Children's home run by St Christopher’s Fellowship

Inspection report for children’s home: 2495375 1 Registered provider: St Christopher’s Fellowship

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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 registered to care for up to nine children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted in November 2018 and is run by a voluntary organisation in partnership with a local authority.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, there were three children living in the home. All children were present and were spoken to as part of the 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: 2495375 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/08/2024 Full Good 03/05/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 25/04/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 12/05/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2495375 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a spacious, clean and comfortable environment. Each child’s room reflects their unique character and interests. The home is decorated well with contributions from the children, showing that children are involved in generating a homely feel to their home. The home provides space for children to enjoy privacy and time with friends and staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are consulted regularly; they are listened to and their needs are understood. Children and staff were observed to have positive interactions during the inspection. One child said, ‘I feel safe, listened to and I know how to complain if I need to.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children are not happy about their care, managers and staff understand the underlying reasons. They work proactively with children and professionals to seek solutions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making good progress overall, although education continues to be an area of concern. Where barriers to learning arise, the team works closely with partner agencies and has the confidence to escalate matters when there is a risk of drift. The team and the school have shown strong partnership and creativity in encouraging children to engage with their education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy an array of activities, and the home has a good selection of games and entertainment on site, which is enjoyed by some children. Some children enjoy activities in the community and with their friends. They confirm that they are offered opportunities to take part in a range of activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to maintain good health and ensure that their health needs are well monitored. When children are resistant to engage in medical appointments, staff pursue to reinforce the importance of holistic medical care. However, this is not always effective, but it remains closely monitored.

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

Managers have established a strong safeguarding culture. Staff are aware of situations that could increase risks for each child and use this understanding to prevent incidents. Staff help children to understand their own risks and make safer choices.

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

Staff have access to comprehensive individual risk assessments, which are routinely reviewed and updated. These assessments offer clear guidance on the risks children may face and outline appropriate staff responses. Recording practices are robust, documenting the actions taken and the subsequent follow-up to support children in developing their understanding of personal safety. Inspection report for children’s home: 2495375 4 There have been no physical interventions since the last inspection. Behaviour management is a strength of the home, with staff who are trained and know how to manage incidents effectively.

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

When children go missing from home, staff know what to do to make sure they return home quickly and safely. Staff also work diligently to understand the reasons behind these incidents, using this information to prevent future occurrences. As a result, the risk of children going missing is reduced effectively.

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

The management response to children making allegations against staff is generally good. The manager acts quickly to involve the relevant agencies, and they follow their child protection procedures effectively. Children’s voices are heard, and they are kept informed of the process until the outcome. Documents are detailed and clearly show all actions taken.

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

The manager ensures that staff who are recruited to work in the home are subject to all necessary checks. This helps to ensure that staff who work in the home are safe to do so.

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

Health and safety arrangements are overall good. However, further work needs to be undertaken to ensure that all children take part in fire drills and know how to safely evacuate the home in the event of a fire.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leadership and management arrangements are effective. The registered manager provides a consistent stable presence in the home. She is motivated and is committed to improving outcomes for children. Staff speak highly of the management team and confirm that they feel well supported.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision sessions take place regularly. These are practice related and are a supportive tool for staff. In addition to this, team meetings are well attended and valued by staff. They are used as a forum for staff to aid their training and development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager makes good use of internal and external monitoring systems to make continual improvements to the quality of care provided to children. This is effective in developing the home and identifying shortfalls.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals speak positively about the home and the progress children are making. They value good communication from staff and say they are kept updated following significant events in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have not had all training necessary to meet the specific needs of a child. This does not ensure that staff have the necessary skills to consistently meet the child’s needs. This requirement is restated from the last full inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 2495375 5

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Statutory requirement

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 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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)) 21 July 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home’s staff work closely with health and education professionals to ensure that outcomes identified and progress made by children in building relationships and achieving socially acceptable behaviours can be recorded and measured. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 38, paragraph 8.4)  The registered person should ensure that children feel safe and are safe. Staff should support children to be aware of and manage their own safety, both inside and outside the home, to the extent that any good parent would. This is with particular regard to children taking part in fire drills. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.9) Inspection report for children’s home: 2495375 6

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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: 2495375 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: St Christopher’s Fellowship

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 1 Putney High Street, London, Wandsworth SW15 1SZ

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Children’s home details

Registered managers: Tara McGahon, Denine Nwajiobi Deacon

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Inspector

Natalie Mitchell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2495375 8 and inspects 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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