Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Bolton

Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 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

The home provides care for two children aged between eight and 18 with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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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

Date of last inspection: 8 February 2022

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/02/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 3

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improvement to be good

The home is modern and welcoming. It provides a comfortable environment in which children can develop and make progress. A support worker said, ‘It’s great to see the development of the home. It’s improved massively from the beginning.’

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improvement to be good

Staff promote children’s understanding of equality and diversity. For example, children and staff make gifts for their neighbours to celebrate cultural festivals. This strengthens community cohesion and raises children’s cultural awareness.

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improvement to be good

Children take part in regular key-work sessions. This helps children to talk openly about their issues and to express their emotions. This supports, for example, their social and emotional development and raises their awareness of inclusivity.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children with education and encourage them to re-engage with school. One child has not been in education for over two years. He now attends home tutoring and is preparing to return to school soon. However, a lack of routine and boundaries are affecting his engagement.

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improvement to be good

The manager reviews the workforce plan regularly to ensure that the home is sufficiently staffed. This means that staff are well trained and their records are up to date. However, there has been a high turnover of staff, which disrupts the continuity of care.

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improvement to be good

Staff receive regular supervision and attend an annual appraisal. This helps staff to review their performance and identify areas for development. One support worker said, ‘I feel fully supported, the new manager has made a difference.’

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improvement to be good

Staff do not always identify risks to children from online harms. Their response to online safeguarding concerns has been inconsistent. As a result, staff do not minimise online risks to children.

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improvement to be good

There have not been any incidents of children going missing from home in the reporting period. Staff follow robust plans to prevent any incidents from occurring.

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improvement to be good

Risk management plans provide strategies for staff to manage and reduce risks to children. However, managers do not regularly review or update plans following incidents. As a result, staff are not aware of new risks and how to manage them.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not consistently sign case records and risk management plans. As a result, managers are uncertain if staff understand children’s plans. Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 4 Staff receive clinical support every fortnight. This helps them to reflect on their practice and to develop strategies to better support children with complex behavioural issues. This results in fewer incidents of physical intervention.

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improvement to be good

Health and safety checks and fire safety plans are well managed throughout the home. Staff undertake checks on a regular basis and report repairs on time. This keeps the home in good and safe condition.

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good

The new manager is settling into the role and completing the relevant qualification in leadership and management. He is aware of the home’s strengths and weaknesses and is ambitious for the home.

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good

Managers track and review safeguarding incidents and reports. However, they do not report all significant events to the appropriate authorities. This may affect children’s welfare and safety.

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good

The manager does not take sufficient action to follow up poor correspondence from the placing authority. As a result, managers do not consistently review children’s relevant plans. This means that the needs of children are not always clear, which can affect their health and well-being.

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good

The manager conducts a monthly audit of case records. However, children’s plans are not always up to date or reviewed. This means that auditing systems are not effective.

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good

Staff do not consistently follow the behaviour management policy. They do not always record incidents involving restraint. This means that managers, staff and children do not reflect on incidents and learn from them.

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good

Staff do not consistently respond well to children’s complaints. However, they now complete a complaints logbook and discuss complaints procedures in team meetings. This enables the team to learn from complaints and improve their practice.

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good

The manager keeps a comprehensive location assessment under review. This includes details of the local offer, setting out the support available for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. This helps children to access extra resources and activities. Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 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, the 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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to children’s plans being regularly reviewed and updated, while taking steps to address poor practice. 30 April 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(e)) 30 April 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 6 The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

that, subject to regulation 22 (contact and access to communications), contact between each child and the child’s parents, relatives and friends, is promoted in accordance with the child’s relevant plans

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Requirement Due date

that the child’s placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child’s relevant plans is requested, if—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person considers that the child is at risk of harm or has concerns that the care provided for the child is inadequate to meet the child’s needs. (Regulation 14 (1)(a) (2)(d)(e)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, that children’s plans are consistently reviewed and updated and that parents are kept informed of children’s progress. 30 April 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that a record is made of any complaint, the action taken in response, and the outcome of any investigation. (Regulation 39 (3))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the registered person ensuring that all complaints and allegations are logged, reported and investigated independently when necessary and resolved in a timely manner. 30 April 2022

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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; 30 April 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 7 take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, this relates to contextual safeguarding and the risk of online harms, including child exploitation and bullying.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 20 May 2022

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure; 20 May 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 8 within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)(iv))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the placing authority is challenged to meet children’s needs. This involves acting as champions for children and expecting nothing less than a good parent would. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 12, paragraph 2.8)

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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: 2620950 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Caretech Estates Ltd, Metropolitan House, 3 Darkes Lane, Potters Bar EN6 1AG

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Inspector

Mark Woodbridge, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2620950 10 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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