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

Inspection report for children’s home: SC456857 1 SC456857 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 run by a private organisation and is registered to provide care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, there was one child living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 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

Date of last inspection: 18 January 2023

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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: SC456857 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/01/2023 Full Good 19/05/2021 Full Good 03/01/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness 04/09/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC456857 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has moved out and one child moved in since the last inspection. The child moving on experienced a well-planned move and was supported in a way that was sensitive to their needs and views. The child had moved after making a lot of progress over a three-year period so that she could live closer to family. Staff have continued to keep in contact.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff have a good understanding of the child’s needs and the child feels listened to. They encourage the child to develop their independence skills, while offering support when it is needed. The child receives individualised care, based on their needs and taking into account their views. The child said, ‘I like the staff here; they look after me.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

School have provided the child with a variety of tools to enable them to continue learning at home, after the manager had advocated for this. However, staff are not always proactive in developing daily plans to structure the child’s day. This means that daily routines are not consistent and expectations of the child have not been made clear to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is supported and encouraged to spend time with their family and friends. Staff provide transport and ensure that they stay close so that if needed they can offer support to the family. This enables the child to maintain these relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is warm and welcoming. Over the last year, the internal areas of the home have been decorated and refurbished. However, the outdoor areas have not yet been made inviting for a child to be able to use, as the paving slabs are uneven. In addition, some areas of wear and tear has not been repaired in a timely manner.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s health needs are well met and they are registered with a local doctor and dentist. When the child asks for support with any health concerns, staff respond to this immediately, seeking appropriate medical advice to ensure that any health issues are managed effectively.

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

The child benefits from good relationships with all staff in the home. The child is able to identify trusted adults who they can talk to about any concerns and feel listened to and said they feel safe in the home.

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

The child rarely goes missing from home. However, when they do, staff follow the missing-from-home protocols effectively. Staff are proactive in trying to locate the child and reporting them missing to relevant professionals in a timely manner. The Inspection report for children’s home: SC456857 4 child is welcomed back positively. The manager responds immediately and seeks to identify any triggers to prevent further incidents.

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

Staff have a good understanding of risks and child protection policies. When there are safeguarding concerns, staff act effectively to educate the child about the risks and put in place safeguards to protect the child. However, on one occasion, there was a case where staff did not supply the police with sufficient and timely information so that further protective and preventative action in the community could be taken.

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

Staff are quick to respond to incidents of self-harm. They are skilled to effectively support and de-escalate the situation to prevent the child coming to serious harm. Staff are proactive in referring to the relevant agencies for specialist services and actively encourage the child to access support for their mental health. As a result, the child can talk openly with staff and feels safe asking for help, so that they are more able to manage their emotions.

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

There has been one physical intervention used to protect a child. Following the incident, the manager held a debrief with the child and staff, ensuring that the child’s views were sought. The use of physical intervention is rare as staff are effective in de-escalating situations.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and working towards a recognised qualification in leadership and management. She manages this home alongside another home in the organisation. The manager shares her time equally between both homes. She is supported by an experienced deputy manager and team leaders.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that children are cared for by suitably qualified staff. Some regular bank staff are used to support when needed. They know the child well and are seen as part of the team. This means that there is little disruption for the child as they receive consistent care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff say that they feel fully supported by the manager. They are receiving regular supervision and attend regular team meetings. These team meetings are child focused, with progress as a main consideration. Team meetings are well attended, and records of them are detailed. The meetings also provide opportunities to discuss staff training and development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff training and developmental plans are effective. They are focused on ensuring that staff can meet the specific needs of the children who they are responsible for. Any additional training required to meet the child’s needs or gaps in staff skills are identified and provided to help improve the care experiences for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager actively and regularly monitors the quality of care provided in order to enable and understand the impact care is having on the child’s progress. The Inspection report for children’s home: SC456857 5 manager uses this information to look at new ways to improve practice in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: SC456857 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, 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 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

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, this relates to renovating the outdoor area at the back of the home, which is currently unsafe due to uneven paving and lack of proper lighting. 31 March 2024

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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

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v)(vi)) 31 March 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC456857 7 Specifically, this relates to reporting safeguarding concerns in the wider community immediately to the police to ensure the safety of all children and strengthen partnership working to safeguard children.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children who are not in full-time education are given a clear routine each day with suitable structured activities to support them back into education. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.15)

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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: SC456857 8

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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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Inspectors

Sarah Probert, Social Care Inspector Jennifer Quest, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC456857 9 regulates 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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