Children’s home rated ‘very good’
Brucefield children’s home has been rated ‘very good’ by inspectors following an unannounced visit in November.
The service in Bannockburn, which is registered to care for a maximum of five young people aged between 11 and 20 years, is managed by Stirling Council and has a full time manager, a senior practitioner and a team of childcare workers as well as several dedicated relief staff.
The home also features a bedsit area for young people who are moving towards more independent living.
The inspectors spoke with four people using the service and two of their representatives as well as six staff and management
In their findings, they said:“the manager and staff team were experienced and received regular training.
“The staff team had good knowledge of risks for young people. The details of what staff should do, although known, was less evident in risk assessments. We suggested improvement in this area.
“The service worked very well with other professionals to meet the goals of young people, this included health, education, social work and advocacy. The service should further develop quality assurance measures to ensure that other agencies are informed of all notifiable instances.
“The service championed continuing care, this led to some very good outcomes for young people, ensuring they received consistent care as long as wanted and needed.
“The service communicated effectively with families and supported young people to see them. Young people’s education was prioritised and supported as needed by the service. For those not in education there were effective strategies to reengage them.
“Care plans included views of young people. We felt that goals could be more specific, including the steps required by staff to meet goals. In addition quality assurance measures should be developed to track progress and identify when plans need to change.”
Support for children and young people’s rights and wellbeing was rated ‘very good’.
“The service demonstrated major strengths in supporting outcomes for young people. There are very few areas for improvement.
“At the time of the inspection there were five young people using the service. We found that the service had developed initial assessment planning to ensure that the young people were well supported. This had led to some very good outcomes for young people. Young people experienced positive relationships with the staff. They experienced consistent care from a well-trained and knowledgeable staff team.
“The service worked with other professionals well to help minimise risk to young people. This included health, education, and advocacy services. In addition, we saw clear efforts from the manager and team to work with families to help them to understand risks and work together to develop effective strategies.”