Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Birmingham

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:

 Young people make good progress from their starting points. They attend education and are achieving.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The care that young people receive is personalised and reflective of their individual needs.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people enjoy warm and trusting relationships with all of the staff, enabling them to make progress in their emotional and social development.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Staff proactively support young people to engage in education.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Highly committed staff keep young people safe, providing clear and consistent boundaries. Staff work with young people to understand risks and how to keep themselves safe.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Staff are highly skilled and trained, and have an in-depth understanding of young people’s behaviour and complex care needs.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The staff are highly effective. They work well together, and receive excellent support and guidance from managers.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people have successful and carefully planned transitions into new placements.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The child-focused registered manager ensures that staff understand the ethos of the home and that they prioritise young people’s needs at all times.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The registered manager and staff work effectively with a range of professionals and family members in order to ensure that the young people receive the care and support that they need.

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Information about this children's home

The home provides care and accommodation for young people aged between 11 and 18 years (11 to 17 upon admission). Young people referred to the home have emotional and behavioural difficulties, and complex needs. The home is privately owned.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

17 February 2016 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

12 October2015 Full Requires improvement

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Recent inspection history

13 February 2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Good

Young people make good progress from their starting points in all areas of their development as a result of the care that they receive. Young people are well matched with one another, and placements are well planned from the start. They enjoy positive beginnings and endings to their time at the home. Young people are involved in their transition out of the home. For example, they visit their new placement and have support in place for after they leave the home. The registered manager ensures that he has enough information about young people and their needs prior to their admission. He takes care to ensure that there is a balance of young people within their home. He considers not only their individual needs, but also their needs as a group.

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Good

Staff take time to get to know young people. They provide good-quality, individualised care. Behaviour management plans are child focused, with simple, clear guidance regarding young people’s needs. They are purposeful with clear aims and goals. Young people have excellent relationships with staff. Staff practice is exceedingly warm, considered and skilled. Young people blossom due to their positive attachments to staff. A young person said, ‘the home isn’t good, it’s brilliant’, and another young person said, ‘this is the best home I have been in.’ Through young people’s meetings, they are involved in decisions about the development of the home. They say that they understand how decisions are made and the degree to which they are able to influence these. This enhances their day- to-day experience of living in the home.

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Good

Staff encourage young people to attend education and support them to overcome the barriers to engagement. All young people are making educational progress as a consequence of the support they are receiving.

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Good

The progress of young people is very well evidenced. The use of detailed progress- tracking documents ensures that all staff are able to record the progress that young people are making. Furthermore, young people are already actively engaged in reviewing and recording their progress, and they contribute effectively to the process. This develops a sense of ownership in young people. It ensures that they are able to articulate their achievements and plans for the future. Regular key- working sessions take place, where progress and future needs are routinely discussed.

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Good

Where it is appropriate to do so, young people are encouraged to develop their level of responsibility in preparation for the transition to adulthood. This is reflected in the key skills that young people have developed. For example, some young people are supported to plan, shop for and cook their own meals. This ensures that they are able to advance their own self-resilience and life skills. Young people are also encouraged and supported to manage a budget for their money, to save and to make plans for the future. Young people’s files are up to date and contain all the required information. They are routinely checked for consistency and content. This ensures that all recorded details are in place, concerns are quickly identified and young people receive continuity of care.

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Good

Young people’s self-esteem and confidence are promoted through a wide range of varied and focused activities, both within and outside the home. Activities are planned and enjoyable, but also facilitated with purpose. Staff support young people to develop social skills and relationships, and to enjoy healthy living. Good-quality daily experiences help young people to make progress. They take part in activities, enjoy barbeques, bake cakes, and go to the park and cinema. Some young people have friends through their college, and are able to go their friends’ houses and enjoy planned free time in the community.

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Good

Staff work with social workers and the placing authorities to ensure that young people are able to maintain relationships with their families. One social worker said that staff have ‘excellent communication skills’. When contact restrictions are in place, staff clearly explain these. The young people receive practical and emotional support to attend contact visits. This means that, despite living a long distance from family, young people are not unnecessarily isolated from them.

