Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Bradford

Inspection report children’s home: SC424141 1 SC424141 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately run children’s home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to six children 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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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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good

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

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: improved effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC424141 2

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Key findings from this inspection

 The young people are kept safe. The staff are clear on how to keep young people safe. Individual risks to the young people have reduced during the time they have lived in this home. The young people respond well to a nurturing environment.  The young people’s educational attendance and attainment have increased.  The young people have strong, trusting and meaningful relationships with the permanent staff.  The young people benefit greatly from learning independence skills that prepare them for adulthood.  The staff work in partnership with all professionals and agencies to ensure that the young people receive the best support to enable them to make continuous progress.

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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

 There has been a period of instability since the last inspection, with a number of staff leaving the service. Recruitment to vacant posts and team-building will improve the quality of care.  Key-work sessions that are relevant to all the areas identified in each young person’s placement and support plans should be routinely undertaken.  Repair the damage to the decoration in the games room.  The verified details, which are obtained when checking references, must be recorded on the member of staff’s recruitment file.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 09/02/2017 Full Good 10/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 11/08/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC424141 3

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. The registered person must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the employment of any person on a temporary basis at the children’s home does not prevent children from receiving such continuity of care as is reasonable to meet their needs. (Regulation 31 (1)) In particular, consider recruiting permanent members of staff to all vacancies to ensure continuity of care. 28/04/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees— undertake appropriate continuing professional development. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)) In particular, ensure that all staff complete the level 3 diploma in caring for children and young people within the specified timescales. 28/05/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16 (5)) In particular, ensure that psychologists are available to support and direct strategies of care when required. 20/03/2018

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Recommendations

 The relevant plan may include a strategy for a particular type of care, treatment or intervention. The care staff will need to understand the purpose of any such care and the way in which the past experiences of abuse or neglect may manifest itself in the day-to-day life of the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.15). In particular, staff must carry out regularly direct work with the young people on the identified areas in their plans, including internet safety.  For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9). In particular, ensure that the damage to the Inspection report children’s home: SC424141 4 decor in the games room is promptly repaired.

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Recommendations

 The registered person must demonstrate every effort to achieve continuity of staffing so that children’s attachments are not overly disrupted, including ensuring that the employment of any temporary staff will not prevent children from receiving the continuity of care that they need (regulation 31(1)). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 51, paragraph 10.1). In particular, ensure that following recruitment to all staff vacancies, team-building exercises take place to support the continuation of consistent care for the young people.  As set out in regulations 31-33, the registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice. They must ensure that recruitment, supervision and performance management of staff safeguards children and minimises potential risks to them. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1). In particular, ensure

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Recommendations

that the information obtained when verifying references is recorded.  The registered person should have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should be 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) In particular, identifying and undertake training that is specific to the needs of the children and young people who are admitted to the home. For example, training relating to understanding gang culture.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people benefit from the strong relationships that the core staff team has built with them. One young person said: ‘What is different about our home is that the staff do care about us,’ and, ‘We are cared for here, I like living here.’ The young people’s positive relationships with the staff help the young people to listen and respond to the guidance and the care given to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young people access all necessary health services. These include routine check-ups. This maintains and improves their health over time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is a high priority. The young people who have lived at this home for longer have excellent attendance and increased attainment. All of the young people have a personal education plan to support their continued progress. This provides the young people with enhanced opportunities to access further education and employment as young adults. A young person said: ‘I’m doing very well at school. I enjoy it and have made new friends.’ Inspection report children’s home: SC424141 5 All the young people have rebuilt and enjoy regular contact with family and others who are important to them. This provides the young people with a sense of belonging and maintains support networks.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff work tirelessly with a nurturing approach to prepare the young people to care for themselves as young adults. The young people gain a range of independence skills. This includes the young people taking part in everyday chores around the home: cooking, learning to use public transport and budgeting skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Professionals say that the young people have made good sustained progress. Generally, the young people receive direct key-work sessions on the identified care and support areas. However, there are omissions from some direct key-work sessions which do not demonstrate that the young people receive the support, guidance and care in all of the areas set out in their plans.

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

The young people live in a safe and secure environment. They respond well to the structured routines, boundaries and care that are delivered by the staff. This supports the young people well in their daily lives and brings sustained benefits that keep them safe.

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

The young people respond well to the advice and guidance provided by the staff that enables them to keep themselves safer. The staff understand the risks specific to each young person and their known vulnerabilities. Risk assessments are individualised and reviewed regularly for each young person. The young people’s risk-taking behaviour has reduced due to the implementation of clear strategies and boundaries. A police officer said: ‘There have been very few referrals to the police. When the staff have contacted us, this has been appropriate and missing from care protocols have been followed.’

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

The staff focus strongly on and promote positive behaviour. The young people respond very well to constant praise and positive reinforcement. As a result, sanctions and physical restraints are low in number and decrease for individual young people over time.

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

The young people live in a comfortable environment that is safe because fire and health and safety checks are regularly undertaken. This promotes young people’s safety. The overall decoration of the home is of a good standard and complemented with homely touches. However, a recent leak has damaged the decoration in the games room.

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

Safe recruitment practices exist, including taking up references, disclosure and barring service checks and the examination of the applicant’s full employment history. However, records do not always demonstrate the responses given to the questions asked when the employee’s references have been verified.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Inspection report children’s home: SC424141 6 The new manager has been in post since October 2017 but is not yet registered. She has relevant experience of working in other residential children’s homes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The home has a well-established core and experienced staff team. However, a number of staff have left the home recently, leaving a number of vacancies. Interim arrangements have been made to use bank staff and a small group of staff have been seconded from other services. This is until the provider recruits to the vacant positions. This ensures that sufficient staffing levels are available to care for the young people. However, this could negatively affect the consistency of the care provided to the young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The home’s statement of purpose has not been followed because of the vacancy in the position of psychologist. Therefore, regular consultation with the psychologist has not been available. This reduces the direction and strategies being delivered by a qualified person to support individual young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The staff team receives regular formal supervision that provides support and opportunities to reflect on and monitor care practices. Staff access mandatory training that includes behaviour management, safeguarding and first aid. However, not all staff have completed their level 3 qualification within the set timeframes. This can have a negative impact on the quality of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager and the staff demonstrate a good understanding of the young people’s needs, care and progress that they have made during the time that they have lived at the home. However, there has been a deficiency in the assessment and matching of one admission to the home since the last inspection. This resulted in an increase in serious incidents, complaints made by the young people and their experiences being unsettled. The new manager has spoken about the lessons learned from this event, and the changes made to ensure that all of the young people’s needs can be met, including any new young person coming to live at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Action has been taken to address the requirement and the majority of the recommendations set at the last inspection. Regulation 45 monitoring reports now include consultation with young people, parents and others. Consent has been gained to agree the use of alarms on bedroom doors. The young people record their views and comments when a sanction is given. The staff have received training relating to self- harm and ligatures. However, training in relation to understanding gang affiliation is planned in the coming months.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

There is very positive collaborative working with all professionals. This includes independent reviewing officers, social workers, education providers and the police. An independent reviewing officer said: ‘Communication is very good. I am always kept informed, reports are of a good quality and the young person’s plan is followed.’ This demonstrates that the staff inform professionals of the progress of the young people, as well as when concerns arise. Inspection report children’s home: SC424141 7 Monitoring systems include the monthly independent regulation 44 visits and regular audits undertaken by the manager and senior team. Suitable action is taken to address the shortfalls detected through the routine auditing of the service.

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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: SC424141 8

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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: Susan Fitzsimmons

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Inspector

Debbie Foster, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC424141 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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