Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Norfolk

Inspection report for children’s home: SC459168 1 SC459168 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned. It provides care for up to four children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, four children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The previous registered manager left the home in June 2024. The new manager registered with Ofsted in February 2025.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 27 January 2025

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC459168 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/01/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 07/03/2024 Full Good 07/06/2022 Full Good 20/04/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC459168 3

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improvement to be good

No children have moved in or out of the home since the last inspection. The children are making some progress. However, concerns about staff practice have meant that children have not always received appropriate help and protection. Poor individual staff practice has, on occasion, undermined children’s overall experiences.

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improvement to be good

Children shared mixed views about their experiences at the home. One child spoke positively about their experiences. However, two other children are not happy living at the home because they struggle with peer relationships. One child is not happy with their local authority care plan. The manager has supported this child to speak to an advocate and to make a complaint to their local authority in line with their wishes.

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improvement to be good

Children have experienced a number of staff changes since January 2025. This has unsettled them. Children said that they do not know staff well and, in turn, do not always feel well supported by all staff. Despite these changes, all the children continue to have a resoundingly positive relationship with the manager.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported to attend routine health appointments. One child has been supported by staff to speak to their doctor about their well-being. Staff have advocated for one child to be supported by smoking cessation services and specialist youth substance misuse support services. Staff regularly talk to the child about these risks. Children’s health needs are generally well met. However, staff do not always promote a healthy and balanced diet for children.

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improvement to be good

Children are offered some activities and spend time in their local community. However, staff are not always creative in exploring additional activities for children. This reduces children’s opportunities to have new and varied experiences.

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improvement to be good

The home is generally well decorated and children have personalised bedrooms. However, some areas are not as welcoming. Some items in the home require maintenance or repair and one communal area for children is poorly furnished. The manager requests repairs but these are not always completed quickly.

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improvement to be good

Feedback from social workers about children’s experiences is mostly positive. However, professionals said they were concerned about the children’s antagonistic relationships with each other. One social worker said that the home was not meeting their child’s needs, and their concerns meant that they plan for the child to move out.

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improvement to be good

All of the children are enrolled in and are attending education. Two children are doing their GCSE exams, which is good progress from their starting points. Staff are helping these children to explore their future education opportunities at college or with an apprenticeship. All children are accessing education packages in ways that suit their Inspection report for children’s home: SC459168 4 needs. Feedback from one school leader was positive about the manager’s advocacy of children’s needs and her encouragement of learning opportunities.

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improvement to be good

Children are not yet receiving good help and protection.

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improvement to be good

There have been significant staff changes since the last inspection. On some occasions, there have been insufficient staff, or a lack of suitably qualified staff. Five new staff have joined the home. Most of these staff are inexperienced and do not yet hold a relevant qualification. This inexperienced staff team has not had the necessary skills. Sometimes, staff have failed to make suitable decisions to help keep children safe.

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improvement to be good

Staff have not always followed the relevant plans when children have gone missing from the home. On one occasion, staff lacked professional and appropriate curiosity about where the child was going. They did not consider the contextual risks of the time of day and the child’s presentation. Staff did not report the child as missing from home in line with the child’s agreed plan. This is despite this being a known and serious risk for this child, as they have regularly been missing from home overnight.

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improvement to be good

On at least three occasions, staff have failed to be vigilant in their supervision of children. This has allowed a child access to money, medication and other items which are usually restricted for their safety. On one of the occasions where children were not well supervised by staff, children were able to access the roof of the home. Staff required support from the emergency services to manage this situation. On another occasion, poor staff supervision allowed a child to access a significant amount of money. This enabled the child to go missing from the home. While the child was missing, they were at risk in the community and experienced harm. The manager quickly reviewed practice with staff in respect of these incidents.

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improvement to be good

Children do not always feel safe living at the home, and the inexperienced staff are not confident in managing children’s behaviour to prevent situations escalating. Children have complex relationships with their peers, and staff are not always skilled at helping the children to manage their feelings about their peers. This sometimes leads to increases in heightened and unsafe situations for children that staff are unable to manage.

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improvement to be good

When staff have physically held children, these have been necessary and proportionate holds. On one occasion, an agency staff member who was not suitably trained was involved in holding a child. Untrained staff holding children potentially places the child and staff at risk. It also undermines the manager’s ability to ensure that children are only held in line with the home’s policy and its approach to physical interventions.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand the risks the internet may pose to children and carry out regular checks on children’s mobile devices. Staff speak to children about potential risks in their Inspection report for children’s home: SC459168 5 online worlds. Children are having more conversations with staff about their friendships, and this in turn helps staff to keep children safer.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There have been significant changes in senior leadership. The manager has been supported by four different responsible individuals in a short period of time. Changes in senior leadership and staffing have reflected instability in the home. The manager has had inconsistent support to address the shortfalls from the previous inspection effectively. However, the newly registered manager is ambitious for children and has a good understanding of the weaknesses at the home. She is dedicated to making the necessary improvements at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Despite the leadership and management challenges, the manager continues to strive for good experiences for children. She is clear in her expectations of staff, and the experiences children should have at the home. The manager and the new responsible individual have identified the shortfalls highlighted at this inspection and have an action plan in place to address them. However, these plans have yet to be actioned and embedded.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have completed refresher training to address gaps in their knowledge identified at the last inspection. When there have been concerns about staff practice, the manager appropriately reports these to the relevant professionals. The manager ensures that individual staff are promptly spoken with in relation to any concerns about their practice. The manager suitably identifies areas of learning and actions to prevent reoccurrence.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have regular supervision sessions and say they feel well supported by the manager. The manager has introduced additional safeguarding questions in staff supervision sessions and additional team meetings to discuss professional practice and to provide clear guidance to staff about keeping children safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager uses appropriate monitoring tools to help her understand the experiences and quality of care children receive. The manager has good oversight of all staff practice issues and provides challenge when required.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from professionals about the manager’s approach to children and her knowledge of children’s needs is positive. The manager is proactive at communicating with other professionals and will challenge their views in line with children’s wishes. The manager advocates for children effectively. When children have wanted to make complaints about other services, the manager has supported children to do this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

On some occasions, there have not been sufficient staff with suitable qualifications, skills and experience to meet the children’s complex needs. Inspection report for children’s home: SC459168 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—

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(iv)(vii)(b)) 1 August 2025

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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

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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(d)) 1 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC459168 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all their staff, including agency staff, have been adequately trained in the principles of restraint and any restraint techniques appropriate to the needs of the children the home is set up to care for as defined in the home’s statement of purpose. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.57)  The registered person should ensure that children are offered a wide range of activities inside and outside of the home (where appropriate) and are encouraged to participate in those activities. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 31, paragraph 6.5)  The registered person should ensure that staff in the children’s home encourage children to take a proactive role in looking after their day-to-day health and well- being. Staff should help children to monitor their eating habits and promote a

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Recommendations

healthy, balanced diet. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 34, paragraph 7.10)  The registered person should ensure that the home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of children. (‘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: SC459168 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: 5th Floor, Metropolitan House, 3 Darkes Lane, Potters Bar, Hertfordshire EN6 1AG

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Inspectors

Rebecca Hannell, Social Care Inspector Priscilla Koroka, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC459168 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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