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

Inspection report children’s home: SC464958 1 SC464958 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Ltd

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The children’s home provides care and accommodation for up to six young people. The young people are aged 11 to 17 years at the time of admission. The home provides care and support for young people who have experienced, or are at risk of, sexual exploitation. Young people who experience emotional, behavioural and social difficulties may also be admitted. The home is privately owned.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 18 to 19 December 2017

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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Good

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

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Good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers Good

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Good

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

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Good

Date of last inspection: 2 February 2017

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Good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Improved effectiveness

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

None Inspection report children’s home: SC464958 2

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Key findings from this inspection

 Highly vulnerable young people form warm and trusting relationships with supportive and caring staff.  Young people enjoy a comfortable, well-maintained and welcoming home where they can relax and focus on their own needs. They grow in self-esteem and confidence.  Young people have fun with staff, chatting at mealtimes in the dining room, cooking together and engaging in a wide range of stimulating activities.  The firm boundaries and rules in the home provide young people with a strong sense of security and stability.  Young people make significant progress in education, emotional and social development, personal hygiene, independence and the ability to manage their own behaviour.  Young people feel safe and staff keep them safe most of the time. Staff undertake focused key work to help young people understand how to keep themselves safe.  Young people are involved in their own risk assessments and behaviour

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Key findings from this inspection

management plans, which are detailed and effective. Young people become increasingly safe in placement.  The registered manager regularly reviews young people’s risk assessments and ensures that staff are highly trained in safeguarding.  If young people go missing, staff follow them and work closely with other professionals to ensure their safe return.  Staff are highly trained to understand the reasons why young people are vulnerable to child sexual exploitation, to recognise grooming behaviour, and to respond appropriately to any potential risks.  The registered manager provides staff with regular supervision, team meetings, and opportunities to reflect on practice and contribute to the development of the home.  Feedback from young people, family members and professionals about the service is very positive.

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Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s areas for development:

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Key findings from this inspection

 On two occasions young people were allowed to access the internet unsupervised in the community. The registered manager responded appropriately as soon as this became known. She now needs to embed the lessons that have been learned from these incidents in staff practice. Inspection report children’s home: SC464958 3  While there have been significant improvements in paperwork since the last inspection, staff need to ensure that they read young people’s updated plans without delay. This will enable staff to make full use of the detailed information that the plans contain for the benefit of the young people.  One new staff member has not had sufficient formal supervision during her probation period, resulting in issues with her professional practice and development.  Notifications of serious incidents do not always state what actions are being planned to prevent the incidents occurring again.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/02/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 26/10/2016 Full Requires improvement 29/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 09/06/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC464958 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that staff understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12(1) and (2)(a)(v)) 02/02/2018

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14(1) and (2)(c)) With particular reference to staff reading young people’s plans without delay and signing the plans to confirm that they have read them. 02/02/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction and receives practice- related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33(1)(a)) With particular reference to the regular and appropriate level of supervision of new staff. 02/02/2018

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Requirement Due date

A notification made under this regulation must include details of the matter. (Regulation 40(5)(a)(i)) With particular reference to including relevant information and the actions planned in order to prevent the serious event occurring again. 02/02/2018

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are very welcoming. Young people benefit hugely from forming warm and trusting relationships with dedicated, sensitive staff. Young people have personalised their own rooms and their artwork is displayed in the hallways and living rooms, along Inspection report children’s home: SC464958 5 with photographs of staff and young people. Young people feel that staff care about them and listen to them. Young people express their views, wishes and feelings with confidence and know how to complain. Young people engage in the twice-weekly young people’s meetings, which they chair and minute. They raise issues that they want to discuss and plan menus and activities for the week. Young people have fun in the home together and with staff. They enjoy a range of enriching activities that support their physical and emotional well-being and social development, including horse riding and ice skating. The boundaries and routines in

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

the home enable young people to focus on their own needs and make significant progress in their development. They have 100% school attendance, often after lengthy periods of missed education prior to placement, and enjoy learning. One young person is successfully undertaking a catering course at college. Young people make progress in independence, building self-esteem, personal hygiene and engaging in therapy. Their identity and diversity needs are recognised and supported. Young people engage in discussions about religion and culture and know that staff would help them if they want to attend worship. Staff have aspirations for young people and recognise and celebrate their progress and achievements. Young people’s individual interests are encouraged and supported. The social worker for one young person said, ‘I am astounded by her progress. I had been looking at placing her in a secure unit before she came here. Now she engages

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

in all activities. It’s remarkable. She has her ambition back, she had low self-esteem. I can’t speak highly enough of the home.’

