Children's home run by Cambian Childcare Limited

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 1 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is part of a large national provider of children’s homes. It provides care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There was one child living in the home at the time of the visit.

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This monitoring visit

This children’s home was judged inadequate at the full inspection on 10 and 11 September 2024. Inspectors identified serious concerns about safeguarding practices in the home, ineffective leadership and management arrangements and poor education outcomes for children.

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This monitoring visit

Following the inspection, three compliance notices were issued under Section 22A of the Care Standards Act. Compliance notices were issued under regulation 12, the protection of children standard, regulation 13, the leadership and management standard, and regulation 8, the education standard.

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This monitoring visit

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken by the provider in meeting the steps in the compliance notices.

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This monitoring visit

Progress has been made since the last inspection. Staff now have a good understanding of the child’s risks and vulnerabilities. Staff are consistent in their approach towards the child and support them in line with their needs. This has improved their relationships with the child. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 2 Incidents of the child being missing from the home have reduced. When incidents have occurred, these have been managed well. Staff follow the child’s plans and take appropriate action to locate the child and return them home quickly.

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This monitoring visit

The child’s plans are updated following incidents. Plans include clear guidance for staff to follow, and staff say that these are easy to read. Staff demonstrate a good knowledge of the action that they should take to safeguard the child.

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This monitoring visit

The manager identifies shortfalls in staff practice following incidents. She has taken appropriate action to address these with individual staff. This means that staff understand how to support the child at times of distress. As a result, incidents of challenging behaviour in the home have reduced. When incidents have occurred, staff have managed these appropriately and in line with the child’s plan.

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This monitoring visit

Staff support the child to engage in educational activities in the home. Staff respond to the child’s wishes and feelings in relation to the education professionals involved in their care. As a result, the child’s engagement with the in-house education programme has improved.

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This monitoring visit

Leadership and management arrangements in the home have improved. Senior leaders accept that the manager having oversight of two homes impacted on their ability to operate this home effectively. As a result, the manager is now overseeing this home on a full-time basis. Additional support has also been provided by senior managers in the organisation to support the manager’s development.

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This monitoring visit

Staff say they receive support and have supervision and attend team meetings. This provides the staff and manager with opportunities to reflect on practice and address any shortfalls.

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This monitoring visit

A case review was held following this monitoring visit. It was the decision of the case review that the provider had taken sufficient action to meet the compliance notices.

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This monitoring visit

The requirements made at the last inspection were outside the scope of this visit. These will be reviewed at the next inspection.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/09/2024 Full Inadequate 19/07/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 14/09/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 3

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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 with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful; 23 December 2024 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 4 help each child to develop the understanding and skills to recognise or withdraw from a damaging, exploitative or harmful relationship;

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Requirement Due date

strive to gain each child’s respect and trust;

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Requirement Due date

understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children;

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Requirement Due date

are provided with supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children to do the same;

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Requirement Due date

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children;

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Requirement Due date

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(ix)(x)(xi)(b)

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, that leaders and managers ensure that the child is supported to develop positive relationships with the staff team, that direct work with children is undertaken following incidents, that this work is meaningful and professionally curious and that the child’s views are reflected in their plans.

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Requirement Due date

The enjoyment and achievement standard is that children take part in and benefit from a variety of activities that meet their needs and develop and reflect their creative, cultural, intellectual, physical and social interests and skills.

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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

develop the child’s interests and hobbies;

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Requirement Due date

participate in activities that the child enjoys and which meet and expand the child’s interests and preferences; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to a range of activities that enable the child to pursue the child’s interests and hobbies. 23 December 2024 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 5 (Regulation 9 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(b)

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, that leaders and managers ensure that plans are in place for the child to access activities and hobbies in line with their interests.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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 children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed;

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Requirement Due date

that the child’s placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child’s relevant plans is requested, if—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person considers that the child is at risk of harm or has concerns that the care provided for the child is inadequate to meet the child’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

that staff help each child to access and contribute to the records kept by the registered person in relation to the child. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(c)(e)(i)(f))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, that leaders and managers ensure that plans are in place to support children moving in and out of the home 23 December 2024 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 6 which demonstrate how the child’s needs are to be met and that plans are reviewed when the child is not making progress in the home.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction;

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (1)(a) (4)(a)(b)) 23 December 2024

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (c)) 23 December 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children ("a quality of care review") at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children. 23 December 2024 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 7 After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review ("the quality of care review report").

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3) (4)(a))

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 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

Claire Hobbs, Social Care Inspector Nicola Rutherford, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2662847 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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