Breckenbrough School Limited

Inspection report for residential special school - Breckenbrough School Limited 1 Breckenbrough School Limited Sandhutton, Thirsk, North Yorkshire YO7 4EN Residential provision inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential special school

This is a non-maintained special school, with a Quaker ethos, for boys aged nine to 19 years. The children have a range of complex needs, including autism spectrum disorder.

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Information about this residential special school

Seven children have residential placements and, overall, there is capacity for 24 boarders. Children stay between one and four nights per week. Boarding accommodation is in the main school building.

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Information about this residential special school

The school provides a range of facilities, including an art studio, a bike maintenance garage, a dedicated music room and a gym.

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Information about this residential special school

The head of social education has been in post for several years and has the required experience and qualifications.

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Information about this residential special school

The inspectors only inspected the social care provision at this school.

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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 residential special school provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the school contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people.

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outstanding

Date of previous inspection: 20 June 2023

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: good Inspection report for residential special school - Breckenbrough School Limited 2

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outstanding

Children have positive relationships with staff and will seek out trusted staff for guidance and advice. Staff are nurturing and inquisitive in their approach to children. Children are supported to express themselves and grow in confidence, supported by staff who have a strong focus on equality and inclusion. Children are listened to and supported with extreme sensitivity and acceptance in line with the Quaker ethos of the school.

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outstanding

Children make exceptional progress within the school and residential provision. Children recognise that the support they receive makes a significant difference in their lives. Some children were previously not attending education or were disengaged from it before coming to the school. Children described how staff support them and help them to attend classes and embrace the benefits of life in the school. They are highly engaged with learning and pursuing their interests. Children feel inspired by the success of older pupils and have high aspirations for the future.

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outstanding

Children are offered opportunities to follow their passions and develop further skills. Staff support them to adapt social spaces in line with their interests. A room is set up as a photography space with backdrops, and in other spaces there are musical instruments and projects the children are doing. There are also collections on display that celebrate the children’s skills and achievements. Children were looking forward to a planned ski trip.

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outstanding

Staff are reflective and child focused and continually seek to learn and adapt their approach to helping children learn. Ideas to help improve independence skills and healthy lifestyles are carefully planned. Menu plans are accessible and support children to develop independence skills through budgeting, creating new recipes and learning food preparation skills. This in turn helps children who may have limited diets to discover new foods and broaden their diet.

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outstanding

Children are encouraged to spend time with others socially after school and attend clubs with other students. They have built friendships and learned excellent social skills through their time together, opportunities to play games and building trusting relationships with staff. This equips them with skills in social situations, which is necessary for success in further education and employment.

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outstanding

Families and professionals describe communication from the school as excellent. Staff collaborate with parents and support them. Parents recognise the significant changes that attending the school has had on the lives of their children. One parent said, ‘I have found them incredibly supportive to an amazing degree. They are consistently patient and proactive.’ Inspection report for residential special school - Breckenbrough School Limited 3

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outstanding

Staff who work in the residential area at Breckenbrough develop skills and knowledge through safeguarding training during their induction. This is regularly updated by the in-house safeguarding team and through the partnership forum. Staff also access online training to meet their needs. The designated safeguarding lead oversees this and identifies staff training needs.

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outstanding

At Breckenbrough, online safeguarding concerns remain a high priority. Children are supported to be aware of online dangers. Staff at the school have developed an online safety policy, which filters information and ensures that staff are alerted if children access potentially risky material. Staff know how to follow up and report concerns. A welcome pack for the children shares links for families to set up home online safety systems. Staff and parents are supported by an online safety specialist, who is a parent and leads a special interest group in the school to share information and increase knowledge and awareness.

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outstanding

Breckenbrough embraces restorative justice and the strength of relationships to support children in safely managing their behaviours and feelings. Staff in the residential setting know the children well and understand potential stressors and the preferred response for each child when they become anxious. The quiet determination of leaders and staff to find alternatives to physical intervention is a great strength.

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outstanding

Staff encourage and recognise positive behaviour, capturing children’s achievements daily. This boosts children’s confidence and self-esteem and contributes to them managing their own emotions more effectively. Staff work closely with families in managing conflicts and challenges for children. School and residential leaders ask parents to attend meetings and be part of joined-up decision-making. This gives children clear and consistent boundaries.

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outstanding

Senior staff with safeguarding responsibilities have formed positive working relationships with the local authorities who support the children. They take part in a regular safeguarding partnership panel to share information and good practice.

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outstanding

An independent visitor commended the strong safeguarding processes in the school and residential and the challenge posed to a local authority to share information before children move to the school and board in the residential. This has improved communication processes, which ensures that risks to children are understood and planned for. Each child has a clear individual safeguarding plan and risk assessment, and interventions are captured to support staff to help keep children safe. Inspection report for residential special school - Breckenbrough School Limited 4

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

A strength of the school and residential area is the consistent tight-knit staff team. Staff feel valued and looked after and respect each other. This can be seen across the school and residential, and while everyone has their own roles, all are treated equally by senior leaders. The children see this and learn to treat others respectfully. Staff will step back and allow another staff member to support a child if this helps the children directly. There is a healthy power dynamic in relationships across the school.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

School leaders provide high-quality training that is responsive to the children’s needs. Residential staff are encouraged to discuss with senior leaders any planning where additional specialist training is required to increase staff skills. Recently, this led to training around sexism and misogyny.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staffing in the school and residential is consistent. Leaders and managers follow safer recruitment practices for new staff. School and residential leaders provide a comprehensive induction, which includes mandatory training and additional review and support from colleagues. This supports staff to care for children safely.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Formal supervision takes place on a termly basis for staff and is reflective. However, staff receive informal supervision daily from the leaders. They also meet regularly to plan and share information. Formal supervision follows a standard pro forma and is thorough and holistic. There is a strong emphasis on reflection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

School leaders value the residential governor role and that of the independent visitor and the challenge and support they bring to the staff team. This in turn improves practice in the residential setting. The residential governor accesses training and receives a thorough induction into school life and their role. They are offered ongoing training from the headteacher and through external agencies to help them develop in their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

No requirements or recommendations have been made following this inspection. Inspection report for residential special school - Breckenbrough School Limited 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 Children Act 1989 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 national minimum standards. Inspection report for residential special school - Breckenbrough School Limited 6

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Residential special school details

Social care unique reference number: SC007922

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Residential special school details

Type of school: Residential Special School

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Residential special school details

Email address: simon.bannister@breckenbrough.org.uk

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Inspectors

Carol Jagger, Social Care Inspector Lisa Finch, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for residential special school - Breckenbrough School Limited 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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