Children's home run by Bristol City Council

Inspection report for children’s home: 2800489 1 Registered provider: Bristol City Council

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a local authority and is registered to provide care for up to three children. The home was registered with Ofsted in August 2024, and two children, the staff team and manager moved to the home from another property. At the time of this inspection, the same two children were living in the home, having been cared for by the staff and manager for over five years.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since August 2024 for this home and since 2021 at the previous address.

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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: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2800489 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have lived together and been with the same staff team for over five years. Staff have offered them a strong sense of belonging and stability in this time, having cared for them throughout most of their teenage years. Staff show love and have strong feelings towards the children, and their upcoming 18 th birthdays are tinged with sadness for this new chapter as they will say goodbye.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have worked hard to try to help the children prepare for independence and continue to support them to develop skills such as budgeting and cooking. This has also been a challenge to ensure that encouragement is balanced with the children’s abilities while being mindful of their anxieties around leaving.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are participating in education, and one child has secured a part-time job locally. The children are also achieving age-appropriate milestones alongside their peers, such as taking driving lessons.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One social worker described the home as offering a home environment more akin to a fostering household and believes the children feel loved by the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child said that they enjoy living in the home and felt staff are available to talk to, naming their favourite staff members and describing them as funny.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to invite their friends back to the home to socialise, and this happens naturally for the children. Children are currently looking forward to their first holiday abroad and have experienced a range of activities in line with their interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One parent said that they ‘think the world’ of the staff and all they do to help their child.

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

The home has enjoyed a very settled period during the last 12 months, with no missing-from-home incidents and no physical interventions.

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

One child has significant needs that are well understood by the manager and staff team. Despite their efforts to address some of the challenges related to the child’s needs, it has been difficult to achieve sustained progress. The child’s records do not clearly capture what the expectations of staff are, to ensure good hygiene and promote good self-care.

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

The home has controls over the home’s Wi-Fi and leaders and managers are provided with weekly alerts about any concerning use. However, the reliance on this technology is too strong, and the accepted gaps in the software have not been Inspection report for children’s home: 2800489 3 thoroughly recognised and mitigated. There is a reliance on self-reporting, and opportunities to do wider checks when incidents have arisen have been missed.

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

Overall, incidents have been few in this home and are largely well managed. However, when incidents have occurred, the oversight has been inconsistent in places, for example records not fully capturing the decisions that have been taken and no challenge or learning to staff following these incidents. The registered manager has not always recognised when an incident may need to be notified to HMCI.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager provides strong leadership of the home. He is empathetic and nurturing towards the staff and children and well respected by all. He understands the strengths and areas of development for the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision is frequent and staff report this to be supportive and that they learn something from the process. However, records do not adequately reflect the discussions held or demonstrate any professional challenge, where appropriate.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is invested in his team and seeks to develop staff’s skills and knowledge in the sector. He keeps himself informed of the latest theories and ideas in the field and shares these with his team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff training is at 81.7% compliance. This is a work in progress as some team members are out of date on training, such as first aid and medication training, physical intervention and safeguarding. However, the manager is aware of this and there are dates booked in for the coming months.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is passionate about the children living in the home and is a strong advocate for them, ensuring that their needs are met. Inspection report for children’s home: 2800489 4

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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

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure there are clear recordings that capture a child’s online presence and relationships and how any potential risks are to be managed and mitigated by staff. 1 May 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child—

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 1 April 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2800489 5 In particular, ensure that incidents of significance are shared with HMCI.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure, where necessary, that a child’s relevant plan includes a strategy for a particular type of care, treatment or intervention, for example therapy relating to neglect or abuse. The care staff will need to understand the purpose of any such care and how it is to be executed, with the plan detailing the specifics and the expectations of staff. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.15)

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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: 2800489 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bristol City Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Director of Legal Services, City Hall, College Green, Bristol BS1 5TR

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Inspector

Katie Ratcliffe, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2800489 7 regulates 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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