Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Durham

Inspection report for children’s home: 1236026 1 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 owned and managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There is no registered manager for the home. The acting manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

There were four children living in the home at the time of the inspection. They were seen and spoken to as part of this inspection.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1236026 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/07/2024 Full Good 01/08/2023 Full Good 20/04/2022 Full Good 29/06/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1236026 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to build and maintain trusting and supportive relationships with the adults who care for them. The staff and the manager know the children well and spend constructive time with them to reinforce their relationship. Family members and professionals speak highly of the staff and are positive about the care provided to children. They comment on the family atmosphere at the home, the ease of communication and the positive relationships that staff build with the children as a strength.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager works with education providers to support children to attend school, and most children make good progress. The teacher for one child could not believe the change in the child since moving into the home. One child is sitting their GCSE exams and has secured a place at college. School staff welcome the ‘positive professional challenge’ from the manager, who advocates strongly for the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children struggle to maintain consistent attendance at school, staff support them to work on their independence plans, or activities related to their future career aspirations. Children are less committed to engage in these activities during school time. However, children do complete a series of independence workbooks to demonstrate their abilities. One child has completed all their independence tasks. They travel to school independently and are applying for part-time work. When the children’s pathway plans are not received in a timely manner, the manager escalates this appropriately.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to pursue their passions, including mountain biking and hair and beauty. Younger children are supported by staff to try a wide variety of activities, from boxing and football to trips to the zoo. These enjoyable experiences enrich the children’s lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in good health and staff support their needs well. Children are encouraged to attend all their routine health appointments, with one child visiting the dentist for the first time to access the emergency dental work needed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff take the time to learn about children when they move in. They understand that children may struggle with transitions, offering children emotional support and warmth while they settle in. When children struggle to cope, staff help children to feel well cared through times of upset.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers and staff work with professionals and the children’s family members to help children to return to the care of their family. They ensure that children are active participants in this planning. Staff provide important ongoing practical support to families when children return to their care. Inspection report for children’s home: 1236026 4

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

Children rarely go missing due to the positive relationships with staff and the warm family atmosphere in the home. Staff know what to do when incidents do occur. Good- quality in-house training and easy-to-follow protocols help staff to return children safely to the home.

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

Children are supported with their behaviour with a mixture of positive praise and reinforcement. Incidents requiring physical intervention are reducing. If children need to be held for safety, this is clearly recorded, and staff and the child receive a full debrief. Use of negative consequences is rare, with staff preferring to develop ways of diverting or distracting children and talking through what has happened. Staff use ‘life space interviews’ to help children reflect on the incident and staff to understand what the child needed at the time, and for both to reconnect after upset has occurred.

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

Concerns raised about staff’s practice are taken seriously and reported to the relevant agencies. The manager has good links with the local authority designated officer and consults with them when needed. Allegations are managed well, and issues are addressed quickly. When a child frequently raised concerns, plans were developed with the relevant professionals to manage this, ensuring that the child felt listened to and should concerns be present they could be responded to accordingly.

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

Managers and staff support children to be safe online. However, they are struggling to find the right balance between keeping the children safe and preparing them for the risks and benefits of the digital world. This has led to children having their devices removed, with a lack of focus on helping children develop the skills to keep themselves safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The acting manager has a clear vision for the home, creating an environment where children can relax and feel at home. The acting manager leads by example. They are very visible in the home, spending quality time with the children to ensure that they are OK, and to listen to any concerns they have. This role models and encourages staff to do the same in a way that helps children feel well cared for.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s transitions in and out of the home are well planned and delivered. Assessment of a child’s suitability to live in the home is comprehensive and considers the needs of all the children in the home. The quality of the work undertaken to understand a child’s needs gives the manager confidence to take in children with a wide range of needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The acting manager understands the team’s development needs, noticing staff’s individual strengths and areas for development. Staff have a comprehensive training package supplemented by a range of training developed to meet the needs of the children. The acting manager is responsive to the needs of children and requests additional training when new needs develop. Inspection report for children’s home: 1236026 5 Children’s records are completed using child-friendly language, something which the staff have embraced following the training they received. However, when children’s records are updated or changed, they are not always thoroughly quality assured. This has led to some inaccurate information on children’s files. Inspection report for children’s home: 1236026 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 registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are kept up to date. (regulation 36 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that inaccuracies on the children’s records are identified and rectified in a timely manner. 25 July 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that any restrictions on children’s access to devices are balanced, proportionate, and related to the individual child’s needs, risks and stage of development. Any restrictions should be accompanied by interventions to help children develop the knowledge and skills to keep themselves safe online. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 29, paragraph 5.19)  The registered person should ensure that children attend education while they are of compulsory school age. When children are not in school, the registered person should ensure that the child is supported to undertake activities related to their educational goals. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.14)

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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 Inspection report for children’s home: 1236026 7 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: 1236026 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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Inspector

Kirstie Sutherland, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1236026 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’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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