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

Inspection report for children’s home: SC476262 1 SC476262 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 privately owned children’s home provides care for up to five children. The home specialises in providing 12-month therapeutic placements for children who have experienced, or are at significant risk of, child sexual exploitation.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2022.

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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: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

On 6 and 7 April 2022, Ofsted completed a full inspection and found the home to be inadequate. Two compliance notices were raised under regulation 12 and regulation 13. On 18 May 2022, Ofsted completed a monitoring visit and confirmed that the compliance notices were met. Inspection report for children’s home: SC476262 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/04/2022 Full Inadequate 20/12/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 05/11/2019 Full Good 08/10/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC476262 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

After a period of closure, the home reopened at the start of March 2023. There is one child living at the home. This child is well cared for and is forming positive relationships with staff. The child said, ‘All the staff are so caring and have made my difficulties easier to cope with.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child attends education at a provision that is suitable to meet their individual needs. The child’s learning is also being supported through additional tutoring sessions outside of school hours.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is supported by a clinical team. The registered manager has good plans in place to support the child’s emotional well-being through therapy sessions and staff consultations. Therapists attend team meetings and provide further training to staff. This means that staff are developing their understanding of trauma-based behaviours, which provides children with consistent care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to contribute to the plans for their care. Children are encouraged to share their views and wishes before meetings and have an advocate in place to further support this. This ensures that children’s views and wishes are acted on and improves their confidence and self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have made good efforts to support the child’s cultural needs. This has contributed to the child feeling welcomed into the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The property has been redecorated recently and provides a homely environment for children to live in. However, the practice of locking snacks in a cupboard under the stairs contradicts the other efforts made by staff to make the house feel like a family home.

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

Staff understand and follow safeguarding procedures. For example, when a child made an allegation to a member of the team about their previous children’s home, this allegation was reported to the registered manager, who quickly followed the required safeguarding procedures.

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

Risks related to exploitation are well considered, and there are detailed risk management plans in place. The risk management plans include input from the police, missing-from-home coordinator and child’s social worker. While staff understand the child’s risks and how to keep them safe, one staff member was unclear of certain elements of their crisis plans. Further training and support are required to ensure that all staff have this knowledge.

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

Staff support children to understand their behaviours and how to keep themselves Inspection report for children’s home: SC476262 4 safe by carrying out direct work. This helps the child to understand and reduce their risk-taking behaviour. As a result, the child is making good progress and has not been missing from home since moving in.

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

The registered manager completes detailed checks when recruiting new staff. This supports children’s safety by ensuring that only suitable people are working in the home.

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

Consequences are used appropriately in the home, and the child has a good understanding of the reasons why these have been used. However, the registered manager does not include a written review considering the effectiveness of consequences used. This is a missed opportunity to identify trends and learn from practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is mentoring and developing the deputy managers and, in turn, they disseminate good practice to the staff in the home. The home has sufficient staff, who feel well supported by the manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Good collaborative working means that leaders and managers have positive working relationships with those involved in the child’s care. One social worker said about the home, ‘They are very thorough with weekly updates of the progress made by the young person. They follow safeguarding reporting protocols and address concerns accordingly. I highly recommend this placement for other young people who have similar concerns.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision and attend monthly team meetings, which they say are helpful. The registered manager oversees creative team meetings, which include team-building activities. This develops relationships in the home and improves morale. Furthermore, staff feel valued and invested in, which has a positive impact on the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager’s internal monitoring is effective and demonstrates his understanding of the child, the staff team and how the home is operating. These systems also help the registered manager identify any shortfalls, areas for development and good practice. Inspection report for children’s home: SC476262 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that just as in a family home, children are able to access all shared areas of their home unless there are specific reasons why this would not meet a child’s needs. This particularly refers to the storage of snacks in a locked cupboard. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)  The registered person should ensure that behaviour management strategies, such as consequences, are understood and applied at all times by staff. They must be kept under review and revised where appropriate. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.34)  The registered person should ensure that staff understand and can meet each child’s needs and have working knowledge of the plans in place to meet these needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality

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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: SC476262 6

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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

Mark Dickinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC476262 7 and inspects 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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