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

Inspection report for children’s home: 1156103 1 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

This home is owned by a private company. It provides care for five children who have experienced adverse childhood experiences that have led to associated trauma and presenting complex behaviours. There has been no registered manager since October 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19, at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers carried out under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF) on 17 March 2020. We returned to routine SCCIF inspections on 12 April 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 20 January 2021 to carry out a remote monitoring visit. The report is published on the Ofsted website.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1156103 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/07/2019 Full Good 11/07/2018 Full Good 16/01/2018 Full Good 23/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 1156103 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are currently settled in this home, which is a place of stability and safety. The positive relationships that have developed between children and the staff contribute significantly to a relaxed atmosphere in the home with established routines. The strength of the relationships forms the foundation on which children are making progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff are enthusiastic and proud when describing the children’s progress. For example, children are attending full-time education, joining sports clubs and volunteering with animal and local charities. Children generally get on well and are well matched. Previously, there have been times when children have had to move away due to the risks posed to them while missing from the home for long periods. Despite some children having to leave, the manager and team keep in touch at the child’s request. This reflects the level of meaningful relationships that are made.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy living in the large house and they like caring for the kitten. Children make good use of the grounds for playing games, cycling and sitting in the garden. A separate annex building has a bedsit. This enables children to have some independence in preparation for leaving the home as they become young adults. The home is well furnished and comfortable. The numerous signs displayed on the wall are not necessary and detract from the homely appearance.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family members and social care professionals report very positively about this home and how it is helping the children to make progress. Children are generally happy at this home. When told by the inspector that this is a good home, one child exclaimed, ‘Good! It’s blooming brilliant.’

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

Risk management is effective and is supported well by comprehensive assessments. These documents alert staff to the children’s known risks and how to respond to keep children safe, both inside and outside of the home. Staff training on safeguarding procedures is further enhanced by the availability of flow charts and prompts for staff to follow. Children are supported with safeguarding concerns, they are listened to and offered help and guidance. Topics covered include sexual health, personal safety, relationships and the safe use of social media and mobile telephones.

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

Due the children’s adverse experiences, there have been incidents of children going missing from the home and, at times, for long periods. On two occasions, staff have not responded appropriately, failing to follow the procedures for when children go missing. Members of the staff team recognise their role to report safeguarding concerns. Leaders and managers have reported appropriately to external agencies when such concerns have come to their attention. Children have not been missing Inspection report for children’s home: 1156103 4 from this home since October 2021, an indicator of how settled they are. In addition, there have been no instances of physical restraint. Children have been appropriately guided away from situations by staff on two occasions. This good practice prevented children from harming themselves or others.

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

Suitability checks are completed for new and temporary staff, ensuring that safer recruitment procedures are followed. The safety of the home and premises is managed through closed-circuit television (CCTV). The need to have such external surveillance is detailed in the home’s policy. However, leaders and managers have not considered the full impact on the children’s reduced privacy. Cameras are focused on strategic places within the grounds that include areas where children like to sit and enjoy the garden. Leaders and managers should review the policy and ensure that visitors are notified of the surveillance in use.

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good

This home has been without a registered manager since 5 October 2020. A manager has been employed in the home; however, the registration process has not been completed. At the time of this inspection, the current manager had decided to leave the organisation and recruitment for a new manager was underway. Professionals raise no concerns about the management of this home and report how effective communication is with regards to information sharing about the children.

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good

Leaders and managers respond to safeguarding concerns promptly and refer to external agencies as required. Some poor practice that led to a child going missing was referred to the local safeguarding agency, resulting in leaders and managers instigating disciplinary procedures. While suitable action was taken to safeguard children and address poor practice, leaders and managers failed to monitor that their allegation referral had been passed to the designated officer in the local authority. This failure had minimal impact on the safety of children due to the disciplinary process that addressed the poor practice.

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good

The core staff team is suitably experienced to support and mentor newer team members. The mix of gender amongst the staff team provides positive adult role models contributing sensitively to the children’s social and emotional development. This is significant, considering that the trauma and exploitation the children have experienced have predominantly been by male perpetrators.

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good

Staff report that they benefit from helpful support and guidance as provided by the manager and the deputy. In addition, supervision records confirm that other senior managers within the organisation contact staff members to offer support after a difficult or distressing incident. This level of support is appreciated by staff. The quality of records of supervision is variable, with some being basic in content. Some records lack aspiration for professional development and do not evidence that staff are enabled to fully reflect on their practice and the needs of the children. Inspection report for children’s home: 1156103 5

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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.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to leaders and managers being specific with any allegation against a member of staff and monitoring that the referral process is followed correctly. 1 April 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 1156103 6 The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

there is no registered manager in respect of the home; and

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Requirement Due date

is not, or does not intend to be, in day-to-day charge of the home.

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Requirement Due date

If the registered provider appoints a person to manage the home, the registered provider must, without delay, give HMCI notice of—

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person so appointed; and

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Requirement Due date

the date on which the appointment takes effect. (Regulation 27 (1)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii) (2)(a)(b)) 1 June 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of the children. Children’s homes will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. In particular, the registered person should remove the numerous signs that are on the walls in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that any home using CCTV or other monitoring equipment should have a written policy describing how this will support the safeguarding and well-being of those living and working in the home in accordance with regulation 24. The registered person should review the home’s policy to promote the privacy and dignity of children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.16)  The registered person should ensure that records of supervision are kept for staff,

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Recommendations

including the manager. The record should provide evidence that supervision is being delivered in line with regulation 33(4)(b), and the records should evidence that staff are enabled to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.3) Inspection report for children’s home: 1156103 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 for children’s home: 1156103 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

Clare Davies, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1156103 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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