Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Plymouth

Good

The children's home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The young person continues to make progress in this home, educationally, socially and emotionally  The young person is settled in the home, does not abscond and has good, open relationships with staff  The manager and staff team are committed to supporting the young person to develop their independence, friendships, enjoy activities and increase confidence and self-care  Transition plans are in place for the young person as they reach adulthood and the young person looks forward to the future  Seeing family members is important to the young person, who is supported by staff to manage this, both practically and emotionally  Staff manage behaviour well and do not restrain the young person.  Staff receive regular supervision and training. Complaints and allegations are properly dealt with  Placement and health plan documentation are not up to date and so staff have to rely upon knowledge gained from other documents or verbal

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The children's home provision is good because:

updates  Access to social media sites is an important part of the young person’s development of independence and social responsibility. The young person’s computer is currently not working due to technical reasons but the manager is urgently dealing with this  Medication procedures are being reviewed, following a small medication error

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Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person/s meets the Care Standards Act 2000, 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 with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which (b) are kept up to date. (Regulation 36(1)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular this relates to placement and health care plans 21/11/2015

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children's home. (Regulation 23(1))

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Requirement Due date

In particular review how clearly medication packets are marked 21/11/2015

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Requirement Due date

22: Contact and access to communications

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that children are provided at all reasonable times with access to the following facilities- (b) facilities to send and receive post and if the necessary facilities are provided for the use of children, electronic mail, in private. (Regulation 22(3)(b)) 18/10/2015

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned children’s home provides care and accommodation for one young person with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

23/02/2015 CH - Interim sustained effectiveness

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Good

The young person in this home has made progress in many areas of their life. The registered manager and committed staff team of three carers provide consistent and supportive care. The young person has good quality relationships with staff who know them well; enabling the young person to live in a settled and caring home environment. The young person attends an educational establishment that meets their needs, educationally, emotionally and socially. The young person achieves well, enjoys a varied curriculum and has an excellent attendance record. Being nominated for a special achievement award is indicative of the young person’s success. Clear plans are in place for future work placements and on-going education. The young person is also inspired to carry out creative project work in the home, supported by staff. Excellent communication between education and home staff benefits the young person greatly. The communication ensures a consistent approach to support the

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Good

young person, not just educationally but in other important aspects of their life. The director of the educational establishment said ‘the home’s staff genuinely do care for the young person, they are making good progress and mature every day.’ The home staff have assisted the young person in re-establishing links with their family, both in terms of initially supervising visits and also by providing emotional support to the young person. Staff are in regular communication with family members and a parent said ‘they are doing a wonderful job with the young person; the young person enjoys living there.’ Although looking forward to moving on to new adult accommodation and away from a children’s home environment, the young person acknowledged that this home is ‘the best home I have lived in during the eight years I have been in care.’ Staff enjoy working with the young person and say ‘I love going out and about

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Good

with the young person, introducing them to new ideas and seeing the look of success on their face.’ As the young person reaches adulthood, staff have started to help the young person with learning the skills needed, so they are ready to move on to the next stage of their life. Home staff, education and social care staff work together to help the young person to manage risks as safely as possible. Since the interim inspection, the manager and staff have supported the young person with a programme of independence. Supervision of the young person has reduced significantly enabling the young person to independently manage everyday tasks. Alongside this, staff have regular, focussed conversations about topics such as having safe relationships, self-care and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. This information, alongside written material, helps keep the young person informed and reduces potential risks. Plans for future placement arrangements are now coming together and all relevant

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Good

professionals are working together to support the young person. The young person is frustrated in waiting for the imminent move date. A firm plan is set to be agreed at a forthcoming review. The manager chases up any delays in planning with the relevant professionals. Staff encourage the young person to experience varied activities both with and without them. For example the young person attends the young inspectors club, sees a life coach and socialises regularly with friends independently. Staff spend time with the young person going swimming, shopping and having days out. The young person has recently enjoyed a holiday away with their key worker. Topics such as equality and diversity are discussed during regular resident meetings. The young person contributes to the running of the home and discusses menu planning, activities and any other relevant issues. A social worker said, ‘the home staff help the young person to have confidence and to meet people. The young

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Good

person can do things by themselves now, before they would not have felt able.’

