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

Inspection report for children's home: SC476303 1 SC476303 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Ltd

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to three children who may experience social and emotional difficulties. Three children currently live in the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 2017.

p.1

progress of children and

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

progress of children and

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

progress of children and

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

progress of children and

Dates of last inspection: 14 and 15 November 2023

p.1

progress of children and

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

progress of children and

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC476303 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/11/2023 Full Good 18/01/2023 Full Good 15/02/2022 Full Good 09/04/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: SC476303 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children living in the home are supported to develop trusting relationships by a team of nurturing and knowledgeable staff. This has enabled the children to make progress from their starting points.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views and opinions matter in the home. Children contribute to the choices of menu, activities and decor, and they can say if they are unhappy about any aspect of their care. Children can advocate for themselves in meetings with professionals and also trust the staff to speak on their behalf. This promotes their self-esteem and mental well- being.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is seen as important by the staff and children. The manager and staff team advocate well on behalf of children to ensure that they attend educational provisions that meet their needs. A teacher described that the staff go ‘above and beyond’ to ensure that children can attend and achieve their goals.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Transitions to and from the home are well managed. Children are given time to meet staff and see where they will live before they arrive. For those children reaching adulthood and getting ready to move on, there is a comprehensive independence plan. This helps them to feel confident in their ability to manage themselves when they leave.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to maintain family and other relationships important to them as well as being encouraged and supported to develop new friendships. The families spoken to are positive about the care offered to their child. One parent said that they felt their child was ‘lucky’ to have come to live at this home because of the level of support and care offered.

p.3

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

Children say they feel safe and protected in the home and can share their worries and concerns with staff. Care plans and risk assessments support this and contain clear strategies for staff to follow to help minimise risk. However, not all strategies around the use of mobile phones have a timescale for when they will be reviewed. This prevents children from fully learning to manage their own behaviour in a safe way.

p.3

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

Incidents are well recorded and responded to by staff. One incident was not notified to Ofsted as required. This prevents Ofsted from ensuring that all appropriate actions have been taken to safeguard a child.

p.3

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

Children do go missing from the home, but in most cases, this is for a short period. When episodes happen, the staff follow protocols and search for the child before reporting them missing. Children are welcomed when they return and are helped to reflect on the reasons why they went missing from home. However, the strong bonds of Inspection report for children's home: SC476303 4 family have led one child to stay for extended periods with a family member. While this has affected the progress the child was making in the home, the manager has put in place a safety plan that ensures that the child remains in contact and is encouraged to return. The local authority supports the plan.

p.3

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

Room searches take place where it is necessary to safeguard children. This includes by the police when children go missing from home. Such searches are not always recorded in the child’s file. This prevents children from having full information about how professionals work together to ensure their safety.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and knowledgeable. She is supported by a deputy and has a consistent team of staff, the core of whom have worked with the manager for a long time. This offers stability and consistency to children to enable them to make progress.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff and children identify that the manager is visible in the home and is a source of support. A member of staff said, ‘You could not ask for a better manager. She is always there for us and the children.’

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision is regular and is well recorded. Appraisals help staff to develop their knowledge and share their feelings about the work they do with the children. Targets are set during appraisals, including those for training that help staff to continually develop their practice. However, not all staff have completed their refresher training in expected areas.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager reviews the locality risk assessment annually. However, she has missed opportunities to review the risk levels when a new child has moved in and a new hazard occurred in the community.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The local authority in which the home is situated has not been informed that a child has recently moved in. Inspection report for children's home: SC476303 5

p.4

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.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

p.5

Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

p.5

Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

p.5

Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

p.5

Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child—

p.5

Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

p.5

Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

p.5

Requirement Due date

A notification made under this regulation—

p.5

Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified;

p.5

Requirement Due date

any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter; and 14 November 2024 Inspection report for children's home: SC476303 6 must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e) (5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify, without delay, the local authority for the area in which the children’s home is located of every admission of a child into the home and every discharge of a child from the home.

p.6

Requirement Due date

A notification under this regulation must be in writing and must state—

p.6

Requirement Due date

whether the child is provided with accommodation under section 20 or 21 of the Children Act 1989(a);

p.6

Requirement Due date

whether the child is subject to a care or supervision order under section 31 of the Children Act 1989(b);

p.6

Requirement Due date

the independent reviewing officer appointed for the child’s case; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

whether the child has an EHC plan or a statement of special educational needs and, if so, details of the local authority with responsibility for the EHC plan or for maintaining the statement of special educational needs. (Regulation 41 (1) (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 1 December 2024

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the strategy put in place to safeguard a child is reviewed in a timely way. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.7)  The registered person should ensure that any search of a child’s bedroom is recorded following guidance. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.20)  The registered person should ensure that the locality risk assessment is updated at the admission of any child and whenever there are hazards, even if they are short term, in the local area. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1) Inspection report for children's home: SC476303 7  The registered person should ensure that staff complete training as identified in the training matrix. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the

p.6

Recommendations

quality standards’, page 51, paragraph 10.1)

p.7

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: SC476303 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Ltd

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Metropolitan House, 3 Darkes Lane, Potters Bar EN6 1AG

p.8

Inspector

Susan Atkinson Millmoor, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC476303 9 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’ 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.

p.8

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9