Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Worcestershire

Good

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

p.2

The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people are having positive experiences in the home. Staff promote a wide range of activities within the local community that help improve young people’s self-confidence.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people make good, and in some cases excellent, progress. They engage well in school and are supported by staff to lead healthy lifestyles.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 Staff are nurturing. They provide good-quality, individualised care for young people to enable them to fulfil their full potential.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 Staff manage young people’s challenging behaviour well. They use a high level of rewards and praise to promote young people’s positive behaviour.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 Young people are safe and do not go missing. Even those who have a history of going missing have significantly reduced this behaviour.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 The manager and staff have a good understanding of young people’s developmental needs and progress, which enables them to provide a good quality of care.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 The manager has developed good working relationships with police, placing and host authorities, and those within the local community, to ensure that young people get the best possible support.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 The manager is proactive in challenging others when the responses from other professionals are not effective or in young people’s best interests.

p.3

The children's home provision is good because:

 There are some administrative shortfalls. These are with regard to the home’s locality risk assessment and children’s guide.

p.3

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.

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises of the children's home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard). When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1)(2)) 17/12/2016

p.4

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation:  Ensure that the children's guide is appropriate to the ages of all the children living in the home and is provided in an accessible format so that they can understand it. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, page 24, paragraph 4.21)

p.4

Information about this children's home

This is a privately operated children’s home. It provides care and accommodation for four children or young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties between the ages of eight and 18 years old.

p.5

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 01/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 24/08/2015 Full Good 13/11/2014 Full Adequate 11/09/2014 Full Inadequate

p.5

Good

Young people are having positive experiences and achieving good outcomes in the home. This is because staff are nurturing and provide good-quality, individualised care for young people. As a result, young people gain self-esteem and confidence. They develop good relationships with staff members and feel that staff listen to them.

p.6

Good

Young people are making good, and in some cases excellent, progress in many aspects of their development. One social worker stated, ‘My young person has made significant progress from her starting point.’ An independent reviewing officer commented, ‘She is a completely different girl… the changes the home have brought about are little short of a miracle.’ Young people are healthy. This is because staff support them well to lead healthy lifestyles. For example, one young person stopped smoking as soon as she arrived in the home.

p.6

Good

All young people, even those with a history of non-school attendance, are attending school full time and now have 100% attendance. They are making good progress and are engaging well with teachers. One young person, who had a long history of not attending school prior to living in the home, is now on target to complete GCSEs next year. Staff have frequent contact with teachers to support young people in school and show a genuine interest in their educational development. One young person who previously struggled in school was able, with excellent preparation by staff from the home, to attend a three-day residential trip supported by a teaching assistant from her school.

p.6

Good

Young people experience a wide range of activities within the local community. Each has interests and hobbies that are promoted by staff. Young people engage in activities, such as horse riding, playing netball and going fishing. During the summer school holidays, all the young people enjoyed a holiday with staff in Devon. For some young people this was the first holiday that they had experienced. They benefited enormously from this. They increased in self- confidence and developed positive relationships with staff members and each other.

p.6

Good

Young people are able to express their views and opinions regarding the running of the home and all aspects of their care, both on an individual basis and during weekly meetings. Staff listen to young people and consider their views whenever possible.

p.6

Good

Staff work well with families to encourage young people to have positive contact with their family and friends. This is the case even when they are living at a distance from their family. In particular, the manager and staff have been proactive in promoting and supervising contact for one young person with her brothers and sisters. Young people are able to have friends to tea and often attend friends’ houses for birthday parties in the local village.

p.6

Good

Young people currently living in the home are not of an age when they require a structured independence plan. However, staff work with them at their own pace and in a natural way to develop independence skills. They cook and bake with young people and encourage them to tidy their bedrooms and do their laundry. One young person who required a significant amount of support from staff is now attending activities on her own and making friends in the local community.

p.7

Good

The home environment is comfortable and child-centred. There are pictures and photographs of young people in communal areas of the home. Young people are able to decorate and furnish their bedrooms to reflect their personality. For instance, one young person has a Disney-themed bedroom. One social worker commented, ‘It does not feel like a residential setting.’

