Children's home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Hammersmith and Fulham

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged good at the full inspection. At this interim inspection, Ofsted judge that it has declined in effectiveness .

p.2

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff work hard to get young people to engage with education and further education by working with professionals; offering transport to school; and encouraging young people to get up and go to school or further education each day. Despite this, some young people are not engaged in any further education and staff do not provide them with a structure for their day or opportunities to learn informally. During the inspection, there was little evidence of routine. Two young people who did not go to school stayed in the home all day and went out together late in the afternoon. One social worker commented that, ‘Not all young people in the home are in education; some say they are not going. I am not sure what more staff can do. They (the young people) are in the mindset of dossing around. Kids know it is a laid-back home.’

p.2

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people are not involved in any meaningful activities outside school hours. All of the young people spoken with as part of the inspection informed me that they would like more activities on offer in the home. Staff report that young people are offered activities, but decline them. This means that young people have a significant amount of unstructured time, which is not conducive to achieving a reduction of negative behaviour in the home.

p.2

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people engage in behaviours, such as smoking and cannabis use, that impact on their physical and emotional health. Staff and specialist services offer young people support and guidance about the negative effects that these behaviours have on them, but young people ignore this advice. Young people attend health appointments and staff liaise with specialist professionals when required. Young people in the home have scabies. Staff have ensured that the young people have cream for this and are responding appropriately to try to treat it and prevent further occurrences.

p.2

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people smoke cigarettes and cannabis in the home. There was a smell of cannabis in the home during the inspection; this was acknowledged by a staff member. A staff member further commented during the inspection that she had just found a pot containing cigarette ends in the bathroom. The home’s fire risk assessment states that young people must smoke in the designated area outside, but this is not being adhered to. Staff informed me that one young person covers the fire alarm with a sock to prevent it going off. There are no clear strategies to address this. Staff conduct room searches and undertake direct work with young people, but these strategies are not effective in reducing this risk, which leaves young people and staff at risk of significant harm.

p.2

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff do not ensure that there are robust plans in place for managing young people’s behaviour. Behaviour management plans are not individualised or clear with regard to the actions that need to be taken if a young person displays challenging behaviour. There have been some serious incidents since the last inspection, including two occurrences of young people fighting and causing each other harm. In one incident, a staff member described young people removing the radiator sheets from radiators during a fight and hitting each other with these, which resulted in another young person calling the police. Staff members are not confident about managing situations of this kind. One staff member informed the manager that she does not feel safe with one of the young people in the home and another commented that, as a female member of staff she finds it, ‘Hard to manage X’s behaviour.’ The lack of clear individualised plans for

p.3

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

managing behaviour means that staff are not supported in addressing these situations confidently. This leaves young people at risk. A social worker noted, ‘Staff should have taken responsibility and rung the police; a young person did this and they should have maybe rung the police on other incidents.’

p.3

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people cause damage to the home. For example, the television has been smashed; additionally, there was a serious incident in which young people had obtained the keys to the home’s car and had tried to drive off, but instead had reversed into the home and caused visible damage to the wall of the staff room. One young person commented that she would like cushions and ornaments to make the home more ‘homely’ but said, ‘We can’t have these as they would get smashed.’ She added that living in the home is, ‘Okay when kids aren’t smashing stuff up or waking us up at night with shouting.’ This demonstrates the impact that poor matching decisions and insufficient behaviour management plans are having on other young people living in the home.

p.3

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff try hard to engage with young people and work with them to improve their lives and address any risk-taking behaviour. Key-work sessions take place with young people on relevant areas of risk, such as cannabis use. However, it has been recorded that young people, ‘Ignore advice given.’ As a result, this direct work does not stop young people from making poor choices which will impact negatively on them. There is no evidence of staff reviewing the approaches that they use with young people. This would enable them to consider employing more effective strategies with young people in order to help them understand their behaviour and keep themselves safe.

p.3

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There have been a number of incidents regarding some young people’s use of alcohol. While staff know what actions to take in this situation, there is no clear written guidance for staff in young people’s risk assessments with regard to the management and monitoring of young people if they are under the influence of alcohol. This means that there is no clear guidance for staff to refer to or follow if further incidents occur. Furthermore, as there is no guidance on this matter for new staff to follow, their ability to manage such situations will be unassessed. This was identified as a shortfall at the last inspection and has not been addressed, which leaves young people at risk of harm.