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Good

Staff care for the young person on a one to one basis and have not needed to call for a back-up member to manage any incidents. All staff adhere to lone working risk assessments and are clear how to access help in an emergency. Staff employ their knowledge of the young person together with behaviour de-escalating strategies, which they have been trained in, to reduce the risk of incidents. As a result staff do not need to restrain the young person. However, when challenging incidents do occur, staff reflect upon their experiences and practice to ensure that they help the young person in the best way they can. The manager and in-house psychologist are effective in supporting this to happen. The registered manager has implemented a system to manage behaviour which focusses more upon natural consequences rather than enforcing sanctions. This educational approach is appropriate given the young person’s age and is effective

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Good

in encouraging positive behaviours. On the rare occasion that complaints are made, they are taken seriously and investigated thoroughly by the manager. The outcome is explained to the young person in writing. The young person does not abscond from this home. Staff more recently, in line with the young person’s care plan, have focused on helping the young person further increase social and communication skills at home and in the community. The manager has made suggestions to social care staff that give the young person greater freedom and support to use the internet and social media sites safely. This was agreed but is not yet in place, due to technological difficulties with the young person’s computer. The manager is seeking to urgently resolve this problem as the delay impacts upon the young person’s independence. A medication error, which did not have harmful consequences, was not thoroughly investigated, and therefore the conclusion and recommendation did not deal with

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Good

the problem fully. The manager is now in the process of implementing changes to ensure the mistake is not repeated.

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Good

The registered manager is highly regarded by staff and professionals alike. He leads by example and ensures that his team have the same child focussed approach. Staff receive regular supervision, appraisals and training which enable them to provide excellent care to the young person. Staff attend team meetings regularly and provide support to each other. Recording is completed carefully and the manager demonstrates good oversight in all areas of staff’s care of the young person, such as consequences, incidents and house meetings. Therefore the manager is able to identify trends and areas for development within the home. Over a period of time, the manager and social worker have failed to ensure that the young person receives the recommended specialised therapy required from Children and Mental Health Services, following a psychological assessment. The social worker continues to pursue this therapy and in the meantime, the manager

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Good

has ensured some therapeutic support is provided for the young person, by the in- house psychologist. While the young person is not receiving the specific therapy recommended, the manager has been creative in providing an alternative solution in the meantime. The young person’s placement plan does not include recent progress and the health plan does not include pertinent information relating to the young person. The resulting impact on the young person’s progress is minimal currently but incomplete documentation does not assist a smooth transition for future move on arrangements. The home operates within the aims and objectives of its statement of purpose. The home environment is clean, comfortable and spacious.

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What the inspection judgements mean

The experiences and progress of children and young people are at the centre of the inspection. Inspectors will use their professional judgement to determine the weight and significance of their findings in this respect. The judgements included in the report are made against Inspection of children's homes: framework for inspection.

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What the inspection judgements mean

An outstanding children's home provides highly effective services that contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help and protection and care. Their progress exceeds expectations and is sustained over time. A good children's home provides effective services that help, protect and care for children and young people and have their welfare safeguarded and promoted. In a children's home that requires improvement , there are no widespread or serious failures that create or leave children being harmed or at risk of harm. The welfare of looked after children is safeguarded and promoted. Minimum requirements are in place, however, the children's home is not yet delivering good protection, help and care for children and young people. A children's home that is inadequate is providing services where there are widespread or serious failures that create or leave children and young people being

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What the inspection judgements mean

harmed or at risk of harm or result in children looked after not having their welfare safeguarded and promoted.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people living in the children's home. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference adults make to the lives of children and young people. They read case files, watched how professional staff work with children, young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care given to children and young people. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people and their families. In addition the inspectors have tried to understand what the children's home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people who it is trying to help, protect and look after. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service and to consider how well it complies with the Children's

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Information about this inspection

Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. the guidance raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

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, workbased learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for looked after children and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Information about this inspection

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Information about this inspection

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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