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2773929 7 and inspects 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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