p.3

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There has been a high level of missing-from-home behaviour in this home. However, there were fewer such incidents in the month prior to the inspection. Staff are proactive when young people go missing; they search for young people and ensure that missing-from-home protocols are followed consistently. Staff follow through episodes of missing-from-home in key-work sessions with young people. This helps young people to understand the risks that are inherent in this behaviour. The registered manager does not consistently ensure that independent return interviews take place and does not challenge the placing authority when the return interviews are not undertaken. This means that opportunities to understand and evaluate this behaviour are missed.

p.4

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff make good efforts to work well with other professionals, such as specialist child sexual exploitation social workers and workers from the drug and alcohol service. Professionals gave positive feedback about their working relationships with the home. For some areas, such as child sexual exploitation, this multi- agency approach has worked well and has reduced the risk for some young people. However, the multi-agency approach has been less effective for other behaviours, such as cannabis use.

p.4

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The manager identifies when the placement is not able to meet a young person’s needs, but fails to ensure that young people who join the home are a suitable match to the existing group of young people. Impact assessments are completed, but do not include any evaluation of the impact of identified risk factors on the other young people who live in the home. This is not in accordance with the home’s statement of purpose, which states that: ‘The current residents’ needs are also taken into account.’ This lack of evaluation has resulted in instability for other young people in the home. The manager referred to the home as a ‘holding pen’ in terms of the young people who are awaiting alternative placements, but did not consider that his admissions process could have contributed to this.

p.4

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager has not ensured that the requirements made at the last inspection with regard to risk assessments and behaviour management have been met. He acknowledged he has not taken action to address these and has taken his ‘eye off the ball’. He highlighted that staffing has been an issue. Although staff have been recruited to vacant posts, he said that he is ‘on the floor’ a lot to support members of staff and that, as a result, paperwork is not up to date. The registered manager is leaving the organisation to manage another home and had not informed Ofsted of this. There is a plan for the deputy manager to take over as registered manager, but she has not sent an application to Ofsted yet. The manager has failed to address actions identified in reports by the independent visitor. For example, he has not updated the fire risk section of individual risk assessments, which leaves young people and staff at risk of harm

p.4

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

and shows an inability to take effective action in order to make changes to keep young people safe in the home.

p.5

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff report that they feel well supported in their work in the home. However, some staff do not have regular supervision. This prevents them from having the opportunity to reflect on their practice and is of particular relevance given the concerns that were expressed during the inspection about managing young people’s behaviour. The manager has not had professional supervision in the last two months. This means that he does not have the opportunity to reflect on his practice or identify areas of the home that need to be developed, which in turn prevents him from improving the quality of care.

p.5

Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is owned by a large national private provider. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to six children and young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties .

p.6

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 01/11/2016 Full Good 21/01/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 22/09/2015 Full Good 21/01/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

p.6

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person(s) meet(s) 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.

p.7

Requirement Due date

In order to meet the education standard the registered provider must:

p.7

Requirement Due date

(2)(v) promote opportunities for each child to learn informally; (x) help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. 01/04/2017

p.7

Requirement Due date

In order to meet the positive relationship standard the registered provider must ensure that staff:

p.7

Requirement Due date

(2)(a)(i) meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs as set out in the child’s relevant plans. 01/04/2017

p.7

Requirement Due date

(1) In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure that children are protected from harm.

p.7

Requirement Due date

(2) In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that:

p.7

Requirement Due date

(a)(i) staff assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, arrange to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. In particular, to ensure that risk assessments are accurate and up to date. (iv) manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other.

p.7

Requirement Due date

(b) The home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered to keep 01/04/2017 each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm.

p.7

Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

p.8

Requirement Due date

(1)The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home.

p.8

Requirement Due date

(2)In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to-:

p.8

Requirement Due date

(a) lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose; (c) ensure that the staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; (h) use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. 01/04/2017

p.8

Requirement Due date

In order to ensure the care planning standard is met, the registered provider must ensure that:

p.8

Requirement Due date

2(a) children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. 01/04/2017

p.8

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the requirements of the Regulatory Reform( Fire Safety) Order 2005 and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with. This is in respect of fire risk assessments (b). 01/04/2017

p.8

Requirement Due date

(4)(b) The registered provider must ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision. 01/04/2017

p.8

What the inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspection, we make a judgement on whether the home has improved in effectiveness, sustained effectiveness, or declined in effectiveness since the previous full inspection. This is in line with the ‘Inspection of children’s homes: framework for inspection’.

p.10

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 who it is trying to help, protect and look after. This inspection focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

p.10

Information about this inspection

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 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 .

p.10

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 children looked after 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,

p.11

Information about this inspection

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

p.11

Information about this inspection

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

p.11

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

p.11