Children's Home, Residential special school run by MacIntyre Care in Buckinghamshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC043994 1 SC043994 Registered provider: MacIntyre Care

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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 children’s home is part of an independent school for children with autism and learning disabilities. The home provides care for up to 11 children across two houses. At the time of the inspection, nine children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspectors only inspected the social care provision on this site.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 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 outstanding

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC043994 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/08/2024 Full Good 21/11/2023 Full Good 09/08/2022 Full Good 09/06/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC043994 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have made positive progress since moving to the home and receive individualised care that helps them to settle and develop a sense of belonging. There is a strong focus on relationships, and staff use an instinctive communication approach to enable them to connect with children. Most children are non-speaking. However, staff are well attuned to understanding children’s body language and visual communication, which promotes children’s dignity and their capacity to make informed choices.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff recognise that the children’s ability to communicate can vary over time, and they understand the importance of mirroring children’s behaviour and engaging with them on their level. This promotes mutual communication. Staff use their professional curiosity to support their understanding of children’s needs, and they value the learning opportunities that this provides.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from a wide range of day-to-day activities, and staff take pride in creating meaningful opportunities for children. Staff prepare a number of sensory- stimulating activities, and they consult with therapeutic professionals in the wider school to help them regularly adapt these experiences and create new sensory opportunities for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to engage well in their education, and care staff work well with teachers to provide a consistent approach. Staff understand that transitions between the home and school can be challenging for children, so a structured approach ensures that these generally go as smoothly as possible. One parent stated, ‘Our child is in great trusted hands, and we are completely assured that they will make huge improvements in their learning.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff respect and honour diversity and difference, and each child benefits from a specific month in which their unique cultural heritage is recognised and celebrated with other children. This helps children to develop their understanding about diversity in the wider world and is further complemented by a diverse group of staff, who use their own acquired experiences to support children’s understanding of equality.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in the home all year round and maintain regular contact with their birth families and preferred adults. This includes families visiting children in the home and engaging in shared activities and staff arranging family time in the community. Staff communicate well with families and preferred adults, including the provision of a weekly newsletter about their respective child’s activities and day-to-day experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children’s views about their care are captured in a range of ways that are adapted to their individual needs. Children have a say in their care and are consulted on decisions about their day-to-day life. Children are helped to learn Inspection report for children’s home: SC043994 4 valuable skills to support their independence in the home. They are involved in cooking, cleaning and other domestic tasks. Staff recognise the importance of these skills in children’s wider development and preparation for adult life.

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

Staff understand the communication needs of each child well. They respond promptly to children in ways that are supportive and child centred. Staff respond sensitively when children struggle to manage their feelings and behaviour, and children’s plans reflect a range of well-informed strategies that staff use to help children to settle and feel safe. One parent said, ‘My child has formed wonderful and special bonds with many staff members, and I think this has a lot to do with the caring and empathetic nature of their support workers.’

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

There has been a very small number of occasions when staff have not been able to safely resolve children’s presenting behavioural needs, and these have required physical intervention. Although these interventions have been proportionate, leaders and managers recognise that subsequent recording could be more descriptive, to enable better oversight by external professionals and families/preferred adults regarding the steps taken to keep the children safe.

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

Staff carefully balance children’s right to liberty with their safety; risk assessments reflect a good understanding of children’s needs and how staff should respond. When challenges arise, staff remain child focused and work well with the multi-disciplinary networks to ensure that the care that the children receive is promoting their welfare. In one example, despite an element of a child’s health needs not being a concern for several years, a detailed care plan was developed as part of their transition into the home.

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

When concerns are raised by children or staff, managers ensure that effective action is taken. This ensures that all safeguarding matters are responded to appropriately. Staff who join the home are appropriately vetted, minimising the risk of unsafe adults working in the home.

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

Managers have responded effectively and promptly to any complaints from children, staff or neighbours. When necessary, children have received a social story to communicate the lessons learned, which helps children know that they are heard and that their wishes and feelings are valued.

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

There have been two isolated concerns regarding the management of medication, and leaders and managers have responded effectively to these. Despite strategies to reduce the likelihood of any further errors, several staff, for a very short period, did not follow the agreed protocols. This undermined the oversight of managers following a medication count being incorrect. Leaders and managers recognise that medication practice and training could be enhanced by using medical professionals within the school. Inspection report for children’s home: SC043994 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is led by a child-centred management team that leads by example as a role model of good practice. Managers are visible and present, and their day-to-day oversight puts them right at the heart of the positive culture apparent within the home. Managers demonstrate excellent leadership and are the foundations of a highly effective team that can continually evidence the positive impact that it has on children’s lives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Managers have made child-focused decisions about which children should live in the home. The sensitivity and support that children receive as part of their transition demonstrate high standards of care. In one example, staff provided exemplary support to a child during their transition to the home, despite significant challenges, and this child has since made positive progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff are unanimous in praising the support that they receive from the management team. One staff member said, ‘We have a home manager who is professional, non- judgemental and passionate about her role. I trust them completely and couldn’t ask for a better manager.’ Another staff member noted, ‘The deputy is very strong and is exactly the type of manager we need; they have clear expectations and yet are supportive and available when needed.’ The immediate management team is further supported by two team leaders who provide direct support to staff, including supervision and mentoring.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home manager inspires a strong sense of commitment and dedication across the wider staff team and is strongly committed to continual development. They demonstrate an excellent understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. Managers have taken effective action to ensure that all previous regulatory recommendations have been met.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive training relevant to the needs of children. All staff are positive about the training that they undertake and how this prepares them for their role. New staff benefit from a comprehensive induction, and this helps them to develop the skills and confidence to undertake their role before they are responsible for the care of the children. All permanent staff have received an annual appraisal of their performance, which sets them aspirational goals.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The wider organisation is strongly committed to further staff development. Since the last inspection, the management team has been implementing a ‘therapeutic support worker programme’. This is intended to develop therapeutic, child-centred practice across the home and provide a direct benefit for staff and children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff benefit from a culture of high aspiration and mutual support. One parent said, ‘Staff have a very good understanding of my child’s needs and are always taking that extra step to look at ways to effectively meet these. They always reflect on situations and try to understand why it happened and what to do in the future to help prevent or minimise it happening again.’ Inspection report for children’s home: SC043994 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: SC043994 7

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Children’s home details

Provision sub-type: Residential special school

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Seebeck House, 1 Seebeck Place, Milton Keynes MK5 8FR

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Jennifer Marshall

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Inspectors

Ashley Edwards, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Glen Strowbridge, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC043994 8 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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