Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Essex

Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 1 SC471153 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This is one of a number of privately owned children’s homes operated by this provider. The home is registered for up to two children who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

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

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 9 February 2017

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

p.1

Enforcement action since last inspection:

None Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 2

p.1

Key findings from this inspection

 Children live in a homely and warm environment.  A strength of the home is the strong relationships between the children and the staff.  The children are encouraged to participate in a wide range of activities specific to their individual interests.  The staff are proactive when children have gone missing.  The registered manager and the staff have a good understanding of safeguarding procedures.  The manager and the staff team work closely with all professionals.  The children, professionals and the staff spoke positively about all aspects of the home.

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s areas for development:

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

 Children have not been offered an advocate.

p.2

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 05/07/2016 Full Good 09/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 03/11/2015 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 3

p.2

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to 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 person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

p.3

Requirement Due date

The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who, in particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that each child is given appropriate advocacy support. (Regulation 7 (1)(2)(b)(iii)) 30/11/2017

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a homely and warm environment, which is decorated to a high standard and personalised to the children who live there. The staff have successfully managed to emulate a positive family home experience for the children, who describe it as their home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children receive well-planned individualised care, which is strengthened by regular team and network meetings with all professionals. Furthermore, the staff attend regular clinical meetings at which the children and any strategies to manage any areas of difficulty or behaviour are discussed. This ensures that children’s needs and progress are kept under regular review.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children with complex needs and backgrounds make good progress from their individual starting points across all areas of their development, including their physical and emotional well-being. For example, a social worker reported that for one child living in the home there has been a reduction in her episodes of going missing, saying, ‘She [the child] has made a good connection with staff and things are looking good and bright for her future.’ One child commented, ‘Staff always ask me what’s wrong, make sure I am always alright, check everything is locked, close the curtains and make sure we are in bed and tucked up.’ This gives children a sense of belonging and security.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A strength of the home is the strong relationships between the children and the staff. Children benefit from the care and support of a consistent and stable team of staff who are all committed to achieving the best possible outcomes for them. A child said, ‘I really do like living here; the staff are amazing and helpful, I feel really cared for.’ Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 4 The children are encouraged to develop independence skills to prepare them for their future, for example in budgeting, writing CVs and applying for jobs and college placements. All of the children have college placements and are awaiting their start dates. This opportunity will benefit them when they start seeking employment and helps build their confidence.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to participate in a wide range of activities specific to their individual interests, including cheerleading and keeping fit at the gym, which helps the children to develop self-esteem. The staff promote children’s friendships; this encourages them to make positive social relationships outside their home, and the children have formed enduring friendships, which will have a positive impact on their resilience.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are routinely sought in key-worker sessions and residents’ meetings. This ensures that the children are listened to and that their views are central to the running of the home. The staff support and assist the children to prepare for review meetings. However, the children have not been offered independent advocates who could support them further.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff are proactive in ensuring that the children maintain links with their families, when it is safe to do so and in line with their care plans. This helps the children to sustain positive and safe relationships with family members, which promotes their sense of identity.

p.4

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children’s individual risks and vulnerabilities are identified, understood and managed by staff. The staff provide support to keep children safe and minimise risk-taking and negative behaviour. Risk assessments are regularly updated and shared with relevant professionals to ensure that there is a multi-agency approach to reducing risk to children who are at risk of child sexual exploitation. This approach provides clear strategies for staff to follow to ensure that they can safeguard children.

p.4

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff are proactive when children have gone missing. The staff understand the reasons for the behaviour, and work with the children to help them to understand the risks and make better choices to keep themselves safe, hence episodes of going missing have significantly reduced. The missing persons police liaison officer spoke very positively of the manager and the staff team in relation to their practice when children have gone missing. She commented, ‘They [the staff team] are really on the ball and great at sharing information. If a child does go missing, staff go out of their way to look for them and keep them [the children] safe and protected.’

p.4

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The manager reviews and evaluates any incidents of challenging behaviour and physical restraints, and monitors them to establish trends and patterns to this behaviour, and to understand the reasons for any increases to take steps to minimise future risk. These are discussed in clinical, team and network meetings, at which strategies to address risks are discussed and reviewed. As a result, there have been no restraints and more positive Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 5 than negative consequences since the last inspection. This demonstrates the benefit of a consistent approach to managing behaviour.