p.7

Good

Despite a relatively new staff team, staff have a good awareness of young people’s needs and work hard to develop trusting relationships with them. Consequently, young people feel safe and secure within the home.

p.7

Good

The manager and staff have a good understanding of the risks that young people face. All staff are fully aware of young people’s risk assessments and behaviour management plans. These are completed to a high standard and are regularly reviewed by the manager to ensure that they accurately reflect young people’s needs. Young people are aware of how to complain and know that staff will act promptly on any concerns that they may have.

p.7

Good

Staff manage young people’s challenging behaviour well. They use a high level of reward and praise to promote young people’s positive behaviour. They attend self- soothing workshops and attachment training to help them engage with young people and improve behaviour. This has been effective, as the levels of physical intervention continue to reduce. One placing social worker stated, ‘Staff are skilled at managing and de-escalating behaviour and maintaining positive relationships.’ Staff communicate well with teachers to ensure that behaviour-management strategies are consistent between home and school. This has been successful in significantly improving young people’s behaviour in school. Young people do not go missing. Even those who have a history of going missing have significantly reduced this behaviour. For example, no young person has gone missing in the last eight months. Young people are not at risk of child sexual

p.7

Good

exploitation or radicalisation. The manager and staff have developed a good working relationship with other agencies to prevent young people from going missing and to foster a positive picture of the police.

p.8

Good

The home environment is safe and secure. Regular health and safety checks are conducted and fire evacuations take place. This ensures that all young people and staff are aware of how to keep themselves safe in the event of fire. There is a careful selection process for all new staff working in the home to ensure that they are suitable to work with young people. However, the home’s location risk assessment is not adequate, as it does not include all areas of concern in the locality. It is not developed in conjunction with other agencies to ensure that all risks are highlighted to help keep young people safe while out in the local area.

p.8

Good

The registered manager is experienced and in the process of completing the level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare. The home is child- centred and well managed in line with its statement of purpose. The home has a children’s guide. However, this is a large document. It is not suited to the age of the young people currently living in the home to enable them to have a full understanding of the functions and boundaries of the home.

p.8

Good

Since the last inspection, a high turnover of staff has left few members of staff qualified to the required level. Despite this, the manager has made sure that there is a qualified member of staff on duty at all times to provide high-quality care to young people. The remaining staff are in the process of obtaining the appropriate qualification to work with children and young people. This will make sure that all those caring for young people are equipped to meet their needs.

p.8

Good

Young people are continuing to make good progress. This is due largely to the commitment of the manager and staff. Young people feel safe and secure. As a result, they are able to develop trusting relationships with new staff members. One ex-carer stated, ‘This is the best place [the young person] has ever been in… We are really pleased with the difference in her since living at the home.’

p.8

Good

The manager and staff have a good understanding of young people’s developmental needs and progress. Through high-quality monitoring, the manager has developed a good awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. She has highlighted areas that she wants to improve, and continues to develop systems and processes to enhance the quality of care to young people.

p.8

Good

Staff feel well supported and receive a good level of supervision. The organisation has a training programme for staff that is wide ranging and relevant to the young people they care for. The manager uses team meetings effectively to develop staff knowledge of the issues that young people may be facing. She has also uses team meetings to develop their knowledge of safeguarding and child-centred practice. The manager has sourced external training with health agencies and local authority safeguarding boards to enhance staff knowledge and awareness of young people’s sexual health and how they can keep safe when using the internet.

p.9

Good

The manager has developed good working relationships with police, placing authorities and within the local community, to ensure that young people get the best support. One professional stated, ‘Lots of things we discussed for the young person have been put into place over the summer holidays.’ The manager is proactive in challenging others when the responses from other professionals are not effective. For example, she advocated effectively for a young person to see her brothers and sisters and argued strongly for another young person to be able to attend a family funeral. One independent reviewing officer commented, ‘I have been really impressed with the staff group and the manager.’

p.9

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’.

p.10

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

p.10

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.

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 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

p.11

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 .

p.11

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,

p.12

Information about this inspection

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

p.12

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.12

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.12