Children's Home run by Hollybank Trust in Kirklees

Inspection report for children’s home: 2719792 1 Registered provider: Hollybank Trust

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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 operated by a charitable trust. It provides a mix of short breaks and long- term care for up to eight children with profound and multiple learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, five children were living in the home. One child was residing at an education placement, and another was accessing the short-breaks service. Inspectors spent time interacting with the five children who were present during the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2023.

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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: 3 December 2024

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2719792 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/12/2024 Full Good 24/01/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2719792 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from living in a home that feels warm and welcoming. New artwork around the home is bright, colourful and child friendly. Photos of the children are displayed throughout the home, helping to promote a sense of belonging. The home is busy, but feels calm and well organised.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to have a voice. Their views are gathered in a variety of ways, and their requests are listened to and acted on. This ensures that adaptations to essential equipment, such as wheelchairs and hoists, are made in a timely manner, helping to ensure that children are comfortable when using them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

On-site multi-disciplinary professionals provide a holistic approach to children’s care. Speech and language therapists, education staff, occupational therapists and physiotherapists work closely with care staff to meet the children’s individual needs. Regular feedback on children’s progress helps to ensure that support remains effective and responsive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents speak positively about the care their children receive, and that their children are helped to make progress. One parent said, ‘They [staff] have helped [name of child] to drink water independently and use a spoon. This makes things much easier for [name of child] and gives them a choice.’ Parents feel that staff know their children well and genuinely care for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff speak fondly about the children and provide nurturing and consistent care. When children need to spend time in hospital, staff stay with them throughout their stay, offering the same level of support a loving parent would. This helps children to feel loved, safe and well cared for.

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

Observations show that children feel safe and secure with staff. They actively seek out staff for comfort and support, displaying trust in their care. Children engage in playful activities with staff and happy sounds can be heard. This further demonstrates their sense of safety and positive relationships with the staff.

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

Children are supported to spend time together in a safe and positive way. They are helped to tolerate others. One parent commented, ‘My child is now much better at being around other people.’ This was something that the child had not previously been able to manage and therefore reflects the progress made. These are important skills for the children’s future.

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

Staff communicate effectively with the children to ensure that they feel safe and happy. Sessions are held to help children understand who they can share any worries or Inspection report for children’s home: 2719792 4 concerns they may have with. The independent visitor supports communication through specially designed questionnaires, promoting an open and safe culture in the home.

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

Consistent care ensures that all staff are clear about their roles and responsibilities. Important times in the day, such as mealtimes, are well managed, with staff actively engaging with the children and working together to ensure that routines run smoothly. This means that children are safe and receive the help they need throughout the day.

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

While accidental injuries for children are well recorded and monitored through body maps by staff, there is not consistent oversight by leaders and managers in reviewing and completing these records. This step is important to ensure that all safeguarding incident logs are fully evaluated and appropriately closed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is committed to the children and the home and has provided stability by remaining in the role since registration. She has a good understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development and is focused on further development, including plans to support children’s increased engagement in the community.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is focused on developing the staff team and meets with them regularly, as well as organising team-building activities. Recent recruitment has been successful, leading to increased staffing levels in the home. New staff are supported through a mentoring scheme, which helps them to feel more confident in their roles. Staff are generally positive about working in the home and report recent improvements because of the increased staffing.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works closely with professionals and the children’s families, who report that communication is positive and they are kept well informed. They feel involved in the planning for their children and that their views are respected and listened to. This helps to ensure that plans for children are individualised and remain relevant to their needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that any poor practice is addressed quickly. For example, when medication errors occur, a thorough investigation is carried out and appropriate action, such as retraining staff, is taken. This approach helps to ensure that staff have the necessary skills to care for the children safely and that any practice issues are resolved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that all incidents are appropriately managed, and follow-up actions are taken to keep children safe. This includes seeking medical assistance or reporting concerns to the local authority designated officer. However, Ofsted has not consistently been notified of these incidents. This limits the regulator’s ability to maintain effective oversight of the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2719792 5

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions 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

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

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

A notification made under this regulation—

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Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter;

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Requirement Due date

must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(e) (5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b)) 25 June 2025

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that each child’s day-to-day health and well- being needs are met. In particular, the manager should have oversight of all incident reports relating to accidental injuries to the children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 33, paragraph 7.3) Inspection report for children’s home: 2719792 6

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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: 2719792 7

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Inspectors

Jo Birtwhistle, Social Care Inspector Deirdre Silkstone, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2719792 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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