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

Inspection report children’s home: SC066393 1 SC066393 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 privately owned. It provides care for up to three children who have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 2017.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers on 17 March 2020.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 10 February 2020

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC066393 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/02/2020 Full Outstanding 05/12/2018 Full Good 07/03/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 03/05/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC066393 3

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outstanding

Children develop trusting relationships with dedicated staff, who are warm and supportive. Staff have an in-depth understanding of children’s experiences and the challenges they face. Staff embrace empathy and a therapeutic approach to ensure that children receive highly sensitive and nurturing care. One child said: ‘I love it here… the staff are the best thing about the home… [manager] is like the mum everyone wishes they had.’ Consequently, children flourish and feel valued and cared for.

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outstanding

The support that children receive when they leave the home is outstanding. The manager and staff go over and above to ensure that this is a positive experience, in which children continue to feel valued and supported. For example, staff deep cleaned and redecorated one child’s new flat and ensured that it was appropriately furnished. Even after they leave, children who have lived at the home are always welcome. They return for important celebrations and events and are naturally included in them. One child stated that staff ‘never gave up on me and always had time for me. The only thing I didn’t like was that I had to leave.’

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outstanding

Photo books and quarterly newspaper articles are creatively used to capture children’s journey when they are living at the home. They are individualised to the children and provide them with fun and positive memories. The home is decorated to a high standard and children play an active role in the personalisation of the home. One child updated the ‘chill-out room’, which she uses for quiet reflection. The manager has plans in place to continue to develop the home and garden area.

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outstanding

Children make significant progress from their starting points. This is because care planning is highly effective. Proactive managers and staff ensure that children have access to specialised therapeutic support. They embrace the research-based practice, knowledge and support that comes with working closely with the home’s mental health practitioner and education coordinator. Staff are committed to this because they want children to flourish and achieve. This dedicated, individualised support has led to significantly improved educational attendance for one child. As a result, she is now enjoying school and has high aspirations for her future.

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outstanding

Staff encourage and promote children’s talents and interests. Regular karaoke nights filled with fun and laughter are used to promote one child’s singing talent. Another child attends regular personal training and cross-fit sessions. This not only supports her interests and talents, but also her physical and emotional well-being. Staff make sure that children’s achievements are celebrated, no matter how big or small. This is because they know that this supports their self-esteem and self-worth.

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outstanding

Dynamic staff make sure that each child is made to feel special. Children experience a wide range of imaginative and exciting experiences. Staff hired a limousine to Inspection report children’s home: SC066393 4 celebrate one child’s last birthday at the home before she moved to independence. When children received their GCSE results, the staff hired an ice cream van to celebrate. Children are supported to go on holiday and are provided with diverse experiences, such as camping on the beach, attending theme parks and participating in festivals in the garden.

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outstanding

Staff work flexibly to ensure that children are supported to keep in touch with their families. They go above and beyond to ensure that they have enjoyable experiences with family members. As a result, children have opportunities to rebuild relationships with people who are important to them.

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outstanding

Difference is celebrated. Children are encouraged to participate in cultural events and celebrations, which they enjoy with a diverse staff team. Children were educated about Eid when one member of staff was fasting, and they celebrated Diwali by attending a festival of light. On International Women’s Day, children participated in an event that helped them understand the cultural and political achievements of women. At the end of the event, each child received a book about inspirational women of the world.

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outstanding

Highly trained staff place children’s safety at the centre of their practice. Risk assessments are updated regularly and are exceptionally thorough. They are detailed and informative and provide clear guidance for staff. This means that staff are well informed about the steps they need to take to keep children safe.

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outstanding

The manager and staff respond proactively to risks associated with child sexual exploitation. Children have individual child exploitation risk assessments which help to track patterns of behaviour and identify emerging risks. The manager and staff work closely with the police to ensure that they receive the most up-to-date training and information. Effective partnership working to safeguard children resulted in additional referrals for support being made for one child at risk of child sexual exploitation.

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outstanding

The manager and staff respond extremely well when children harm themselves. This means that when children do harm themselves, they receive excellent support from staff who are caring and responsive. Staff work closely with health professionals and invest in training sessions that help them to increase their knowledge and understanding about why children self-harm. As a result, incidents in which children have harmed themselves have reduced.

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outstanding

Children benefit from consistent routines and boundaries which help them to feel safe. On occasions, staff have needed to hold children to keep them safe. This is always used as a last resort. The manager has excellent oversight of these incidents and ensures that reflective practice informs lessons learned. Children’s feelings and views remain central to this process. This ensures that their views are heard and that they can have confidence in staff to keep them safe. Inspection report children’s home: SC066393 5 Children engage in a wide range of direct work on an individual basis and through innovative workshops that respond to their presenting needs. Workshops cover topics such as self-esteem, confidence, consent and sexual health. Research underpins the development of the workshops and staff continually develop their knowledge through research. This creative practice supports children to understand

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outstanding

risk and develop resilience and coping strategies for the future.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is aspirational for children and is passionate about the care and support they receive. She has introduced several innovations to drive up standards. The manager has a good understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. She continuously thinks of ways to improve the experiences for children. She has high expectations of the staff and leads by example in providing outstanding care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff speak highly of the manager. Her enthusiasm is embraced by her staff team. One member of staff stated: ‘I have never met anybody who is so passionate about children and she expects her team to share that passion.’ The manager has an excellent understanding of the individual strengths of each member of staff. As a result, she is able to get the best from her staff team. She uses each of their skills to ensure that the best possible service is provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Children receive care from a highly skilled and committed team. The manager and staff use research-informed practice, both to manage risk and improve outcomes for children. For example, the manager uses critical reflection based on theoretical models and this is threaded through care planning, debriefs and learning tools. The manager is passionate about continuing professional development. Staff invest fully in this process and they are enthusiastic about their learning. As a result, children benefit from innovative and creative ideas that contribute to the progress they make.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager and her staff team are exceptional advocates for children. The manager advocates for children until their voice is heard and does not accept practice or decisions that may compromise children’s safety or well-being. The manager has gone over and above to challenge plans and decisions made about children when she does not believe this to be in their best interests. This challenge has improved outcomes for children in areas such as education, safety planning and transitions from the home. Challenge has been successful in relation to safety planning. As a result, children are supported to access the support they need to reach their goals and fulfil their potential.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has excellent relationships with external stakeholders and the people in the local community. Children have had opportunities to participate in a wide range of community activities. For example, during lockdown, children helped deliver meals to older people. They also held a hot chocolate afternoon to raise money for a cancer charity and delivered selection boxes to a children’s ward at Christmas. This Inspection report children’s home: SC066393 6 helps children to engage safely with the wider community while developing their understanding of different life experiences. Inspection report children’s home: SC066393 7

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, 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: SC066393 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: Metropolitan House, 3 Darkes Lane, Potters Bar, Hertfordshire EN6 1AG

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Inspector

Natasha Skinner, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC066393 9 to 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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