Children's Home run by Yorkshire Serenity Care Ltd in Bradford

Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 1 Registered provider: Yorkshire Serenity Care Ltd

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private company. It provides care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2024.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

There was no child living at the home at the time of this inspection.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/08/2024 Full Good 13/03/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 3

p.2

improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, two children have lived at the home. Children were not sufficiently supported by staff to make measurable progress. When one strategy does not work for a child, staff are not being supported enough by the manager to actively look at other ways of working with the children. Staff do not revise or update children’s care plans with new information, which makes it difficult to ensure each child receives personalised and effective care from staff.

p.3

improvement to be good

Staff do not provide routine and structure for children, which impacts on children’s sense of stability. Staff have made some attempts to encourage children to leave their bedrooms and engage in activities. However, this is not consistent or effective and led to one child spending a significant amount of time in their bedroom.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children have not been supported enough to progress in education. Children have spent long periods out of formal education, which impacted on their motivation to learn. Opportunities to learn have not regularly been presented by staff and there are not enough facilities or resources in the home to support educational opportunities. However, there have been structured discussions with one child to help them to understand the importance of education and some attempts were made to support them into a school setting.

p.3

improvement to be good

When children have moved out of the home, this has not always been planned or supported effectively. One child had asked staff to take them to visit their new home; however, this was not actioned. Children who leave the home are not always provided with their belongings in a timely manner. For example, one child did not receive their prayer mat, which was an important part of their life. In addition, children do not receive mementos of their time at the home to provide them with memories to help with their sense of belonging.

p.3

improvement to be good

Staff built meaningful relationships with the children, which contributed to children having positive experiences in the home. Staff treat children with unconditional positive regard and are dedicated to building effective and trusting relationships with them. A child shared positive comments about the staff with an external professional and said they ‘loved living here’.

p.3

improvement to be good

The admissions process is comprehensive, and the manager ensures that relevant and detailed information is provided before a child comes to live at the home. Staff are supported to engage in meetings and training workshops specific to the child’s needs ahead of their move into the home. This helps to provide staff with the knowledge and skills they need to support the child effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 4

p.3

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

Staff place a strong emphasis on the safeguarding of children. Staff understand each child’s risks and how to respond appropriately in line with their risk assessments. Staff work to de-escalate challenging behaviours and redirect children to more positive actions.

p.4

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

When a child goes missing from the home, staff act promptly in line with the child’s missing-from-care protocol. Staff actively search for children when they go missing, using strategies in the child’s plans to de-escalate behaviours and encourage them to come back to the home. When this has not worked, staff ensure that the child is reported missing to the police and regularly update professionals and family members. When the child returns, staff sensitively welcome them back to the home and spend time talking to the child about the episode of going missing.

p.4

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

When children are subject to a court order which restricts their liberty, staff support them to reduce their risks and vulnerabilities. One child had the court order removed and the other child had the restrictions imposed reduced. This demonstrates the effectiveness of the support of staff and demonstrates effective safety measures in place at the home.

p.4

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

Staff rarely physically intervene to keep children safer. There is careful consideration given as to whether a child needs to be held or guided.

p.4

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

Investigations into the complaints made by children are strong. The registered manager has an effective oversight of the complaints process and actively supports the child throughout. The safety and well-being of the child are at the centre of any investigations and appropriate actions are taken to protect the child. Children are informed about the outcome of their complaint, and the manager helps them to understand the actions taken.

p.4

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

Children feel safe to talk about sensitive subjects with staff and are confident that staff will take their concerns seriously, and act promptly to ensure their safety. One child had not lived at the home for very long when they felt able to make a disclosure about their past. This information was promptly shared with the relevant professionals to investigate further. Staff supported the child emotionally throughout this investigation.

p.4

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

Staff support children to take age-appropriate risks and ensure a multi-agency approach to managing this. For example, one child was provided with a mobile phone and access to social media, which had been agreed by the placing authority. The child’s phone was carefully monitored by staff, while also recognising the privacy of the child.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Management oversight is not yet good enough to support positive experiences and progress for children. There is often a delayed response in providing comments and Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 5 actions on key documents for children, which has contributed to slower progress for children. Equally, there are delays in updating staff training and supervision matrices, which makes it difficult for the manager to track the progress and support needs of staff. However, staff report that they feel supported by the management team as a whole. The responsible individual supports the manager to improve his oversight of the home; however, this remains a work in progress and the wider impact of this is yet to be seen.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Team meetings often have a poor attendance rate. These meetings would provide the opportunity for staff to gain knowledge about current plans for the child. While this has been recognised as an area for improvement by the manager, there is no evidence that the changes to address this are effective. Actions provided at the end of team meetings are often vague and do not promote accountability for staff. Actions from previous team meetings are not regularly followed up in subsequent meetings, which has led to delays in key tasks being completed.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager escalates concerns with the placing authority when he feels the child is not being offered what they are entitled to. However, there has still been drift in the child’s care planning and has resulted in children not being able to access support they are entitled to. For example, one child did not receive the therapeutic input from external services that they needed. This led to the child becoming more withdrawn and anxious.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Children benefit from a reflective staff team whose members are supported to look back on significant events and adjust their practices to improve children’s experiences. Equally, the management team identifies strengths and weaknesses in staff’s practice.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The regulator is not always informed about incidents which are deemed as serious for the child. This does not support Ofsted to have oversight and scrutiny of the home. Furthermore, the placing authority has not been notified about incidents involving children in a timely manner, which has potentially had an impact on the quality of care planning for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 6

p.5

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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

p.6

Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

p.6

Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs;

p.6

Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they regularly follow up on challenges they have posed to agencies to prevent drift, specifically in relation to requests for return home interviews and statutory documents from the placing authority; and that appropriate external support for children is explored and requested in line with their needs. 15 September 2025

p.6

Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so. 15 September 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.6

Requirement Due date

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

p.7

Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

p.7

Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

p.7

Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

p.7

Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

that each child has access to appropriate equipment, facilities and resources to support the child’s learning

p.7

Requirement Due date

(Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(x)(b))

p.7

Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

p.7

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

p.7

Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

p.7

Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home; 15 September 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 8 demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

p.7

Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

p.8

Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

p.8

Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(f)(g)(i)(h))

p.8

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that documents in the home, specifically supervision and training matrixes, are regularly updated; that regular management oversight is evident on children’s records; that staff are provided with clear actions following team meetings and supervision and the progress against these is tracked; that appropriate delegations of responsibilities are shared among the management team; and when a child is not making progress, that actions are quickly taken to explore alternative ways of supporting the child to make progress.

p.8

Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

p.8

Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

p.8

Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

p.8

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.8

Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority;

p.8

Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed.

p.8

Requirement Due date

(Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(iii)(c))

p.8

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children leaving the home have memory books to account for their time in the home; that all efforts are made to act on the child’s 15 September 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 9 wishes and feelings with regard to their transition plan; and that children’s plans are regularly updated and followed by staff.

p.8

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that they notify Ofsted and other relevant persons if one of the situations specified in regulation 40(4)(a)–(d) occurs, or if there is an incident relating to the protection, safeguarding or welfare of a child living in the home which the registered person considers to be serious (40(4)(e)). (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.10)

p.9

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: 2736509 10

p.9

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Yorkshire Serenity Care Ltd

p.10

Inspector

Ladean Wilson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2736509 11 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.

p.10

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.11

Inspector

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.11

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.11

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.11