Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Rochdale

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 benefits from individualised care provided by a small and dedicated staff team that is committed to supporting the young person to achieve his full potential.  The young person’s views are actively sought, in order to develop his placement plan. The staff team is committed to ensuring that the young person’s views are promoted and listened to.  The staff team supports the young person to make progress in all areas of his life. In particular, his education and health needs are prioritised.  The young person has been supported to reduce his risk-taking behaviour, resulting in a significant reduction in missing-from-home episodes.  The young person is well supported to build the life skills that he needs for living independently in the community. The young person recognises the positive impact that the home has had on his life. He says that he is safe and well cared for by the staff team.

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The children's home provision is good because:

 The staff team says that members are very well supported in their roles by the manager and have regular supervision and team meetings. They participate in regular training. This ensures that they are well equipped to meet the needs of the young person placed in the home.  The home is managed by a committed and dedicated manager who is passionate about providing high-quality care and strives for continuous improvement in the home.  Areas for the home’s development include ensuring that ― The kitchen worktops are repaired or replaced to promote good food hygiene ― All staff team members have their performance formally appraised ― The fire risk assessment is reviewed regularly.

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that must be taken so that the registered persons meet 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 persons must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the requirements of the regulatory reform (fire safety) order 2005 are complied with in respect of the home. This is in direct relation to ensuring that the fire risk assessment is reviewed regularly. (Regulation 25(2)(b)) 29 July 2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:

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Recommendations

 Children's homes must comply with relevant health and safety legislations. This is with specific regard to kitchen worktops and good food hygiene. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  All staff must have their performance and fitness to carry out their roles formally appraised at least annually. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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Information about this children's home

This is a private children’s home registered to provide 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

31 March 2016 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Recent inspection history

14 December 2015 Full Requires improvement

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Recent inspection history

25 March 2015 Interim Declined in effectiveness

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Good

The young person commented at the inspection that he has very good relationships with the small staff team. This is because the team is consistent and committed to supporting the young person to make positive life choices. This is a solo placement and the young person’s needs are well supported by a team that places him at the centre of the home. The young person commented, ‘The staff go above and beyond. They make a real difference.’ The young person’s views are consistently sought, and his voice is clearly heard in the home, through individual discussion, regular consultation meetings and daily conversations with the manager and staff team. Staff encourage the young person to explore his cultural heritage and they speak highly of his cooking skills, particularly the Jamaican meals that he enjoys cooking for the team. The young person has made steady progress in all areas of his life since being in

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Good

placement. His social worker commented, ‘It’s been a really good placement for [X]. They have done more than I ever thought they would. I am really pleased with the progress he has made.’ The staff team works with the young person to ensure that he attends all regular health appointments, including his annual health assessment. The staff team supports the young person to be aware of local health services that he can access both with support and independently, should he wish to, including the local sexual health agency. Education is a priority in the home. The staff and manager worked tirelessly to support the young person to complete his education. Despite a number of ongoing issues in relation to challenging behaviour displayed in school, the young person was able to complete the year and is now waiting for some examination results. The staff team is now working with the virtual head of the placing authority to

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Good

support the young person’s engagement in post-16 education, so that when he returns to his placing authority he has a clear transitional education plan in place. The staff team is working to support the young person to develop his independent living skills, in line with his current care plan. These include not only practical skills but work on being a good neighbour and developing appropriate and positive peer relationships. The young person is committed to working towards his next placement, which, as he has requested, is a semi-independent provision closer to his home area. A record is kept of the new skills that the young person has acquired and consistently demonstrated. For example, he has developed the skills to shop on a realistic budget for the majority of his meals, which he prepares and cooks. The staff team values family relationships. Staff have supported the young person to strengthen and develop his family relationships. This has resulted in an increase

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Good

in well-supported and managed contacts, which have now built up to overnight contacts. This has resulted in the young person having a re-established family network in place for when he moves on from the home, back to his home town. The manager and staff have continued to improve the decoration of the home, and maintenance issues are addressed quickly and effectively. The house presents as a homely and comfortable place to live, with the young person’s photographs and certificates of his achievements proudly displayed around the home. However, despite the ongoing improvements, the kitchen worktops remain in a poor state of repair. The manager has now secured agreement for these to be replaced. Because this has not been completed, this recommendation is restated.

