Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Bradford

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:

 Most young people feel happy and settled. The good progress that they make is a testament to the placement stability, support and nurturing from staff that help young people to develop and grow into young adults.  Highly bespoke care planning meets young people’s diverse needs, including their identity and cultural needs.  The young people’s good engagement with staff helps staff to successfully meet the young people’s individual placement plans.  Effective multi-agency partnerships monitor young people’s safety and welfare.  Young people’s life experiences and engagement in the wider community and further afield are achieved through a range of learning and fun activities.  Professionals are confident that the services provided to the young people influence their good progress.  Good management support and development opportunities empower the team to remain child-focused and aspirational.

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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 within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (5)).

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, consider the opinions of young people, parents and staff to inform service improvements. 28/02/2017

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendation:  The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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Recommendations

Specifically, that supervision records should be recorded in detail to evidence their reflective nature.

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately run children’s home. It is registered to take up to six young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 10/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 11/08/2015 Full Good 11/02/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness 28/05/2014 Full Good

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Good

Most young people benefit significantly from the long-term stability in the family- orientated and supportive home. Their positive engagement with staff supports the firm boundaries, which has enabled mutual respect to develop and grow over time. This boosts young people’s sense of safety and makes them feel valued and accepted, irrespective of their race, culture, religion or sexual orientation. Staff act as positive role models, which steers the young people’s progress in the right direction. Staff investment in the young people helps the young people to learn the virtues of behaving in socially acceptable ways. Most of the young people’s positive comments confirm that they like living at the home and they approve of the staff. A professional said, ‘My impression of the staff is that they are caring and want to help young people move forward in life to meet their full potential.’ Young people’s wishes and feelings influence their future plans and include them in

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Good

the running of the home. Highly bespoke care planning meets young people’s cultural and most of their complex and diverse needs. This allows young people to access the appropriate services, helping them to overcome barriers to their progress. Plans are in place to ensure that one young person who is not suitably placed moves to an appropriate home that fulfils his needs holistically. Staff champion the importance of education to ensure that young people’s life chances improve. Some young people aspire to progress on to university and into professions that reflect their talents. Other young people are good attendees at their educational provisions or they are waiting for a suitable educational placement. The effective support that staff provide to the young people is achieved in conjunction with education providers. This ensures that young people achieve realistic goals and their educational attendance is monitored. A professional said,

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Good

‘In terms of [name of the young person]’s education needs, the unit see this as a high priority and do everything within their power to ensure young people attend education or training. If [name of the young person] did not attend for any reason, sanctions were used to ensure being at the unit was not an easy option.’ Good health promotion and the effective communication with health professionals support young people’s access to the primary and specialist services. This supports the young people’s physical and emotional health. A professional said, ‘They make sure he is healthy and try to get him to engage in routine health appointments.’ Medication management is safe and effective, which helps to control young people’s health conditions. Young people’s sense of identity and belonging is promoted by their contact with the family and friends that bind them together. Young people’s leisure activities,

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Good

such as socialising with friends, attending the skate park, trampolining, cinema, attending football matches and celebrating cultural events, integrate them into community life and provide good distraction and fun times. A young person’s trip abroad on a ‘journey of a lifetime’ has significantly enlightened, matured and helped him to develop new skills and empathy towards disadvantaged people. Young people acquire independence skills that help them to cope with life when they move on. For example, young people can budget, cook meals, maintain self- care skills and travel independently. Young people who have experienced a planned move or have chosen to leave the home earlier than planned have been supported with their transition. They are welcome to stay in touch with the home, which mimics the role of a good parent. A professional said: ‘All my young people’s needs are met. He is very happy and settled there. He considers it his home and wants to

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Good

stay there until he is 18.’ The pleasant and homely environment provides young people with a pleasant dwelling for them to live and progress at their own pace. They like their personalised rooms, which reflect their individual preferences and interests.

