Children's home run by Children Assisted in a Real Environment Ltd in Hammersmith and Fulham

Inspection report for children's home: SC466378 1 SC466378 Registered provider: Children Assisted in a Real Environment (care) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately run and provides long-term care and short breaks for up to five children with learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted on 29 October 2013. The manager of the home registered with Ofsted on 22 June 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

There were four children living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC466378 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/03/2023 Full Outstanding 05/05/2021 Full Good 14/08/2019 Full Good 31/05/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: SC466378 3

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outstanding

Children receive highly personalised care that meets their needs exceptionally well. The quality of care provided by staff is excellent. The staff team is experienced and highly skilled in meeting the complex needs of children with learning disabilities. A local authority social worker said of a child, ‘She is so settled and is flourishing. We have seen such a massive change in her. She is now such a happy child, no longer withdrawn or upset.’

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outstanding

Children share very positive relationships with staff. The staff team is enthusiastic and passionate about caring for children. Children trust and appreciate the standard of care that staff provide. Children very much enjoy the company of staff. They stay close to them, both mutually showing appropriate affection for each other.

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outstanding

Children live healthy lifestyles. Their health outcomes improve the longer they remain living at the home. Children eat and sleep well, and staff administer their medication safely. Children regularly attend primary healthcare appointments and any specialist services that they need. Staff’s communication with healthcare professionals is consistent and effective.

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outstanding

Children’s learning outcomes are excellent. Children have the opportunity to develop general and functional skills and build on social skills. There is a strong focus on helping children develop practical life skills in their preparation for adulthood. Staff very frequently liaise with school and college personnel to ensure that children make good progress. Recently, staff purchased a bicycle for a child who was learning to ride at school. For another child, staff purchased a watch as a gift, which matched the type of watch used at the child’s school to support their telling of time. Communication between staff and educational professionals is highly effective. This supports children to reach their full potential.

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outstanding

Children enjoy a wide range of creative, fun and stimulating activities. Photos of children participating in activities are on display throughout the house. The home is well equipped with play materials that meet the recreational needs of children. Movie nights, soft play and the home’s sensory room are popular activities. In addition, the garden contains a large trampoline. The staff team is keen to broaden children’s experiences, and children frequently access the local community. They also take trips further afield, including, for example, summer holidays away.

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outstanding

Children’s views and opinions have an influence in shaping the nature of the care that they receive. Staff make great efforts to ensure that children’s views are understood and acted on. This poses some challenges, as some of the children are non-verbal and use alternative methods of communication other than speech. Staff are sensitive and creative in obtaining children’s views, and they promote children having choices and making decisions. For example, in response to a child's request, Inspection report for children's home: SC466378 4 staff advocated for their medication review. The subsequent reduction in the medication dosage led to the child’s health, general outlook and presentation improving.

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outstanding

Children complete the home’s daily notice board, which highlights the day’s activities, so that they are aware of what is happening. House meetings are held regularly. Staff use communication methods that children are familiar with to ensure that everyone can take part. Staff encourage children to complete appropriately formatted feedback forms about their experiences and share what they would like to see happen at the home. There have been no complaints made against the home, and children say and indicate that they are settled, feel secure and loved, and are very happy at their home.

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

Children are well protected from harm, abuse and neglect. They benefit from staff’s knowledge and understanding of comprehensive safeguarding policies and procedures. Staff complete child protection training and demonstrate a good understanding of action to take if there are safeguarding concerns.

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

Staff are vigilant in their supervision of children, and consequently, few incidents occur. When safeguarding concerns arise, senior staff take prompt and effective action to ensure that the safety of children remains the primary focus.

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

Children get on well together and are caring and respectful towards each other. Bullying does not occur. In addition, there have been no allegations made against staff working at the home.

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

Since the last inspection, no child has been reported missing or absent without permission. Children are not involved, or suspected of being involved, in child sexual or criminal exploitation. A local authority social worker said, ‘I 100% trust the team when it comes to safeguarding.’

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

Risk assessments generally identify known and anticipated risks posed to children. However, staff do not regularly update all risk assessments, so risk levels do not reflect current levels of risk or highlight historical risks as a result of children’s experience of trauma. Staff talk about and can demonstrate their acute understanding of risks posed to individual children and how their use of effective strategies reduces risks and helps to keep children safe.

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

Staff promote children’s positive behaviour using praise and incentives. They encourage children to adhere to boundaries that help to keep them safe; staff do not restrain children. Positive behaviour management plans are effective in reducing children’s challenging behaviour. However, some plans are not kept up to date and do not reflect positive changes in children’s behaviour. Inspection report for children's home: SC466378 5 The home’s premises are physically safe and appropriately secure. Staff routinely conduct health and safety checks, and there are fire precautions in place. However, some children’s personal emergency evacuation plans are not up to date.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The leadership of the home is strong. The registered manager and senior managers of the organisation are committed to improving the quality of care to enhance positive outcomes for children. The one issue identified for improvement at the last inspection has been successfully resolved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Managers undertake regular monitoring exercises. These explore all aspects of the home’s functioning and offer good insight into the quality of care. However, the review of the quality of some records is identified as an area for improvement. Monthly independent monitoring visits help to highlight the home’s strengths and weaknesses. The registered manager contributes to the organisation’s managers’ forums and completes quality of care reviews, which promotes the home’s continual improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is a very experienced practitioner and manager. She has an extensive background in working effectively with disabled children. The registered manager is an effective and influential leader. The registered manager has clear and realistic ambitions for the home and children who live there or attend a short-break service. Staff comment that the registered manager leads the team exceptionally well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive excellent support and supervision as well as meaningful annual appraisals. They also complete relevant training that meets their developmental and practice needs. Team meetings are regularly used for training and for staff to reflect on their practice. The organisation’s therapist provides staff with clinical guidance to help develop staff’s understanding of children’s therapeutic needs. This promotes children’s safe care and positive experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff’s working patterns ensure that the needs of children are well met; this is in accordance with the home’s statement of purpose. Staff recruitment and vetting practices are good, and all required checks are in place for employed staff. However, this is not the case for the recruitment of the home’s volunteer, as some vetting information was missing, for example confirmation of the applicant’s formal qualifications.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The children’s guides are creative documents designed for children’s use. These guides summarise well the purpose and operation of the service. Children’s guides are available in varying forms of communication. This ensures that children have good access to key information. From the outset, leaders’ and managers’ thorough placement planning ensures that staff understand and can meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Managers and staff share a positive and highly effective working relationships with other professionals. This ensures that all parties are aware of children’s progress and Inspection report for children's home: SC466378 6 any arising issues. A local authority social worker told the inspector, ‘The staff team are amazing, superb. I sometimes feel tearful about the work that has gone into [name of child]. She’s gone from strength to strength. She calls [name of home] her home. I would place my own child with the staff team. They’re that good.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The leadership and management of the home are strong. Leaders and managers ensure that they and the staff team provide children with high-quality care, which means that children’s progress and experiences are extremely positive. Inspection report for children's home: SC466378 7

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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, The 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 registered person may permit an individual to start work at the home despite the fact that the requirement in paragraph (3)(d) has not been met if—

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information in respect of the individual has been obtained in relation to the matters in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (7)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to having complete records for volunteers. 1 February 2024

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and ensure that risk assessments, positive behaviour support plans and children personal emergency evacuation plans are updated as needed. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: SC466378 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Children Assisted in a Real Environment (care) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 144 Old Oak Road, London W3 7HF

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Inspector

Sandra Jacobs-Walls, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC466378 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 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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