p.4

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The registered manager and the staff have a good understanding of safeguarding procedures, and respond appropriately by referring to the designated officer, other professionals and notify Ofsted. The staff clearly understand safeguarding procedures, including the home’s whistle-blowing procedure and utilise these when required.

p.5

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff induction and training are priorities. All of the staff have current safeguarding and risk-management training, including mandatory training and individualised training relating to individuals’ identified needs. All of the staff have received regular supervision and have commented on how supported they feel. One member of staff said that her supervision is of good quality and that she had a really good induction. Another member of staff, when asked if she could change anything about the home, what it would be, said, ‘I would not change a thing.’

p.5

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff employed at the home are subject to organisational vetting procedures. They do not start work in the home until all appropriate checks are complete. This practice means that children are protected from persons who may present a risk to them.

p.5

How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

All fire, gas and electrical equipment is routinely serviced, monitored and reviewed. This ensures that it is in good working order and that the environment is a safe place for children to live and thrive in.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is currently on maternity leave and another registered manager from another setting is overseeing the home until an interim manager takes up the post. The current manager is very experienced and has a level 5 diploma in leadership and management. She is an enthusiastic and motivated leader who has good oversight of the home and is committed to delivering quality care and wants the children to achieve positive outcomes.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff receive support from the manager and receive regular supervision and appraisals. This provides the staff with the opportunity to reflect on their practice and provide the children with specific care for their needs. Informal support and regular team meetings mean that everyone is up to date with children’s daily activities and progress. The manager promotes staff development. The staff are either qualified or working to complete a recognised qualification. Mandatory and specific training keeps the staff well informed about aspects of children’s needs. The staff are supported to develop their knowledge so that they can safeguard children.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Care and placement plans are individualised. They provide a valuable point of reference for the staff to follow. The manager has high expectations of all staff and motivates them to be creative and evaluative in the work that they do. The manager monitors the quality of care through evaluating staff practice after any incidents. Sanctions and missing from care incidents are discussed in team meetings and clinical meetings to Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 6 formulate new strategies to manage any further incidents. The manager seeks feedback from the children to improve their care experience. She has clear oversight of children’s specific plans and makes sure that they are meaningful and achievable and is able to show the progress that they have made .

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager welcomes the monthly visits from the independent visitor and benefits from the feedback. She uses these visits and the quality of care review to monitor the home’s progress. She evaluates how she can improve the service for the children and reflects on and evaluates care practice. The manager sources new experiences to enrich children’s lives.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has strong links with a number of external services, promoting a collaborative approach to ensure that the children’s needs are met. These relationships provide direct support for the children and provide the staff with information, training and support which assist them in meeting children’s needs. This is effective in helping the children to make positive progress in terms of their individual goals, including keeping themselves safe from harm.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and the staff work closely with professionals, such as the children’s social workers and the clinical support team, to ensure that the children receive consistency of care and are kept safe. Professionals all spoke highly of staff’s communication with them. One social worker commented, ‘They do call me if they need anything and emails are frequent, therefore I am finding the communication with the home good.’

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff like working at the home and are committed to achieving the best outcomes for the children whom they care for. The staff feel supported in their role and describe the management team as approachable and supportive, which enables the staff to continue in this emotionally challenging role.

p.6

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The recommendations made at the last inspection have all been met. The organisation has committed to recruiting a stable staff team. This has assisted children to feel settled and secure in their home. Physical intervention has significantly reduced. The children are making good progress in education and they are growing in self-confidence and self- esteem.

p.6

Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the differences made to the lives of children and young people. They watched how professional staff work with children and young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care provided. Wherever possible, they talked to children and 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. Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 7 Using the ‘Social care common inspection framework’, this inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well

p.6

Information about this inspection

it complies with the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Ltd

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Cambian Group, 4th Floor Waterfront Building, Chancellors Road, Hammersmith Embankment, London W6 9RU

p.8

Inspector

Cathy Russell, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC471153 9 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, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

p.8

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, 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 http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspector

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

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: http://www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9