Care provision retains its “good” rating after latest Ofsted inspection

“Children make progress because they are cared for by a dedicated staff team that understand their needs. As such, children grow in confidence and build on their social skills. Staff respond to children's needs with a warm and caring approach.” 

This is one of the findings of the latest report from Ofsted care inspectors who have graded Prior’s Court's Children's Home as “good” – the 13^th Oftsted inspection in a row our care provision has been rated as “good” or “outstanding”.

Ofsted inspectors paid a three-day visit to our site in December to observe and document the standards of our residential homes* for autistic young people with complex needs up to the age of 19.

The grading of "good" means we've retained the rating last earned following an inspection in 2022.

Other extracts of the report read:

• Staff are proud of the outcome’s children have achieved and progress made including attending health appointments. The staff expertly use the onsite well-being hub and short visits to clinical settings to prepare children for health appointments. This helps children become familiar with medical settings and enabled children to have routine blood tests and immunisations which has had a positive impact on their health outcomes. Staff have helped children to make progress in other areas such as their independence and communication skills.
• There is a strong and open safeguarding culture. Staff know how to raise concerns and managers are responsive. All safeguarding incidents are managed extremely well.
• Children enjoy a range of activities and experiences onsite and away from the home. Children have enjoyed activities such as, reptile encounters, a foam pit and reindeers visiting for Christmas. Away from the provision, children have enjoyed trips to London, watching football matches, a visit to a hoover factory and a group of children went to the theatre. Activities are well planned and are bespoke to children's interests
• Staff feel well supported by managers. Staff say managers are always at the end of the phone and they are listened to. Staff have regular supervisions and appraisals in line with the home’s policy.
• The children benefit from a multi-disciplinary team onsite. They provide an integrated approach to the children’s care to meet their complex needs.

Lisa Pothecary, Registered Manager and Young People’s Care Lead said: “This report is a wonderful endorsement of the incredible compassion, dedication and knowledge staff at Prior’s Court demonstrate every day in support of the young people here.

“The efforts made by staff across Prior’s Court to support young people to lead happier, healthier, more independent lives shines through the  report and I cannot describe how proud that makes me feel of our teams.”

Natalie Boothroyd, Director of Care, added:

“As ever, there are learns to be taken from Ofsted reports and areas for improvement. It should be noted that many of the areas for improvement are already included in documents such as our three-year strategic plan, our business plan for this year and other planning documents we have.”

The Ofsted Education rating for Prior's Court School remains "outstanding". Our four Young Adult Provision homes for autistic young people aged 19 to 25, each registered separately with the CQC, are all rated as “good”.

*Our 12 separate residential homes for children are registered as one Children’s Home with Ofsted.