Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Lincolnshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC456347 1 SC456347 Registered provider: Cambian Group

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run children’s home cares for children and young people, including those who have challenging behaviours and complex needs.

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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 requires improvement to be good

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC456347 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/01/2018 Full Good 31/01/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 07/09/2016 Full Good 29/10/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC456347 3

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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

Ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16(5)) 28/09/2018

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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—

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Requirement Due date

that staff help each child who is above compulsory school age to participate in further education, training or employment and to prepare for future care, education or employment. (Regulation 8(1)(2)(a)(ix)) 28/09/2018

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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—

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Requirement Due date

that staff manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(iv)) 28/09/2018

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. If the registered person considers, or staff considers, a placing authority’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5(a)(c)) 28/09/2018

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Requirement Due date

The independent person’s report may recommend actions that the registered person may take in relation to the home and timescales within which the registered person must consider whether or not to take those actions. (Regulation 44(5)) 28/09/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC456347 4 This is specifically about the provider ensuring that any recommended actions are considered in a timely manner. The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them, engage with them; and take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ascertain and consider each child’s views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child’s best interests when making decisions about the child’s care and welfare; help each child to express views, wishes and feelings; help each child to understand how the child’s views, wishes and feelings have been taken into account and give the child reasons for decisions in relation to the child; and regularly consult children, and seek their feedback, about the quality of the home’s care. (Regulation 7(1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)) 28/09/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33(4)(b)) 28/09/2018

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Recommendations

 Staff should ensure that they contribute fully to the pathway planning process and undertake focused independence work with relevant young people. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 17, paragraph 3.28)

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Recommendations

 The registered provider should ensure that the children’s home presents as welcoming and homely, both internally and externally. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children are offered a wide range of activities both inside and outside of the home and ensure that activities are planned and recorded for each child for each day/week. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 31, paragraph 6.5) Inspection report children’s home: SC456347 5

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improvement to be good

Young people currently do not have formal education, training or employment provision. Staff have not ensured that clear plans are in place to support young people. This means that young people lack structure to their day. Staff do not consistently encourage them to engage in learning activities, which would support them to develop skills and confidence.

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improvement to be good

Young people are not routinely consulted with. Staff have not ensured that their views, wishes and feelings have been sought or acted upon regularly. When formal meetings have taken place, managers have failed to provide feedback to young people. One young person reported feeling frustrated at long delays before a management response is provided. This does not provide young people with a positive sense that their views, wishes and feelings matter.

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improvement to be good

Staff support young people to learn basic independence skills. They encourage them to manage their own finances, do their own food shopping and meet their own personal needs with support. More detailed work needs to be done with young people around their independence skills. Records relating to independence do not reflect the current or presenting needs of young people. They do not cover in detail what young people can or cannot do, or what support they may need to make a successful transition to adult life.

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improvement to be good

Young people do not currently have a wide range of social activities. There is a lack of clear planning for such activities. As the home is in an isolated area, young people are dependent on staff to transport them to and from the home. Staff need to encourage young people to consider what activities they may wish to participate in, and actively support their engagement.

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improvement to be good

The home does not present as homely or welcoming internally or externally. There is a need for more photos, pictures and ornaments. The garden areas also need attention and more outside equipment and furniture should be provided for young people. Young people have made suggestions about potential improvements, which managers need to consider and act upon.

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improvement to be good

Young people are supported to keep in touch with family members and significant others. Staff transport them to visits and facilitate agreed contact plans. Young people also have access to mobile phones, enabling them to independently keep in touch with others.

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improvement to be good

Young people have access to healthcare services. Staff actively support them to make and keep health-related appointments. Specialist help and advice is sought for them, as appropriate. Inspection report children’s home: SC456347 6 Since the last inspection, some young people have made successful transitions from the home to other provisions, including semi-independent accommodation.

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improvement to be good

Concerning or potentially risky behaviours are not consistently responded to by the staff team. There is a lack of direct work with young people to address such behaviours. One placement recently ended in an unplanned manner. This related to concerns about a young person’s relationship with another young person in the home. Staff and managers failed to respond to escalating concerns in a timely manner. Staff failed to manage relationships between young people in a manner which could have prevented the placement ending.

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improvement to be good

Staff undertake searches of young people’s bedrooms when necessary. Records do not reflect that young people routinely provide consent for such searches or that their views are sought and considered.

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improvement to be good

There have been several assaults on staff members by young people since the last inspection. Increased staffing ratios, including night staff, have been put in place. However, more work needs to be done to support young people to reduce such harmful behaviours. This includes the need for more direct work and clearer risk assessments.

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improvement to be good

Missing from care incidents are relatively high, but staff respond quickly to try to ensure the safe return of young people. Staff work closely with the police and other involved agencies. Managers now have a clear system for ensuring that independent return home interviews are sought. The recommendation made at the last inspection has been met.

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improvement to be good

The use of physical restraint is minimal. Staff try to support young people to manage their concerning or potentially aggressive behaviours in a positive manner. They use de- escalation techniques to support young people to manage their behaviours in a safe manner.

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

The home has been without a registered manager since the beginning of August 2018. A new manager came into post but left within a very short period. The deputy manager is currently acting up as manager. The organisation has recently appointed another manager who will come into post once all necessary recruitment checks are satisfactorily completed.

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

Managers have failed to challenge placing authorities effectively so that the welfare of young people is fully promoted. For example, these failures include:

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

 not ensuring that minutes from looked after children reviews are obtained for one young person Inspection report children’s home: SC456347 7  not robustly questioning an agreement for one young person to have a body piercing, which staff did not agree with

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

 not raising concerns about placement plans for one young person in which conflicting information about their needs is evident.

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

An independent person visits the home each month to consider the care and support provided to young people. They provide detailed and clear reports, with recommendations for improvement. Managers have failed to ensure that such recommendations have been considered or acted upon in a timely manner. One recommendation was made five times before managers responded to it.

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

Because there have been changes in managers over recent months, not all staff have received regular formal supervision. Given the recent unsettled period and assaults on staff by young people, supervisions are imperative to supporting staff in their roles.

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

The home continues to be registered to provide care and accommodation for children and young people who have a learning disability. At the last inspection, the home was required to amend this because managers confirmed that staff are not trained to provide such care. The requirement has been reset at this inspection, so that senior managers apply to Ofsted for a change to their registration conditions.

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

A requirement was also set at the last inspection around procedures to be followed in the event of an allegation being made about staff or managers. Measures were put in place following the last inspection and action taken to ensure that young people were not placed at risk of harm. The requirement has been met.

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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: SC456347 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Waterfront, Hammersmith Embankment, Chancellors Road, London, Middlesex W6 9RU

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Inspector

Tracy Murty, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC456347 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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