Children's home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Stockport

Inspection report children’s home: SC359818 1 SC359818 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is one of a group of homes operated by a large independent organisation. This home provides care and accommodation for up to four young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 7 September 2017

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate Inspection report children’s home: SC359818 2

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

1. On 13 September 2017, Ofsted restricted the home from accepting any new young people until 13 December 2017. This action was taken under section 22B of the Care Standards Act 2000.

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

2. On 14 September 2017, Ofsted issued a compliance notice requiring the home to review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises under regulation 46 of the Children’s Home’s Regulations including the quality standards. This notice was found to be met at a monitoring visit on 23 October 2017.

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Key findings from this inspection

This children’s home requires improvement to be good because:

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff are not yet sufficiently skilled to ensure that young people receive the help that they need to overcome their emotional and behavioural difficulties.  Young people’s plans are not clear or relevant enough for young people to understand how staff are going to help them.  Young people are not engaged in informal learning or collecting memorabilia about their time at the home.  Following a recent disclosure made by a young person, staff failed to identify that an adult’s actions might have been grooming behaviour.  Staff do not know how to ensure that the police immediately treat young people as missing persons if they go missing from the home.  Staff do not prepare young people well enough for moving on to independent living.  Staff have still not completed the necessary qualifications in residential childcare.  Staff morale is low and a number of staff have left or been redeployed since the

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Key findings from this inspection

last inspection.  There has been no registered manager for seven months.  The acting manager does not have enough skills to ensure that staff work as a team and help young people to achieve good outcomes.  Senior leaders in the organisation have not analysed staff turnover, provided staff with appraisals, or ensured that the workforce plan helps them to resolve staffing and management issues quickly.

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Key findings from this inspection

 The young person in placement is settled. Inspection report children’s home: SC359818 3  He feels safe, and is well supervised by staff.  Staff communicate well with his school and his social worker.  Staff provide him with activities and rewards when he behaves well.  Staff have received training from the organisation’s clinician to improve their understanding of young people’s needs.  Staff and the acting manager have improved their readiness to manage risks associated with the location of the home.  Staff and the acting manager have built closer links with a neighbouring independence unit and the local police.  A new manager takes up post in February 2018.  The registered individual is in regular communication with staff and is exercising care with regard to matching, given the ongoing quality of care and management difficulties.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/09/2017 Full Inadequate 22/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 09/11/2016 Full Good 30/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC359818 4

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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.

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to 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; ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate; ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(a)(b)(c)) 05/02/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33(4)(c)) 05/02/2018

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(iii)) 05/02/2018

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff promote opportunities for each young person to learn informally. (Regulation 8(1)(2)(a)(v)) 05/02/2018

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on mutual respect and trust; an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and positive responses to other children and adults.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the 05/02/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC359818 5 registered person to ensure that staff meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 11(1)(b)(c)(2)(a)(i)) The care planning standard is that children receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home and have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that arrangements are in place to plan for, and help each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care, in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with his or her placing authority. (Regulation 14(1)(a)(b)(2)(b)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

This is with particular reference to staff talking to young people about what is happening to them. 05/02/2018

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the home’s procedures take into account the views of appropriate local services and have regard to police and local authority protocols for responding to missing person’s incidents in the area where the home is located. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.29)  Ensure that the home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. Children and their parents should be supported to understand the nature of records kept by the home and how to access them. Staff should understand their important role in encouraging the child to reflect on and understand their history, according to their age and understanding. Staff should keep and encourage children to keep appropriate memorabilia of the time spent living at the home and help them record significant life events. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph

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Recommendations

14.5) This is with reference to writing records that are useful and informative to young people and to staff.  Ensure that the registered person monitors and reviews the patterns and trends of turnover of staff, whether agency or directly employed, and is able understand and, where possible, address any negative trends. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 54, paragraph 10.19)  Ensure that the workforce plan is updated to include any new training and qualifications completed by staff while working at the home, and used to record the ongoing training and continuing professional development needs of staff – including the home’s manager. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8) This is with particular reference to showing on the plan who will do what and Inspection report children’s home: SC359818 6

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Recommendations

when, to help to drive forward staff training.

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improvement to be good

Of the three young people who had been living here since September 2017, only one young person remains in placement. One young person moved to another placement a few days after the last inspection. This was due to staff being unable to keep her safe from self-harming behaviour. When her social worker told her over the telephone that she was leaving, the staff were ill-prepared for her reaction. This led to a further self- harming incident. A second young person moved to youth custody following repeated breaches of his curfew.

