Shrewsbury children's home rated outstanding by inspectors
A children's home near Shrewsbury has been rated as outstanding by Government inspectors for the fourth year in a row.
The Shropshire Council-run Chelmaren, at Bomere Heath, has been judged as outstanding after a visit in November.
It achieved the same rating in January 2014, 2015 and 2016.
Shropshire Council say the inspectors' report says that the home provides 'exceptional stability for young people, who are fit and well, and benefit from a diverse range of activities to meet their individual needs'.
It says that young people feel safe living at the home, maintain settled placements over a long period of time, and return home or into adult care in an 'extremely well-planned and sensitive manner'.
It finds that young people at the home remain in, and do well in, education, and 'don't engage in socially unacceptable behaviour'.
Inspectors said: "The children's home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good.
"The actions of the home contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help, protection and care."
It says that young people feel safe living at the home, maintain settled placements over a long period of time, and return home or into adult care in an 'extremely well-planned and sensitive manner'.
The report praises the staff at the home, saying that 'the manager is committed and supported by a passionate, well-trained, skilled and knowledgeable staff team', which is 'long-standing, committed, dedicated and passionate about the home'.
The report does identify some areas for improvement, notably recording complaints, activity risk assessments, monitoring records, the quality of independent visitor reports, record keeping and reporting significant events. Staff are already working to make these improvements.
David Minnery, Shropshire Council's cabinet member for children and young people, said: "This is a huge achievement for the staff at Chelmaren and is a credit to their hard work, commitment and dedication to providing an outstanding level of care. "Achieving an outstanding judgement is a feat in itself, but to maintain an outstanding judgement is a far greater challenge.
"This is a huge achievement for our staff and we are very proud of them."
