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

Inspection report for children’s home: SC457137 1 SC457137 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a national provider and offers care for one child who experiences social and emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since July 2024.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

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

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC457137 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/07/2023 Full Good 29/11/2022 Full Good 08/06/2021 Full Good 05/03/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC457137 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has made progress across a range of areas, including education, the relationships they have made with staff, and aspects of health. The child engages in fun activities. They say that they enjoy going to zoos and a theme park. The child speaks positively of these activities.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s engagement with education has improved since being in the home. They now consistently engage with their lessons in a meaningful way and have recently passed a mock GCSE examination. Staff encourage and facilitate the child’s engagement with lessons; however, more structure could be provided on the day when they are out of education. This would ensure that the child has access to a range of structured educational activities.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is celebrated and their achievements are highly praised. Important dates are marked, such as the anniversary of the child coming into the home, and memories are preserved in professionally printed photo albums and memory books, which staff use to record positive reflections. Staff speak affectionately about the child, and they are clearly a considered focus in the home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to have good relationships with family members and have regular contact with them. When children ask to increase their contact with a parent, staff encourage and facilitate this when this is in their best interests. The child’s mother speaks highly of the support their child receives from the staff and the registered manager and feels that their child is well cared for by a committed staff team.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The house is appropriately decorated and has a homely feel throughout. The child has a say in the decoration of their room and has various personal items on display. The child is also involved in the decoration of communal areas. There is a garden area that requires some attention. This is recognised by the registered manager, who has planned improvements.

p.3

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

When the child becomes upset and tries to self-harm, staff follow plans appropriately and use various techniques to try to avoid incidents becoming unsafe. After incidents have taken place, staff speak with the child and offer nurture and care, which means that the child feels supported and valued. When staff record these incidents, some information is missing. Clearer descriptions about what led up to incidents and how staff responded would help the registered manager to have improved oversight and monitoring of incidents.

p.3

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

Professionals feel that they have good relationships with the registered manager, who appropriately shares information around risks and vulnerabilities to try to keep children Inspection report for children’s home: SC457137 4 safe. When advice is provided by external agencies around how to support the child, this is incorporated into plans and reflected in staff practice. The manager and the staff team make efforts to ensure that care planning is holistic and robust for the child, and professionals feel that the support provided by the staff has led to the child feeling safer.

p.3

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

When restrictions are needed, such as external doors being locked, these are implemented in line with the relevant legal orders. Staff are knowledgeable about the deprivation of liberty order that is in place and what this means for their work with the child. It has been identified at times that breakable items have needed to be removed and replaced with plastic plates for example. These changes have been considered in multi-agency forums to ensure that restrictions are only used when necessary and reviewed in a timely way.

p.4

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

Care plans, risk assessments and safety plans are brief and easy to use, and they contain relevant information. Some risk assessments would benefit from additional background information to clearly outline the level of risk that is presented.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is dedicated and knowledgeable about the child. They have an in-depth understanding of the child’s presenting needs and how their experiences have impacted on them. The manager is committed to providing a high standard of care and leading a good staff team, and staff commend the manager for being supportive to them and advocating for the child in the home. There is an established team which provides stability and consistency to the child.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

When there have been concerns that external agencies have not provided a good enough service to the child, these have been challenged by leaders and managers and escalated to a complaint. More could be done to follow up complaints when responses are not received, particularly when improvements in service delivery are not seen.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Social care professionals speak very positively about the quality of care provided by the staff. The social worker says that they receive regular communication from the manager, and the team is fiercely committed to the child even in times of considerable difficulty.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff engage with training to help them learn about the child’s individual risk-taking behaviours. Staff are trained in the PACE model of care as a therapeutic approach and use this in their day-to-day roles. This means that the child is receiving care and support which will help them to make trusting and loving relationships with staff members.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place regularly and are an important forum to discuss care planning updates and incidents that have happened in the home. Staff are encouraged to reflect and learn from incidents, which means that they can look at ways to adjust their practice to better support the child.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision sessions are comprehensive and are carried out regularly. The include reflection on incidents which have taken place in the home and learning from incidents. Inspection report for children’s home: SC457137 5 The manager uses supervision sessions to highlight any concerns around staff practice and consider ways that practice can be improved. There is clear evidence that the manager listens to staff members and implements changes to how the team works in response to suggested changes. This means that the staff team feels valued and listened to. Inspection report for children’s home: SC457137 6

p.4

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that when children are not in full-time formal education, there is a written plan around structured activities which staff carry out with the child and that the child’s engagement with these activities is recorded and monitored. The registered manager should ensure that planned activities are in line with the child’s relevant plans. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 26, paragraph 5.2)

p.6

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: SC457137 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited

p.7

Children’s home details

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

p.7

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Nicola McClements

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered manager: Zoe Pollington Zoe Austin

p.7

Inspector

Min Sims, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC457137 8 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.

p.7

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.8

Inspector

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

p.8

Inspector

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

p.8