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

Inspection report for children’s home: SC457089 1 SC457089 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 is owned and managed by a large organisation. It provides care and accommodation for two children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager holds the required qualification and is registered 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC457089 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/03/2022 Full Good 10/10/2019 Full Good 21/03/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 06/11/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC457089 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well presented, welcoming and maintained to a good standard. Children are encouraged to personalise their bedrooms and other rooms in the home. This is a home that children feel comfortable in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to pursue their interests. Children take part in a variety of activities, including weekly swimming lessons, enjoying pampering sessions with staff, and visiting trampoline parks. Children have fun and make happy memories.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who have previously struggled with education now attend school full time and make good academic progress. Staff have good communication with teaching staff and attend education meetings to support children in meeting their targets. In addition, staff regularly help children to complete their homework. As a result, barriers to learning have reduced and children are proud of their achievements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote children’s health and well-being. The children are registered at local services and supported to attend routine health appointments. Staff consult with professionals when advice is needed, such as when changing medication for a child or when there are new and emerging health needs. This promotes children’s good health and ensures that staff are well informed about children’s health needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to spend time with their families and friends. Staff send children’s loved ones written reports and support weekly calls to keep them updated on children’s experiences. This helps children to maintain relationships that are important to them.

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

The staff have a good knowledge and understanding of children’s vulnerabilities. However, children’s written plans do not include all known risks and do not inform staff of the proactive and reactive strategies that they need to use and when. For example, it is not clear what strategies staff use for a child with risks around the use of their mobile phone. In addition, one child’s risk assessment did not consider previous experiences that impact on their mental health and what support she may need when moving in to the home.

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

Staff are creative in their approach to educate children about personal safety and risk. Staff use educational workshops and one-to-one sessions with children to discuss making good choices. This helps children to feel comfortable in seeking staff guidance and has had a positive impact on children’s behaviours. For example, for one child, when she is feeling anxious, she will ask staff to go for a walk with her. For another child, when she is feeling worried, she likes to focus on different breathing exercises. This motivates children to learn about their behaviour and make progress in managing their own feelings. Inspection report for children’s home: SC457089 4 Incidents of children going missing from care are rare and responded to appropriately. Timely information-sharing with police and the placing authority has ensured that safeguarding procedures are followed. Children receive a return-home interview after being missing. This ensures that children receive appropriate support

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

and helps them to understand how future episodes can be reduced.

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

Staff respond to challenging behaviour appropriately; since the last inspection, there have been no incidents of restraint. Staff use incentives effectively; this includes praise and individualised rewards. One child receives daily written letters from staff that share and celebrate her achievements of the day. This ensures that positive behaviour is encouraged and recognised.

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

The manager has built good working relationships with a range of external professionals. The management team works closely with social workers, education and health professionals, and safeguarding agencies. Feedback from professionals highlights the good levels of communication and partnership working. One social worker said, ‘the staff are brilliant, the support offered is phenomenal’.

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

Children live in a safe and well-maintained home. Staff carry out regular health and safety checks to ensure that the home is physically safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is passionate and committed to developing good practice in the home. The manager recognises areas for improvement and how to address shortfalls.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff group are consistent and stable. Team meetings are regular and reflective. During the inspection, staff told the inspector that they feel valued and that managers are approachable. Furthermore, the manager was complimentary about the guidance that he receives from the responsible individual. This ensures that staff are supported in their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have access to a wide range of training opportunities. The manager extends learning by holding staff development sessions whereby staff reflect on their personal learning styles and develop professional curiosity. This ensures that the staff have the necessary skills to care for the children living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have not ensured that staff have received practice-related supervision in line with the organisation’s timescales. For example, some staff have not had supervision for three and four months. Furthermore, the manager did not have records of staff members’ annual appraisals so is unable to monitor progress against set targets. This is a missed opportunity to ensure that staff have direct time with managers to reflect on practice and areas for development. Inspection report for children’s home: SC457089 5 The manager does not keep the workforce development plan up to date. The plan does not include all the necessary information about training or timescales for induction.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager’s monitoring systems are currently being developed. The responsible individual has introduced peer review audits between managers to identify areas for development. The managers recognise this as a valuable system to improve the quality of care. The effectiveness of this new practice will be considered at the next inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: SC457089 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

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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff making sure that all risks are included in children’s risk assessments along with strategies to manage and reduce those risks. In addition, the registered manager should ensure that children’s risk assessments that are completed prior to children moving in to the home consider all known risks related to children. 8 March 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that all staff working in the home receive practice-related supervision and appraisals. 8 March 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the workforce plan includes information about staff training, timescales for induction, and detail of how poor performance Inspection report for children’s home: SC457089 7 is managed or improved. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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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: SC457089 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 5th Floor, Metropolitan House, 3 Darkes Lane, Potters Bar EN6 1AG

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Inspector

Sophie Hills, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC457089 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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