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improvement to be good

Although there are no widespread failings in safeguarding young people, there have been two incidents when young people accessed the internet at a local library, whilst in the care of staff. Staff failed to supervise them and ensure that they could not use social media to contact people who pose a risk to young people. The registered manager acted to protect the young people as soon as this became known. She spoke to the young people to assure them that what had happened was not their fault, and she reported the matters to the placing authorities. In order for the home to be judged good for the help and protection of young people, the registered manager must ensure that this does not happen again. The registered manager and deputy manager have worked together to identify and act on lessons learned from these incidents. Young people say that they feel safe in the home and that staff help them to understand how to keep themselves safe. They engage with staff in key work to

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improvement to be good

address issues which include going missing, behaviour and, importantly, healthy and safe relationships. Staff recently did a presentation to the young people about bullying and have put a display on the wall with lots of information about how and where to seek help. Staff have access to an up-to-date locality risk assessment in addition to detailed and Inspection report children’s home: SC464958 6 effective risk assessments, impact assessments and behaviour management plans for each young person. The registered manager reviews risk assessments regularly to ensure that they remain relevant to each young person. Staffing levels are good and enable each young person to be supported and monitored by staff. Staff recognise that strong and positive relationships are key to helping young people feel secure and begin to manage their own emotions and behaviour. This, in turn, reduces risk. Young people have become increasingly safe. Young people no longer go missing and

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improvement to be good

do not take drugs or engage in gang culture. If young people do go missing, staff search for them, follow clear procedures and work closely with family members and professionals in order to find the young people and return them safely.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The very experienced registered manager holds a diploma in management and a national vocational qualification level 4 in care (children and young people). Some staff are appropriately qualified. Those who are unqualified are undertaking the level 3 qualification. All staff are first aid trained. The registered manager is child focused and proactive with a strong therapeutic approach to meeting the needs of young people. She and her deputy manager have worked hard to improve the service since the last inspection and have made significant progress in raising the standards and improving the experiences and progress of young people. Young people receive feedback from team meetings regarding their questions or requests. Staff involve young people in their care plans, which they read and sign. The registered manager has instigated questionnaires for young people and professionals to ensure that she gathers feedback on which to base

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

her development plan for the home. The registered manager has reviewed and amended key documents and has ensured that young people’s files are in good order and up to date. In order to improve the ways in which staff listen to young people, she has introduced a book in the sitting room for young people to write their comments about the home. Young people appreciate and use this form of communication. When they make a complaint, they receive written acknowledgement and a letter informing them of the final outcome. Staff enjoy working at the home. They benefit from regular supervision, therapy sessions with a therapeutic team, team meetings, and have many opportunities to discuss young people and reflect on practice. Staff are confident to whistle blow and they feel supported by the managers and other staff. Staff demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the reasons behind young people’s vulnerabilities and of their care

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

plans and needs. Staff work with a wide range of agencies including health, education, therapists, social care and the police. They are not afraid to challenge poor practice if young people’s needs are not being met. Feedback from young people’s family members and professionals is positive about how staff work with them and the high quality of communication. One social worker commented that, ‘The staff are brilliant, communication is excellent and the registered manager deals with things quickly.’ Inspection report children’s home: SC464958 7 There are some areas for improvement. One new staff member did not receive sufficient formal supervision during her probationary period, which adversely affected her learning and practice. Notifications of incidents to placing authorities and Ofsted sometimes lack relevant information. Staff need to prioritise reading and signing young people’s updated plans, to ensure that their practice is based on current

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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: SC464958 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Ltd

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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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Inspector

Louise Whittle, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC464958 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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