Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Warwickshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 1 SC476249 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 run by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to five children who have experienced social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, three children were living in the home. Two children were spoken to during the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager since January 2024. A new manager has been appointed from within the organisation since May 2024. They have yet to apply 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: SC476249 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/06/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 12/10/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 25/01/2022 Full Good 28/02/2020 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive good care and have positive and trusting relationships with staff. Despite there being some changes to the staff team, children can identify an adult who they can rely on to support them. This gives children the stability and security they need to make progress. One professional said, ‘The home has given the child a solid base.’ One child has moved into the home since the last inspection. Good planning has helped this child to settle and build relationships with the other children in the home. Another child has lived at the home for over four years and has made special memories that will stay with them as they prepare to move out of the home. Staff have supported this child to develop their independence skills, resilience and maturity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the children well and understand their hopes and aspirations. One child completed their exams despite being out of school for long periods of time due to their complex health needs. A tutor provides children with education in the home until they feel ready to attend a college course. Two children regularly attend a specialist school that is part of the same organisation. Professionals working with the children highlight that this is a significant achievement as both children previously struggled to manage in a school environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The health and well-being of children is promoted by staff. Children are registered with local health services and attend routine and specialist health appointments. Staff work hard to ensure that children get the encouragement, treatment and advice that they need to be healthy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are able to share their views with others. At times, they do not want to speak to staff formally about development and changes they want to see in their home. The manager has recognised this and made changes. This means children share their views using a variety of approaches, including informal chats. This has helped children to shape the care they get from staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There have been improvements to the home environment that have helped children to feel more comfortable. Pictures of children and staff engaging in activities adorn the communal areas. Children have new carpets in their bedrooms and have personalised their space to reflect their own personalities. However, there remain areas of the home that require ongoing renovation and repair. This work is planned to take place in the next few months.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children spend time with people who are important to them. One child spends time overnight with a parent and enjoys this. Another child spends time with their younger sibling. This helps to promote children’s identity and emotional well-being. Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 4

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

There have been no children who have gone missing from the home and there has been a reduction in incidents of challenging behaviour. Boundaries and routines along with regular discussions by staff help children to develop a sense of security in the home. Children said that they feel safe.

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

Children know how to complain and how to share concerns they have about the staff who care for them. When they do, managers take this seriously and deal with them appropriately. Children do not always agree with decisions that are made about them. However, staff help them to understand why it may not always be possible to act on their wishes. When decisions made by staff are not always child focused, managers acknowledge this with the children. They also make changes to put things right.

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

Relationships between the children are managed well. Two children share a difficult relationship at times due to their changing needs. They are appropriately challenged by staff when there is conflict between them. Mediation is offered when needed to help repair and rebuild their relationship.

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

Risks to children are understood well by staff and children’s behaviours are generally managed well. There have been two occasions when staff have physically intervened with children where this could have been avoided. De-escalation strategies and better decision-making by staff could have been used. Debriefs with staff do not always take place in a timely manner following incidents. Risk management plans are not always updated following an incident, meaning staff do not always have up-to-date guidance to safely care for children.

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

Conversations with children take place following incidents. This helps them to reflect and learn about the impact of their behaviours on others. However, the managers conversations with staff to reflect and learn from these incidents do not always take place in a timely manner. Managers have put plans into place to address this, including further training for staff and sharing learning in team meetings.

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

Recruitment processes are robust. Staff who work in the home are subject to all necessary checks. This helps to ensure that children receive care from safe adults.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The interim management arrangements in the home since the last inspection have had an impact on the support for staff. Management oversight was not always robust. However, a new manager was identified and took up their post without delay in recognition of this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and suitably qualified. They are supported by a deputy manager and the responsible individual. Together, the members of this management group have a clear vision and plans for the ongoing development of the home. This includes the retention and development of staff, in particular new staff. They have taken Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 5 on board learning from the previous inspections and are working to embed a learning culture in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel supported. All staff are up to date with the providers required training, including training around children’s individual needs. Staff receive regular supervision and team meetings where they can learn and reflect on the care they offer to children. Clinical team around the child meetings for staff with the clinical team have not begun since the manager took up their role. This is a missed opportunity for staff to receive support and guidance from the in-house clinical team around children’s care. This is due to start in the coming few weeks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are good monitoring and review systems in place. This helps managers to effectively track children’s progress and staff practice. A key area for improvement identified by managers is recording and report writing. The plans in place to support this have led to a gradual improvement in some of the quality and detail of recordings. Another identified area is the independent visitor’s reports. These lack regular feedback from professionals and children’s relatives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers are strong advocates for children and hold professionals to account when required. This helps children to get the service they need at the time they need it. Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 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 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 that staff—

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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

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

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff consistently use de-escalation strategies to manage children’s behaviours and update risk management plans for children following incidents. 4 November 2024

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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

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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; 4 November 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 7 ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child; and

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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)(c)(d)(e)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that the home uses the therapeutic approach to care as described in its statement of purpose. Also, that staff have the necessary skills and experience to safely meet children’s needs and that staff retention is prioritised. Furthermore, that the registered person uses monitoring and reviewing systems to ensure that quality of recording and report-keeping by staff is consistently in line with the providers expectations.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy ("the behaviour management policy") which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (1) (a)(b)(2) (3)(b)(i)(ii)(c)) 4 November 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 8 The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular this relates to ensuring that the registered person helps the independent person to secure feedback from relevant professionals and children’s relatives to inform their reports. 4 November 2024

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that all areas of the home are well maintained. In particular, repair a leaking toilet on the ground floor, replace the kitchen flooring and renovate two bathrooms. (‘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: SC476249 9

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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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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Deborah Robertson-Kesterton

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Inspector

Nurul Kabir, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 10 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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