Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Warwickshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 1 SC476249 Registered provider: Cambian Childcare Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and run by a private company. It provides care for up to five children who may be experiencing emotional or behavioural difficulties because of childhood trauma.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, four children were living in the home. All the children spoke with the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a suitably qualified and experienced manager in post.

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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

Date of last inspection: 23 September 2024

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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: SC476249 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/09/2024 Full Good 20/06/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 12/10/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 25/01/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress because of the care that they receive. Consequently, since the last inspection, three children have been supported to move in a planned way to live with foster carers. Three children have moved into the home and settled well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children speak positively about living in the home. Two children rated their experiences as 9 out of 10, and another gave it a perfect score. One child said, ‘I like it, the staff are kind. I like my room and if I ask for something they will get me it, They do everything they can to make me happy.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy warm, trusting relationships with staff. One child described staff as ‘brilliant’, adding, ‘I love them like my family, and they love me like family too.’ Because of these positive relationships, children who have left the home continue to visit and children living in the home are making progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff regularly engage children in conversations that promote their safety, health and education. Children previously disengaged from education are now attending school. Children are more open to new experiences and are better able to understand and express their emotions. One child reflected, ‘It went from being arrested every night, not going to school. Now I go to school. I have not been arrested in over a year. They get me the most support, have helped with my mental health and everything.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to maintain relationships with people who are important to them. One family member said, ‘They are meeting her needs. [Name of child] has really good relationships with them. I cannot fault them.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well met. The manager works effectively with partner agencies to identify and access appropriate support for children’s physical and mental health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from living in a home that, for the most part, provides pleasant spaces and a homely feel. However, some areas detract from this. There is a broken fence panel in the garden, the patio is overgrown with weeds and safety matting is missing from the trampoline. There is rubbish in the alley beside the garden. Inside, children’s bedroom doors are marked. There are ongoing repairs, including a leaking bathroom and an unused bedroom requiring refurbishment. Timescales for these repairs to be carried out are unclear.

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

Children feel safe living in the home. Risks are well understood, and staff are guided by clear plans to keep children safe. Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 4 When incidents occur, the manager acts promptly to safeguard children and notifies and updates relevant partner agencies. However, when children make allegations or say that staff conduct is inappropriate, they are not always informed of the outcomes. Efforts to repair relationships between children and staff are not always well planned, which can affect the quality of children’s experiences. This could cause children to feel unheard and less safe.

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

When children go missing, staff follow agreed plans and work with safeguarding agencies to ensure their safe return. Staff speak with children afterwards to understand their experiences and address any push factors. These conversations help children understand decisions made in their best interests.

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

Staff respond appropriately to incidents of self-harm. As a result of supportive conversations, one child’s incidents of self-harm have significantly reduced.

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

Children know how to make a complaint and are confident that staff would take action to make things better.

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

Physical interventions are used only when necessary and as a last resort. Management oversight of restraint incidents is generally strong. The manager uses creative methods to gather children’s views and tracks the frequency of the use of restraint, which is reducing. However, oversight is inconsistent. Not all staff involved in incidents are spoken to, or spoken to separately, which weakens this important safeguard.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children speak highly of the manager. One child said, ‘She is one of the best.’ Partner agencies describe her as a strong advocate for children, highlighting her deep understanding of their needs and her effective communication. One professional said, ‘She really knows the children and is proactive in doing her job.’ Another commented, ‘[Name of manager]’s communication with us has been really good, easy to get hold of, which is a real positive.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have a good understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. They are developing a learning culture and have high aspirations for children. Shortfalls in practice are quickly identified and addressed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are sufficient staff to meet children’s needs. Although there has been high staff turnover since the last inspection, the team has stabilised, and children say they have positive relationships with staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel well supported. Supervisions and team meetings provide opportunities for reflection and learning, helping staff improve their care of children. Most staff are up to date with training. However, shortfalls in the oversight of training by managers have meant that some important training has expired, including restraint training for three members of staff, including the deputy and manager. Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 5 Use of external monitoring and oversight by the independent person is weakened by the lack of feedback from children’s social workers, family members and other professionals. This lessens leaders and managers’ understanding of how the care they provide to children can be improved. Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 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 prepare and implement a policy ("the behaviour management policy") which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2) (3)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person speaking to all staff involved within 48 hours, and ensuring that staff are spoken to separately. 22 November 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person— 22 November 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 7 if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a))

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all areas of the home are well maintained. In particular, repair a leaking shower, mend a broken fence panel, weed the garden and replace safety matting missing from a trampoline. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that investigations into the complaints made by children are undertaken promptly, and that children are kept informed throughout, and about the outcome of the investigation. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 44, paragraph 9.17)  The registered person should ensure that staff are up to date with their training, and that any refresher training is completed in a timely manner. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

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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: SC476249 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: 4th Floor, Parkview, 82 Oxford Road, Uxbridge UB8 1UX

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Inspector

John Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC476249 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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