Children's home run by Cambian Childcare Limited

Inspection report children’s home: 2649772 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 children’s home is privately owned by a national children’s home provider. The home cares for up to three children who may experience social, emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered at the same time as the home in October 2021.

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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 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: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2649772 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected. Inspection report children’s home: 2649772 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The first child moved in to the home in February 2022. At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience positive moves in to the home. Detailed moving-in plans are created from thorough assessments. Staff work with social workers and families to find out about children’s likes and dislikes. This information is used to welcome children. Children are allocated a personal budget to decorate their bedrooms. One child said, ‘I like my bedroom and I have my own television. I’ve never had that before, so it’s cool.’ Photos of children are nicely displayed in the home. This helps children to feel a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the children well. Staff prioritise their time to build relationships with them. Staff understand that building relationships is the foundation for children to make progress. Staff encourage children to talk about any issues they have with living with each other. Children are helped by staff to build positive relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the barriers that children may face in engaging with education. They take time to listen to children’s concerns. Staff help children to understand the benefits of learning. One child had not been in education for two years prior to living at the home. Through staff actions and encouragement, she now has good attendance. The child’s parent said, ‘My daughter is now going to school. I am very pleased with this. The staff even managed to get her to wear her uniform.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to follow their hobbies and interests. One child regularly goes swimming with staff. One child has continued with her passion for horse riding. Staff encourage children to plan weekly activities during house meetings. Children have experienced ice skating, roller skating and rock climbing for the first time. Children who have not had the opportunity to take part in new experiences are supported by staff to take well-considered risks. Children build confidence and self- esteem through planned and meaningful activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to spend time with people who are important to them. They take children to see family and friends, no matter how far away they live from the home. Staff work closely with social workers to organise reunions and help to facilitate children’s time with their families. When children cannot see their family or friends, staff help them to understand why. This helps children to learn about healthy and unhealthy relationships with others.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have individualised and detailed care plans. Staff read these plans to provide tailored care. However, children are not regularly consulted about their plans or when changes are made to the information held in them. Children are helped to understand about health and well-being, personal hygiene and good sleeping Inspection report children’s home: 2649772 4 patterns. One child has made progress in settling to bed and waking up earlier. This has helped her to engage in tutoring and have more energy during the day.

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

Staff follow detailed risk assessments and behaviour support plans. This helps them to understand children’s risks and vulnerabilities. Behaviour incidents are infrequent. Behavioural incidents for one child have reduced significantly because of the verbal praise and reassurance that staff offer. A social worker said, ‘Tailored approaches helped the child to learn about her own behaviour.’ Children learn alternative ways to express themselves when they feel upset or anxious.

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

Staff use appropriate rewards and consequences of behaviour, which children respond to well. Children are helped to understand expectations and rules by staff, who are consistent and fair. The manager signs all incident records and meets with children to talk about their progress or any concerns. This helps children to reflect and learn.

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

One child made an allegation against staff. The concerns were listened to and thoroughly investigated by the manager. The local authority designated officer and social care were contacted for advice. The child received an appropriate and caring response. From these actions, the child was helped to understand the outcome of her concern. Children are listened to when they are worried. This helps them to build trusting relationships with staff.

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

Incidents of children going missing from the home are infrequent. When children have gone missing, staff follow missing-from-care protocols. Once found, children are welcomed back, and staff meet with them to listen to their experience. Staff understand the reasons why children may go missing. They review risk management approaches to reduce the likelihood of further incidents.

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

Children benefit from spaces to study and communal areas, which encourage socialisation. However, the grass in the gardens had not been cut for several months, meaning that children could not explore the garden and play on the trampoline easily.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is suitably experienced and qualified. He is supported by an experienced responsible individual.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is focused on creating an established and experienced staff team. Regular team meetings focus on team building activities and staff development. The manager facilitates discussions between staff to make certain the culture is positive and child focused. Any staffing issues are managed effectively by the manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive good-quality, reflective supervision, which is child focused. Safeguarding is discussed. Staff are provided with the opportunity to discuss the Inspection report children’s home: 2649772 5 impact that the work has on them. Staff reflect on their knowledge and skills, and the difference that they make in children’s lives. Staff feel well supported by the manager. One member of staff said, ‘This is my dream job. I get excited to come to work.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager leads the team in learning and understanding the home’s preferred model of care. Staff believe in the model, and they actively use this in their work with children. The manager monitors the effectiveness of staff’s approach to ensure that all aspects of the model are used. Children receive help and support from staff, who understand trauma-based models of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff are trained to meet the children’s needs. The manager sources additional training to ensure that staff have a broad range of skills. Staff have received additional training in autism spectrum disorders and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Staff are either qualified to or are working towards a relevant level 3 qualification.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager completes detailed impact assessments prior to children moving in to the home. Assessments help the manager to understand the child’s history and risk factors. The manager considers children’s strengths, hobbies and interests as part of the matching process. As a result, the two children currently living together enjoy spending time with each other.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

External monitoring is effective in providing objective oversight of the care children experience and identifying areas to develop.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works closely with other professionals and families. Feedback on communication with the home is positive. Weekly reports are sent to families and social workers. One parent said, ‘I get weekly reports, which really help me to know what is going on with my daughter.’ Inspection report children’s home: 2649772 6

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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

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to removing weeds and cutting the grass in the front and back gardens. 24 June 2022

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children are encouraged by staff to see the home’s records as ‘living documents’, supporting them to view and contribute to the record in a way that reflects their voice on a regular basis. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 58, paragraph 11.19)

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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: 2649772 7

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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 EN6 1AG

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Inspector

Mandy Start, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2649772 8 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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