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Good

The young people benefit considerably from living in a safe and secure home with staff who understand their individual needs and risks. Staff practice prioritises and protects the safety of those who perpetrate or are the victims of harmful behaviours. The knowledge and insight enables staff to recognise and take action when they can no longer keep young people safe, which results in alternative placements. Consequently, young people rate their safety highly. One young person said that they feel, ‘The safest that I have ever felt.’ Professionals raise no dispute about the young people’s safety and welfare. A professional said, ‘I have no concerns in this area. They keep my young person safe and happy and make sure he knows how to keep himself safe.’ Bullying is not an issue at the home and young people say that staff ‘are on it straight away’ should there be evidence of bullying behaviour. Effective multi-agency relationships between staff, the police and other

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Good

safeguarding professionals mitigate against the serious risks associated with offending behaviours, child sexual exploitation and going missing from care events. Staff act proactively to ensure that young people stay in contact, including those who are new to the home and are persistently missing. This ensures that staff satisfy themselves that the young people have not come to harm and they consistently encourage their safe return home. A professional said, ‘Safety is an important consideration from the staff. They followed the correct procedures on the rare occasions that [name of the young person] went missing, being concerned about his welfare and making every effort to track him down.’ Good practice is recognised in the positive challenge by the staff to placing authorities when return home interviews have not taken place. This ensures that young people have an opportunity to discuss their reasons for going missing with an independent person.

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Good

Young people’s behaviour continues to be well-managed through the positive relationships that the young people share with staff. Strong and consistent behaviour management interventions minimise and eliminate the risks presented by young people from their starting points. The firm routines and boundaries support the staff’s good knowledge about the young people. Positive de-escalation techniques encourage socially acceptable behaviours and self-regulation, with the minimum use of sanctions and physical intervention. A professional said, ‘In the past, when [name of the young person] has had a behavioural incident, they always make sure his welfare is their main concern and this is dealt with as a priority rather than focusing on his behaviour [or] the damage he has done, which can be dealt with at a later time when he is in a better place to discuss it and learn from the discussion.’ Allegations against staff are addressed promptly in conjunction with the local

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Good

authority designated officer. These interventions promote young people’s safety and welfare.

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Good

The registered manager has managed the home since 2011. She registered with Ofsted in 2012. She has significant residential and childcare experience and holds a level 5 management award and a social sciences degree. The manager provides effective leadership to the team and she promotes a service that is regarded positively by staff and professionals. A professional said, ‘Reports are always on time and detailed in terms of progress and needs. Should any issues arise they will always email me immediately and make sure I am up to date with plans, progress and changes.’ Newly recruited staff have endeared themselves to the young people. One young person said that the current group of staff are ‘the best staff in a long time’ and ‘the home feels more secure and settled than it has for a long time’. This is a testament to the efforts made to ensure that only suitable staff are employed to care for the young people. Subsequently, the decisive action taken with respect to

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Good

one safeguarding concern ensures that staff who fall short of the provider’s high expectations no longer work at the home. Staff support, through regular supervision, daily handovers, team meetings and training, enhances their skills and knowledge, which informs how they care for the young people. Plans to train staff on specific harmful behaviour is imminent. However, individual supervision records do not indicate the reflective discussions held between staff and their supervisors. The registered manager has a comprehensive understanding of the service’s strengths and weaknesses and what is needed to drive forward improvements in the home. She makes good use of the evaluative independent visits and subsequent reports to make continuous improvements. This is combined with her monitoring the performance of the home. However, the six-monthly review report does not include how feedback from the young people, staff and parents influence

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Good

service improvements. This shortfall does not impact negatively on young people but its inclusion would make for a robust review. Overall, the registered manager runs a child-focused, aspirational children’s home that fulfils its statement of purpose to “ ‘provide a safe, well-managed and nurturing environment for all our young people’ and ‘there is a strong sense of values within the team that as a whole is committed to achieving the best possible outcomes for each young person’. The registered manager notifies Ofsted about significant events, which enables Ofsted to carry out its regulatory duties.

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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 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 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

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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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