Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in North Yorkshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 1159397 1 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private provider. Care is provided for up to four children aged between 11 and 18 years who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered in March 2016. A manager is responsible for the day-to-day running of the home and has applied to register 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: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1159397 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/08/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 16/08/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 04/05/2022 Full Inadequate 18/11/2021 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 1159397 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are building positive relationships with staff. The manager and staff are caring and respond quickly to children’s requests. Professionals and staff talked about how moving the staff office downstairs has changed the ambience of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to make good progress when facing changes and new routines. When children move into the home, plans are thorough, and children are welcomed and prepared for the change. Communication with the children is detailed in their welcome pack and specifically addresses the needs they may have. The children’s guide addresses practical information as well as children’s feelings and who can help them if they need to talk. The manager keeps plans under regular review and changes them in response to each child’s needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children now attend school full-time. This is enabling them to build friendships and learn new skills for the future. The staff at the home ensure that there is good communication with the staff at the schools.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to follow their interests and try new things. Children living in the home live active lifestyles and are offered opportunities and access to new experiences. The home is large and has extensive grounds with outbuildings. Several activities can be accessed in the garden area, and in the house, there are areas set up for different activities. Children use the office freely but also the craft room and the nail bar nearby.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who live far away from home are supported to visit family members and important people in their lives. Where this means travelling some distance, staff work flexibly to ensure that children are supported to do this. The children also have access to a home phone, and staff support them with communication. This helps children to maintain their sense of identity. One child’s records do not contain relevant plans that provide the basis for the care they receive. The manager has requested this information, but it is not yet in place.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager ensures that repairs are completed and has moved rooms and furniture about to make the environment feel more homely. Some maintenance tasks and peeling paintwork detract from the homely feel the manager is trying to create.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

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

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children feel safe in the home. The children could not think of anything that would make them feel safer at this time. One child said that their bedroom is the place they feel the safest. Inspection report for children’s home: 1159397 4 Staff carefully consider and record risks for each child. Records are reviewed regularly, and risks are reduced because of the support provided in the home. The manager and staff follow a careful plan with children. The staff work to help children understand risks and how to keep themselves safe. As the children’s understanding develops, they take positive risks in a planned way and staff support them to do this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There have not been any physical interventions with the children in the home since the last inspection. Staff use a therapeutic approach to avoid this. They seek to understand the child’s experience and the emotions they feel. They then work with the children and help them to understand the feelings they are experiencing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There have been no reported missing-from-home episodes, but staff have clear protocols in place to follow should this happen. Staff are ready to respond swiftly if children do go missing. The manager has made links locally with professionals who can help as part of a contextual safeguarding approach. Positive relationships help children to stay in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have positive relationships with children. They encourage children in the home to do things together and support them to do things separately. The staff encourage children to make friends outside of the home. Staff carefully assess the risk of these friendships but also promote them. They spend time explaining to children what positive friendships look like to prepare them for the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager has improved systems and understanding around medication since the last inspection, and there are clear systems in place for ordering medication and administration. Staff understand the system, and managers have had input from health professionals to make it clear. However, during the inspection, a medication had not been signed for from the stock records. This could lead to medication administration errors.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has good oversight of the home and is proactive in making improvements to the environment, systems and outcomes for the children who live there.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands the children’s needs. The manager has a vision to support more children and to develop the staff team. Staff are well supported by the manager, who meets regularly with them. Team meetings capture important areas of staff development around safeguarding, the risk of child sexual exploitation and therapeutic approaches to care. Staff continue to develop skills that they need to support the children well. The manager is committed to developing staff and helping them to develop in their roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Many of the team are new in post. The manager is supporting them through a detailed induction process. She has developed the corporate induction further to ensure that the needs of children living in the home are understood and met. Staff Inspection report for children’s home: 1159397 5 are flexible and cover each other’s annual leave. Occasionally, relief staff are used, but children say they feel supported by all staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has challenged other professionals to work in the best interests of the children. Professionals report good working relationships with the staff at the home and describe the manager as a strong advocate for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

It is recognised that the home has been without a registered manager since August 2023; however, ongoing attempts were made by the provider to actively recruit for the role. A manager is now in place and has applied to register. Inspection report for children’s home: 1159397 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children’s records contain relevant children’s plans, and these should form the basis of their care and inform staff practice. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 11.1)  The registered person should ensure that records are kept of the administration of all medication, which includes occasions when prescribed medication is refused. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 23, paragraph 7.15)  The registered person should ensure that the property and grounds are maintained in good condition and the home is decorated to a good standard so that it feels homely and welcoming. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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: 1159397 7

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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

Carol Jagger, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1159397 8 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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