Children's home run by Benjamin UK Ltd in Hammersmith and Fulham

Inspection report for children's home: SC484671 1 SC484671 Registered provider: Benjamin UK Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run home offers therapeutic support, education and care for up to four children who may have experienced neglect, abuse or trauma that has left them vulnerable.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since January 2023 and is in the process of registering with Ofsted.

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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

Date of last inspection: 10 January 2022

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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: SC484671 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/01/2022 Full Good 03/07/2019 Full Good 05/12/2018 Full Good 21/06/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: SC484671 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress relative to their complex starting points. Since the last inspection, three children have moved out and one child has moved into the home. Two children were living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work well with education professionals. They incorporate an incentive and reward scheme to help increase attendance. A child who previously disengaged from education is gradually beginning to engage in the provider’s bespoke educational provision. The other child attended college and is now in employment. The children know that staff want them to achieve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to regularly attend health appointments. One child has suffered a serious health concern. Managers and staff have supported the child through this emotionally worrying time. Nurturing care and attention to detail have ensured that the child’s health needs have been managed extremely well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The therapeutic manager is also a qualified life-story practitioner. Children reluctant to engage in therapy sessions have chosen to explore this option instead. Two of the children have completed life-story work, and this has resulted in them sharing past experiences that were previously unknown. This innovative work has increased staff’s understanding of children’s individual needs and helped children develop a greater sense of identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to keep in regular contact with the people who are important to them. Good organisation and communication with the children’s relatives ensure that visits are well planned, supported and enjoyed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children know how to make a complaint. Their views are gained through meetings and regular conversations with staff. There has been one complaint since the last inspection. The manager investigated, and the complaint has been resolved. However, the child was not informed of the actions taken or made aware of the complaint outcome.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy activities such as go-karting and trips out to local theme parks. Staff have taken some photos at these events. When children leave, they are given these photos to take with them. However, the children do not have their own photo albums or boxes to store them in. This means that children are not involved in choosing the memorabilia they keep from their time living at the home.

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

Children say that they feel safe living at the home. Staff work hard to develop positive relationships with children, who can find it difficult to trust and communicate with adults. One child said, ‘The staff have helped me a lot. This has been one of the best placements I have had. I am glad I moved here.’ Inspection report for children's home: SC484671 4 Improvements have been made to the children’s individual risk assessments. These are comprehensive and are now updated promptly following any incidents. This means that if a child’s behaviour or vulnerability results in risks being increased or decreased, the staff have the most up-to-date guidance to follow.

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

A child that recently moved out of the home had an extensive history of going missing from home. Significant progress was made with this child in reducing such incidents. The child only went missing from home once while living at the home, and staff followed procedures well to ensure the child’s safe return.

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

Physical intervention is only used as a last resort to safeguard the children and others. Staff are skilful at de-escalating incidents. There has been one physical intervention since the last inspection. The manager has reviewed the incident and debriefed the staff. However, the manager was present at this incident. This lack of independent scrutiny potentially compromises the integrity of the review.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager recently left. A new manager has started and received a detailed handover from the previous manager. The new manager is child-focused and holds a relevant level 5 qualification. She is in the process of applying to register with Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The deputy manager is dedicated and established at the home. He works well with the manager and is very knowledgeable about the children. The core staff team has remained in place through a challenging period. Staff said that they feel very supported in their roles by the managers and senior managers. This support has enabled staff to work together in a consistent manner to meet the children’s individual needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive annual appraisals and regular, good-quality supervision that enables them to reflect on their practice and any future development needs. This results in staff feeling valued and well equipped to care for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

External professionals are complimentary about the care given and describe the managers as being very efficient. They appreciate the detailed weekly reports and the high level of regular communication. One social worker said, ‘They have worked so well with [name of child]. Really supported him with his health needs and are working well in partnership to plan for semi-independent living.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The monthly staff meetings include time spent with the therapeutic and well-being managers. These provide a forum for staff to discuss children’s progress and to develop further strategies to meet the ever-changing needs of children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has met the two requirements and one recommendation raised at the last inspection. Inspection report for children's home: SC484671 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

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. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that any debrief of an incident is carried out by people who were not directly involved in the specific incident being reviewed. 3 April 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must establish a procedure for considering complaints made by or on behalf of children.

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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 (1) (3)) 3 April 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. Staff should understand their important role in encouraging the child to reflect on and understand their history, according to their age and understanding. Staff should keep and encourage children to keep appropriate memorabilia of their time spent living at the home and help them to record significant events. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5) Inspection report for children's home: SC484671 6

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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: SC484671 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Benjamin UK Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Coach House, White House Court, Hockliffe Street, Leighton Buzzard LU7 1FD

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Claudette Rudman

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Inspector

Lynne Drage, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC484671 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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