Children's Home run by Bay View Child Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 1 SC463926

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Registered provider: Bay View Child Care Limited

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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 managed by a private provider and is registered to provide care for up to six children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted in 2013, and the current manager registered in September 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

There were five children living at the home at the time of this inspection. All five children gave their feedback to inspectors about their experiences of living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

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

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/05/2024 Full Outstanding 27/06/2023 Full Outstanding 25/05/2022 Full Good 27/10/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 3

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Summary of findings

The progress being made by children living at the home varies. This is compounded by staff practice which is not in line with children’s plans and children’s views not always being listened to and acted on.

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Summary of findings

There are gaps in the recording of incidents, which means that it is difficult to understand children’s experiences during times of difficulty. This is not explored or challenged by managers as part of their oversight of the home. Opportunities to learn and improve the shortfalls in staff practice are therefore missed.

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Summary of findings

Children are well supported to engage in education and individualised activities which support their development and enhance their experiences.

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improvement to be good

Children make variable progress from their individual starting points. However, not all children have had positive experiences living in the home, despite the progress they have made. Poor staff practice has had a negative impact on children’s overall progress and experiences.

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improvement to be good

The home environment is clean and maintained to a reasonable standard. Children have individualised and personal spaces that are decorated well, reflecting their personal interests. However, repairs are not completed in a timely way. This prevents the children living in a homely environment.

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improvement to be good

Children have positive relationships with staff. Children talk to staff about things that are important to them. This helps children to feel secure. Children describe the home as ‘the best house I have been in since being in care’, ‘it is in my dream location’ and ‘all my milestones have happened here’.

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improvement to be good

Staff recognise the importance of education. They are ambitious for children and support them to develop confidence in their abilities. Children currently attend education settings that meet their individual needs, and their successes are celebrated by staff.

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improvement to be good

Staff encourage children to pursue their individual interests. Activities such as holidays, football matches and musical events are available for children to attend. Children say these experiences ‘push them out of their comfort zone in a positive way’.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported to maintain relationships with people who are important to them. This helps children to maintain their identity. Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 4 The members of the staff team advocate for children to have access to the right support. This includes supporting children with an independent advocate.

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improvement to be good:

Since the last inspection, there have been incidents of physical intervention. This is in relation to one child. Records do not demonstrate how staff try to deescalate the situation to prevent the child from being held. Therefore, the reason staff hold children is not always clear.

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improvement to be good:

Children’s risk assessments are variable in quality. An assessment to consider a child moving into the home was not robust. While the manager’s assessment considers the individual risks for each child, there is insufficient analysis to support the manager’s decision to care for the children together.

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improvement to be good:

Strategies to reduce risk for one child are not sufficiently detailed. For another child, staff do not consistently follow the strategies included in the child’s risk assessment. This could have an impact on the child’s overall safety. When a child made a complaint, the manager took action to improve staff practices. However, the child’s views were not fully considered.

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improvement to be good:

There are consistent routines and boundaries in place, which the children understand. Staff use various resources to support children’s individual needs. This helps children to understand any changes within the home environment.

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improvement to be good:

Staff rarely use consequences. However, there have been times when consequences are used without a full understanding of the child’s behaviour or the impact on the child. There are shortfalls in the manager’s review of these incidents. This is a missed opportunity to improve staff practices.

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improvement to be good:

Leaders and managers follow safer recruitment processes. This helps to ensure that only suitable staff are employed to work with children.

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

Managers have high aspirations for children. They are keen for them to have positive experiences and to support them to make progress.

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

There are shortfalls in the manager’s monitoring and review systems. For example, children’s records and plans do not demonstrate how the manager evaluates staff practices to make continual improvements to the care that staff provide for children.

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

Staff speak positively about the atmosphere in the home. Staff say that managers support staff to progress in their roles. Reflective staff appraisals help employees improve their performance. They include feedback from children and professionals. Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 5 Supervisions also support staff to reflect on their practice and progress.

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

Team meetings include specific training relevant to children, with the input of the provider’s therapeutic team. Children are the key focus of discussions in which the manager sets out clear expectations of staff. Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 6

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

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Requirement Due date

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

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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;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(2)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that there are effective monitoring and review systems in place so that leaders and managers have effective oversight of staff practice and of its impact on children’s safety and experiences.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is remade. 14 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that there is a detailed record of any consequences, and that they are fair and proportionate. 14 August 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 7 This requirement is remade.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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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)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, risk assessments must include detailed strategies to reduce risk, which must be regularly reviewed for effectiveness. Staff must follow children’s individualised risk assessments in line with their specific needs. Managers must consider the dynamic and risks that exist between children when referrals are being considered for the home. 14 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who— Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 8 take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

ascertain and consider each child’s views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child’s best interests when making decisions about the child’s care and welfare;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to express views, wishes and feelings;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how the child’s views, wishes and feelings have been taken into account and give the child reasons for decisions in relation to the child;

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Requirement Due date

regularly consult children, and seek their feedback, about the quality of the home’s care. (Regulation 7 (1)(c)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, children must be consulted on the type of support they prefer to receive at times when they are struggling, and their views should be reflected in care plans. Where children have made complaints about the care they receive, the responses must contain an apology where appropriate. Where consequences are given, children’s views must be considered.

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (b)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)) 14 August 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 9 Specifically, the registered person must ensure that alternate measures must be considered to keep children safe rather than restricting children’s access to communal areas within the main home which they share with other children.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should make sure that any damage caused to the home during incidents is remedied as a priority. This is to ensure that the home is a nurturing and supportive environment to meet the needs of children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standard’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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: SC463926 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bay View Child Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Core Assets, Malvern View, Saxon Business Park, Hanbury Road, Stoke Prior, Bromsgrove B60 4AD

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Christopher Thompson

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Inspectors

Chervone Collins, Social Care Inspector Andrea Foreman, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC463926 11 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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