Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Rochdale

Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 1 SC456419 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 home provides care and accommodation for one child who may have social and/or emotional difficulties. There was one child living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2021.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

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

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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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.

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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 23 November 2021

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/11/2021 Full Good 28/08/2019 Full Outstanding 13/03/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 10/04/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 3

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improvement to be good

Shortfalls in the leadership and management of the home have contributed to the overall judgement of requires improvement to be good. The continued shortfalls in management and staff practice are affecting the children’s overall progress. One child has moved out of the home and one child has moved in since the last full inspection.

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improvement to be good

The child living at the home does not benefit from structure and routine. Staff have made some attempts to put in place daily routines, but these have not been effective. This is having an impact on the child’s day-to-day experiences.

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improvement to be good

The manager has not ensured that the home has a copy of the child’s care plan written by the placing authority. The manager has not written a care plan for the child. There is no information on the child’s records informing staff how to care for the child. This prevents staff from providing the child with individualised care that will meet their needs.

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improvement to be good

The child is not attending education. The plan for the child’s education was not carefully considered by the manager before the child moved into the home. Staff have made some attempts to offer educational activities, such as visits to places of interest, but these have not been effective. The child is not taking part in any learning that is meaningful. The child who moved out of the home experienced exclusion because of poor attendance.

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improvement to be good

Children are generally in good health. They are provided with healthy and nutritious meals and take part in activities that involve exercise. When substance misuse is an identified risk, children access a local service for support. This increases the likelihood that children will have improved health in the future.

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improvement to be good

Staff build positive relationships with the children. One child who has moved out of the home remains in touch with staff. They said, ‘Staff cared about me and looked after me.’ Staff have a nurturing and child-centred approach to the care they provide to the children. Records show that the conversations they have with children are encouraging and supportive. This approach reduced anxieties one child had about moving into the home.

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improvement to be good

Some of the identified risks for one child are not clear because the manager has not ensured that full information has been obtained about a complaint that was considered to be serious. The manager and staff are unclear about the risk to the Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 4 child. Staff cannot manage a risk when the details of the risk are unknown. This places the child at risk of harm.

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improvement to be good

Risk assessments and response plans do not always provide staff with clear guidance, because some records contain conflicting information. The information from the placing authority’s assessment of the risk of exploitation and substance misuse for one child is not reflected in the assessment made by the home. It is unclear why some issues that are not a risk to one child have been assessed and included in their plan. This means that staff do not have access to the correct information to enable them to keep children safe.

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improvement to be good

The children who go missing from the home are at risk of exploitation. Children have left the home during the night when staff were asleep. One child is supervised by staff throughout the day because of the risks to them when they go missing. The supervision of the child during the night has not been reviewed following them going missing.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not always follow the protocol in the child’s plan when they go missing. When the child’s plan guides staff to search for the child, this has not always happened. Despite the manager addressing the shortfalls during staff supervision and in team meetings, this poor practice has continued. This means that children are not always protected and their whereabouts are unknown.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff have not implemented the full requirements of the statutory guidance for children who go missing. Children are not always given the opportunity to talk to an independent person when they return home.

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improvement to be good

Records for a child who has now moved out of the home show that staff respond well to serious incidents. The strategies staff use to support children to manage the difficult emotions that they are experiencing are clear in the children’s records.

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good

There is a lack of management oversight at this home. Staffing shortages and a high turnover of staff have led to the manager working shifts. Because of this, the manager has withdrawn from the leadership and management course and not completed the qualification. The recruitment of staff and the appointment of a deputy manager have alleviated some of the pressures and the manager plans to rejoin the course.

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good

The audit and monitoring systems in place are not effective. Some shortfalls have not been identified, such as the quality of information in children’s records relating to the risks to children, and the absence of a care plan for the child written by staff . The lack of management evaluation and oversight have an impact on learning and improving the quality of care for children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 5 The registered person has not maintained case records for each child. They have not ensured that a copy of any plan for the care of the child that has been prepared by the child’s placing authority is kept on the child’s records and is up to date.

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good

Staff spoken to said that they feel supported by the manager and they receive regular supervision. Team meetings take place regularly and give staff the opportunity to discuss the child’s care. Staff are trained to meet the needs of the child currently living at the home. The manager has arranged for additional training to enable staff to refresh their knowledge in topics that are relevant to the child’s vulnerabilities and needs.

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good

The manager has addressed shortfalls in staff practice, but this has not always been effective. Discussions with staff about expectations when a child goes missing have taken place in staff supervision and team meetings, but records show that practice has not improved. Staff do not always follow protocol in the child’s missing plan and the records continue to be of poor quality. When learning from reflective practice is limited, the risks to children are unlikely to reduce.

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good

There is a multi-agency approach at this home. There is evidence of a working relationship with the police, children access drug and alcohol support agencies and referrals have been made for advocacy services. However, shortfalls in the working relationship with one child’s placing authority have meant that the home does not have full information about the child’s risks and their plan.

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good

The manager has completed a review of the location of the premises, including obtaining the views of relevant people. The record of the review includes information about a child who has since moved out of the home. While the risks to the child who currently lives at the home are the same, the personal information about the child who no longer lives at the home needs to be removed.

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good

Records show that any complaints that have met the threshold for reporting under regulation 40 have been responded to appropriately. However, the manager has not ensured that there is a system in place to record and review informal complaints. This means that the outcome to a complaint cannot be easily tracked. Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

protect and promote each child’s welfare;

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Requirement Due date

provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background; and

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Requirement Due date

make decisions about the day-to-day arrangements for each child, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans, which give the child an appropriate degree of freedom and choice. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(ii)(iv)(ix))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the child not having a completed plan on their records. 8 May 2023

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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 staff— 8 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 7 help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(viii)(x))

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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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; 8 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 8 take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies.

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii)(b))

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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—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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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.

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received. specifically, the manager must ensure that there is a system in place to record complaints received.

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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)(a)(b)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h)) 8 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 9 The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to ensuring that the child’s care plan written by the placing authority is kept on the child’s records.

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Recommendation

 All managers working in a children’s home must have the relevant qualification in regulation 28(2) within the relevant timescales listed in regulation 28(3). (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.12).

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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: SC456419 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited

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Children’s home details

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

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Inspector

Rachel Webster, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC456419 11 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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