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Good

Young people’s health needs are consistently prioritised. They receive primary and specialist healthcare services. Annual health assessments and reviews take place. Some young people require a range of specialist healthcare services to meet their needs. These include specialist drug and alcohol support, and sexually harmful behaviour services. Young people’s health and development benefit as a result of this specialised support. Judgement grade

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Good

Young people are safe and live in a safe environment where they are protected from harm. Young people have complex needs and display challenging behaviours at times. Staff have an in-depth knowledge and understanding of young people. This supports staff to care effectively and provide support to young people in all areas of their lives.

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Good

Teaching young people to be accountable for their own behaviour is central to the ethos of the home. Staff promote and encourage a culture of trust in and respect for everyone in the home. Staff use their relationship skills, knowledge gained through training, research-based practice and experience to encourage and reinforce socially acceptable behaviour. Staff are excellent at listening to young people and, as a result, young people’s behaviour problems have been minimised. The use of negative sanctions is low, because staff deploy a strength-based approach to supporting young people to take responsibility for their behaviour. Young people are able to make positive decisions about their behaviour. This is demonstrated by the fact that there have been no incidents of physical restraint since the last inspection.

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Good

Robust multi-agency planning ensures that young people are better protected by agencies that know young people well. Professionals share information and communicate effectively. Risk management plans are current and individualised. Consequently, young people’s risks are well managed, and they are enabled to make progress.

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Good

Young people’s risk-taking behaviours, such as substance misuse and self-harm, have decreased since the last inspection. There have been some episodes of young people going missing from the home. Staff work in effective partnership with police and local authorities to protect young people from harm in these circumstances. Staff understand the risks to young people of sexual exploitation. They know the signs and symptoms, and proactively monitor all young people. Young people’s safety is promoted through detailed ‘missing from home’ plans. These specify the actions to be taken by staff and others. ‘Return from care’ interviews are consistently available to young people. This integrated approach to protecting young people means that they become increasingly safe. The home is maintained to a good standard. Health and safety and fire risk assessments are regularly reviewed and updated. Young people reside in a safe

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Outstanding

The registered manager has been in post since September 2015. He has considerable experience and is qualified with a level 5 diploma in leadership and management. A strong and competent deputy manager supports him in post. He also is qualified with a level 5 diploma in leadership and management. In addition, the home has six members of staff and, of these, four are qualified with the level 3 diploma in childcare. The remaining two members of staff are currently working towards this qualification. There is a strong team of staff within the home who are child focused and committed to improving the home. Since the last inspection, the team has worked hard to implement recommendations and to make positive changes to the home.

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Outstanding

The registered and deputy manager are consistently reflective in their practice. They assess young people’s progress against the aims and objectives of their internal and statutory care plans. Leaders understand young people’s individual needs, and ensure that staff have the skills and knowledge to meet these. They recognise the crucial importance to young people of having well-supported and trained staff. Staff receive good-quality and regular supervision, and consequently work safely and consistently together.

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Outstanding

There is a clear statement of purpose in place that details the aims and objectives of the home. This document emphasises the importance of effective admission processes, with the use of impact assessments being key in the decision-making process.

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Outstanding

Partnership working with other agencies remains vital in helping young people to make good levels of progress educationally, socially and emotionally. The manager actively challenges other agencies, when necessary, to obtain the best outcomes for young people.

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Outstanding

Robust recruitment and vetting processes are in place. Applicants undergo appropriate checks, including criminal history and employment history checks. This reduces the possibility of young people being harmed by those in positions of trust.

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Outstanding

Excellent monitoring systems are in place to assess the quality of care provided by the service. The registered manager is aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the service, taking account of young people’s progress and the feedback from the independent visitor. Clear processes are in place for the recording and tracking of the progress that young people are making. This enables staff to identify patterns or trends that negatively impact on young people’s development and to take the opportunity to devise action plans to address identified shortfalls. This means that the service continues to evolve to reflect young people’s individual needs.

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Outstanding

Staff feel valued and supported by the registered manager. They feel listened to, and that their views are valued. Their needs, both professionally and personally, are being taken into account. This helps the staff to remain highly motivated in their care of young people.

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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 ‘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 0300 123 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, work- based 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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