Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Dorset

Inspection report children’s home: 1159868 1 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home provides care for up to three children who may experience social and emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, there were two children living in the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home has been without a registered manager since September 2021. The manager in post has not swiftly submitted a complete application to register with Ofsted as required.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

p.1

requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

p.1

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.

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: Following the full inspection on 27 April 2022, two compliance notices were issued relating to leadership and the quality of care. A monitoring visit completed on 7 June 2022 identified that sufficient action had been taken to address the points on the two compliance notices. Inspection report children’s home: 1159868 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/04/2022 Full Inadequate 06/07/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 20/04/2021 Full Inadequate 05/12/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: 1159868 3

p.2

improvement to be good

Both children in this home are settled and enjoy living here. One child listed several staff members they enjoy spending time with.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children’s wishes are well responded to, and staff are invested in the children. This is most evident in the forthcoming plans to hold a festival at the home, with staff and children planning to camp in the garden to make the experience enjoyable and authentic. This was a child’s idea and they have had a significant part in the planning.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children’s education is well supported, and one social worker told the inspector of the good multi-agency working with the child’s school to achieve the best outcomes for the child.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children’s interests are supported and there is a commitment to facilitate new opportunities and explore hobbies. The children’s summer holidays have been thoughtfully planned by staff.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children’s experiences are now well captured in scrapbooks. Staff have taken pride in creating these for the children, who have also been a part of decorating the books.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children’s records are in development and new templates have been designed and are now in use. Leaders and managers have thought about the purpose of these records to make them useful to staff. However, these still require further scrutiny to ensure that they reflect practice and the individual needs of the children.

p.3

improvement to be good

The inspector found practices of storing snacks in the office. One child told the inspector, ‘That’s where crisps live, with the knives.’ The rationale for this practice is not recorded in the children’s plans. It is not clear how staff are going to support the children to develop a healthier relationship with food.

p.3

improvement to be good

Language used in the children’s records is not always considered. One record apportioned blame on the child’s behaviour for the reason they had to leave. Other records are written using the child’s voice without making it clear that this had been discussed together with the child.

p.3

improvement to be good

The home has enjoyed a settled period and there has been one safeguarding concern during this time. Staff practices identified the issue immediately and the Inspection report children’s home: 1159868 4 appropriate action was taken promptly. Records were updated as a direct result and there is a plan to help the child remain safe moving forwards.

p.3

improvement to be good

Fire safety has been prioritised since the last inspection. There is an ongoing commitment to ensure that high standards are maintained to keep children and staff safe in the home.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager in day-to-day charge of the home has not applied to register with Ofsted in a reasonable time frame. The home has not had a registered manager in post since September 2021. Leaders and managers have not sufficiently addressed the issues, which has led to avoidable drift and unacceptable delay with the application.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers have made the decision to not admit any more children to the home while they develop the largely new and inexperienced staff team. Over half of the team of staff are completing their qualifications and there has been a focused effort on developing staff’s skills and confidence. This means that staff have had the time to learn the role and develop their practice and establish as a team.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff told the inspector that they enjoy working in the home and feel well supported by leaders and managers. Additionally, staff report working well as a team and feel that they play to each staff member’s strengths to the benefit of the children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

While the designated office area doubles as a staff bedroom, this room occupies one of the largest rooms on the ground floor with direct access to the garden. Children have access to this room throughout the day. However, it has been designed to function as an office space, which detracts from the efforts made in the rest of the home to make the house more homely. Inspection report children’s home: 1159868 5

p.4

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.

p.5

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—

p.5

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

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

p.5

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;

p.5

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))

p.5

Requirement Due date

In particular, develop and sustain effective monitoring processes to increase management oversight of practice in the home. The manager should register with Ofsted at the earliest opportunity. 30 September

p.5

Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

p.5

Requirement Due date

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

p.5

Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

p.5

Requirement Due date

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

p.5

Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed; 23 December Inspection report children’s home: 1159868 6 that staff help each child to access and contribute to the records kept by the registered person in relation to the child. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(f))

p.5

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children’s plans detail the caring practices that staff are to follow to promote children’s development. These plans should be signed by the author and be reviewed, signed and dated by the manager.

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that, in line with their individual health plans and the ethos of the home, children are offered advice, support and guidance on health and well-being. Staff should have the relevant skills and knowledge to be able to help children understand and, where necessary, work to change negative behaviours in key areas of health and well-being, such as nutrition and healthy diet. In particular, where children need support to manage snacks and treats, these arrangements should be written into their plans and be reviewed regularly. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.18)  The registered person should review the dedicated office spaces and ensure that a homely environment is maintained. This will provide a domestic rather than ‘institutional’ impression. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. In particular, carefully consider the appropriateness of recording the child’s information using first-person narrative. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

p.6

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: 1159868 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited

p.7

Children’s home details

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

p.7

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Nicola McClements

p.7

Inspector

Katie Ratcliffe, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1159868 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.

p.7

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8