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Good

The young person feels safe and well cared for living in the home. He commented, ‘I do feel safe living here, definitely. The staff are really good here.’ Individual risk management plans are in place and regularly reviewed. The plans support the staff team with identified strategies to manage the individual needs of the young person safely. The young person’s risk-taking behaviour has significantly reduced since he has been living at the home. There have been very few episodes of missing from home. Each episode is recorded effectively, and staff have responded appropriately on the rare occasions when the young person has been reported as missing. An independent person is made available to the young person following each episode. However, the young person has yet to take up the service, preferring to speak to individual team members. He commented that he is confident in speaking to any member of the staff team about anything.

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Good

Behaviour is well managed in the home. The young person responded positively to incentives in place to support him to maintain positive behaviour and to continue to develop independent living skills. Since the last inspection, there have been no physical interventions. The manager monitors the imposed sanctions effectively. The staff team ensures that, when possible, restorative action is imposed, to support the young person to learn from the action. The staff work together as a team to ensure that the young person knows and understands the boundaries and routines in place at the home. This contributes to his feeling safe and secure about how the staff team will manage and react to his behaviour. The manager responds swiftly to any complaints raised about the home. The manager has investigated and responded appropriately to complaints that have been raised since the last inspection. One safeguarding concern has been

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Good

investigated since the last inspection. All agencies were notified, with the appropriate action taken to ensure that the young person was safe in the home. Individual team members are confident in their understanding of the whistle- blowing procedure. Organisational recruitment practice remains robust. The manager takes an active part in the recruitment of staff to ensure that she has a good mix of staff on the team in order to meet the individual needs of the young person. Checks are obtained and scrutinised prior to employment and then held securely. This supports young people to be cared for by adults who have been appropriately checked prior to employment. A range of health and safety checks are routinely carried out to ensure that young people and staff live in a physically safe environment. However, the fire risk assessment has not been reviewed for over 12 months. The manager was aware of this and was in the process of addressing this shortfall. The impact of this shortfall

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Good

is negated by the weekly internal fire checks completed by the staff team.

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Good

The registered manager has been in post since 2015. She achieved registration in April 2016. She is also the registered manager for two other solo-occupancy homes. The manager has commenced the appropriate leadership qualification, which will broaden her own skills and competence and comply with regulation. The manager is dedicated to strengthening and developing the staff team. She is committed to succession planning in the home, to ensure stability and consistency within the staff team. She has successfully promoted staff to senior posts from within the staff team. Through effective mentoring, she has ensured that they have developed the skills and confidence for the roles. The manager has a good understanding of the strengths and areas for improvement of this home. Through effective monitoring and oversight, she has targeted areas for improvement and maintained the stability of the young person placement at the home.

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Good

The young person’s individual needs are placed at the centre of the home. Consequently, positive relationships have developed between the whole staff team and the young person. The young person commented, ‘The best thing is that the staff don’t hold grudges. They really do care about me.’ The young person has made good progress since coming to live at the home. His placing social worker shares this view. The manager and staff team have developed good working relationships with supporting agencies, which centre on the care for the young person. In particular, the home has an established relationship with the local policing team. The whole staff team is supported by the manager, who manages her time between the three homes effectively. Individual staff and the young person comment that she is always available, either at the home or on the telephone. Regular team meetings and supervisions ensure that staff are well supported in

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Good

their roles. However, due to changes in the organisational policy on when appraisals take place, some staff have not had an annual appraisal. Because of the levels of support and supervision in place, this has not had a negative impact on the quality of support for individual staff members. All staff receive a range of training that assists them to support the young people whom they look after. The manager ensures that any specific training required to meet the individual needs of young people is facilitated, in order for the staff team to be equipped to care for the young people. Individual team members either hold the appropriate qualification or are enrolled on the course. The home is adequately resourced and delivers the services and support outlined in the statement of purpose. The manager ensures that there are sufficient numbers of staff on duty to meet the young person’s individual needs. Shortfalls in

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Good

the rota are covered by the existing staff team and a small number of in-house bank workers to ensure consistency for young people. Monitoring, both of how well the home is performing and of the young person’s progress, is in place. The manager makes good use of the home’s development plan and regularly reviews the individual staff members’ performance and areas for improvement. External monitoring continues to take place on a monthly basis. The manager has ensured that these reports are regularly received by HMCI. The manager has addressed the majority of the shortfalls identified at the last inspection. The statement of purpose has been reviewed. Positive relationships have been established to ensure that the individual needs of the young person are being met and that progress is being maintained. The manager has a clear workforce development plan in place, which identifies how poor practice will be

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Good

challenged and managed. The manager has ensured that all serious events are notified to the appropriate people within 24 hours. One shortfall, in relation to the kitchen worktops, is still to be met. This recommendation has been restated.

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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 children looked after 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 that 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 that 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 whom 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

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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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