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improvement to be good

Staff have received training from the organisation’s clinician to improve their understanding of young people’s needs. Staff have used this training to focus their practice on forming positive relationships with the young person who remains in placement. For example, staff have helped organise more family contact for the young person. They have encouraged a friendship with a local young person who is a positive influence. Staff have also helped him to write to a young person who has left. These things have helped the young person to make some progress with his emotional and behavioural problems. He said, ‘Loads of good things have happened. Christmas was good and I like it more on my own.’

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improvement to be good

Staff keep in touch with the young person’s social worker, youth offending worker and school. Staff organise the routines of the day and encourage the young person to attend all appointments. The young person’s youth offending worker said, ‘He has gone through the honeymoon period and is still saying that he’d like to stay here.’

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improvement to be good

This young person is settled and is enjoying the attention of a small staff team. He likes going to a local gym with staff and helps to walk the dogs at a local dog-rescue centre. Staff are working hard to help him improve his physical and emotional health. They work hard to help him establish a good daily routine of sensible eating, some exercise and sufficient sleep. However, staff still do not have sufficient skills to effectively progress his learning and emotional development. Staff do not write plans and keep records that are helpful to the young person or themselves. For example, staff know that the young person struggles with his writing, but do not encourage or help him to improve his writing skills. Instead, they miss opportunities to get him involved in developing his writing, such as encouraging the young person to add his views to his plans and records. They miss opportunities to use the written word, for example, in games, daily routines or

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improvement to be good

creating records of memories. As a result, the young person’s level of engagement remains fragile.

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

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improvement to be good

The young person has not gone missing from home, self-harmed or required physical restraint for a few months. He feels safe and is well supervised by the staff, who reward him with praise or treats when he behaves and engages well. For example, if he attends an appointment or gets up in time for school, staff might get him a DVD or let him choose something from the rewards box. However, he quickly becomes aggressive in situations that he is anxious about or afraid of. Staff are still too slow to anticipate these situations, and do not ensure that they prepare him and talk things through clearly. Consequently, there have been a few incidents that could have been avoided.

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improvement to be good

Staff have built better links with a neighbouring independence unit and the local police. Staff are more familiar with the potential hazards in the home’s location. They are better prepared for following the young person if he goes missing from home. This includes having the necessary information at hand. Staff have assessed the young person to be at high risk if he was to go missing from home, and recognise the importance of reporting him missing immediately to the police. Despite all this preparation, staff have not considered all of the different situations that may occur, including if the police do not commence an immediate search. This leaves staff without a comprehensive plan in the event that the young person goes missing from home.

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improvement to be good

The young person talks openly to staff about his experiences during his school day. Staff know that he needs careful ongoing supervision and advice to stay safe. When he recently disclosed that his school taxi driver bought him weekly ‘scratch cards’ as an incentive to go into school, staff reported the behaviour to the relevant employer. Staff explained to the young person that gambling is not legal and they started taking him to school themselves. Staff adequately safeguarded the young person, but they did not identify that this could have been grooming behaviour. Staff did not refer the matter to the local authority designated officer for consideration until the day of this inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There has been no registered manager for over seven months. A senior member of staff has been the acting manager throughout this period. She is the only member of the staff team who has a qualification in residential childcare. A new manager is due to take up his post in February 2018.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The young person receives care from staff who work hard and mean well, but lack the required skills and knowledge. Staff, who have worked in a care role for over two years and lead shifts, are not qualified to a level 3 diploma in residential childcare. Since the inspection in September 2017, three senior members of staff have been working on their qualification with the company’s assessor. Only one of these staff has made significant progress towards completing their qualification.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff morale is low and some staff say that team working is poor. Senior staff have differing views about the management arrangements. One said, ‘[Acting manager] did Inspection report children’s home: SC359818 8 motivate us to develop ourselves’; but another said, ‘It’s been chaos, with no time to do anything. Staff weaknesses are known all around the office and we are not rating one another.’ One member of senior staff has been moved to another home. Three other staff have left over the last four months. Staff have been temporarily redeployed because there is only one young person in the home. A team development day led by the organisation’s clinician has been suggested, but has not taken place in the four months since the last inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Senior leaders in the organisation have not analysed staff turnover, provided staff with appraisals, or ensured that the workforce plan is effective in resolving staffing and management issues.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Within the time limits of overseeing eight children’s homes, the registered individual is in weekly contact with staff. She currently oversees the matching process with great care, given the ongoing quality of care and management difficulties.

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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.

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Information about this inspection

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 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: SC359818 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited

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Children’s home details

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

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Alison Blyth-Bishop

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Inspector

Rachel Britten: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC359818 10 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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