Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Somerset

Inspection report for children’s home: 2614511 1 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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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

The home is part of a large private organisation. The company employs its own clinical team.

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Information about this children’s home

The home provides care for up to four children and specialises in supporting children who have experienced significant trauma and have been the victims of exploitation. At the time of the inspection, there were two children living in the home. Since the last inspection, two children have moved out of the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The home currently has two registered managers as one has been on maternity leave.

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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 outstanding

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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: 14 October 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: 2614511 2 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/10/2024 Full Good 01/08/2023 Full Good 08/11/2022 Full Good 14/12/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2614511 3 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The inspector spent time with both children during the inspection. One child recently moved into the home, and another has lived there for two years. One child expressed how much they love living there and that they enjoy spending time with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to make progress and are persistent in encouraging them, while recognising that progress is not linear. Staff support children in identifying and managing their emotions. One child has successfully moved out of the home and into supported accommodation.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The relationships between staff and professionals are good. Communication is excellent, and one social worker noted they feel well informed about the progress of their child and any safeguarding concerns. The provider has positive working relationships with external agencies it works alongside to support the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote a sense of belonging and stability within the home and include children in decision-making as much as possible around activities, meals and food planning, along with important decisions about their lives. They advocate strongly for children in relation to their views on family time, phone access and time on their own away from the home where appropriate.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The experience of children on a day-to-day basis in the home is mostly positive. When there was conflict between two children in the home, this impacted on the overall well-being of both children. One child made a complaint that they did not feel safe in the home. The provider responded appropriately to these concerns.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is promoted within the home. Staff encourage children to attend school on a regular basis. When school placements are not readily available, staff undertake specific educational tasks with children and advocates on their behalf to find them appropriate educational placements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The environment is homely, clean and personalised to the children. However, one of the children’s bedrooms had a broken window that was not replaced in a timely manner.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to prepare for independence. However, it is not clear in plans if actions related to enhancing children’s independence have taken place, making it difficult to assess the progress of children in respect of their independence skills.

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

Inspection report for children’s home: 2614511 4 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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

Staff understand the risks and vulnerabilities of the children and are kept informed of any changes to risk assessments, plans or incidents that occur. Staff work with children to attempt to reduce risks and to support them to make positive decisions in respect of relationships with others. This has not always been effective, and there have been some incidents where children have been at risk. When this was discovered by the home, it was dealt with swiftly and actions were taken to prevent these incidents from occurring again.

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

The provider responds effectively to incidents of bullying and issues between peers. When there were conflicts between two children in the home, staff addressed this and undertook reparation work to attempt to repair relationships.

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

Leaders and managers undertake clear assessments when children move into the home, considering the different and competing needs and risks of those already resident. Recent learning from one child moving in and then out of the home has fed into further decision-making.

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

There is a strong focus on relational safeguarding, which encourages children to seek support from staff when they are worried or have experienced any harm. The home has clear and consistent boundaries for the children, and any consequences are linked to the specific behaviour.

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

When children go missing, the team follows protocols and takes steps to ensure the safe return of children and to attempt to disrupt any further missing incidents. This includes considering the context around why the young person went missing in the first place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers have very clear and ambitious visions for the children in the home. They are confident in their approach to managing the home and in enhancing the lives of the children in their care, many of whom have experienced significant complex trauma. Leaders and managers choose their team to ensure that staff hold the same high expectations and put in place support for any staff who are not reaching this standard. There is a clear focus on relationships between the staff and the children, and managers have a good oversight of these relationships.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager uses research effectively to underpin practice and provide for the specific cultural needs of the children in the home. Some of this practice has been shared wider to external agencies.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff feel well supported by the manager and leadership team and note that they have access to training that helps them to do their jobs more effectively. Supervisions are high quality and child focused. Team meetings support wider reflective discussions, and group reflections use a specific reflective ‘tool’, underpinned by research, to further enhance this. Inspection report for children’s home: 2614511 5 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Records are written clearly, but some are not dated and the name of the author is not recorded, which makes it difficult to identify who has completed the record and when.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers understand the children’s starting points and can clearly track progress from when children first came into the home. They are strong advocates for children and use their professional relationships and contacts to address any concerns in relation to external agencies. Their advocacy in a recent child in care review has secured a child the first face-to-face family time they will have had since moving to the home two years ago.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager understands the strengths and weaknesses of the home and is open to learning and development to make any required improvements. When a concern was identified about one child’s previous home, there were very clear actions taken by senior managers to ensure that the child’s voice was heard. Children’s voices are evident throughout the home, records and their plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Overall, the combined efforts and dedication of the managers, the team leaders, the staff and senior managers are having an overwhelmingly positive impact on children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2614511 6 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that damage to the home is rectified in a timely manner. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that records made for the children are clearly dated and recorded with the name of the author, to ensure that children know who has written said records when accessing them in the future. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that staff help each child to prepare to live independently, including assessing and supporting the development of the child’s practical skills such as cooking, budgeting and personal self-care. These plans should have clear actions and tracked outcomes. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 17, paragraph 3.27)

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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: 2614511 7 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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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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Children’s home details

Registered managers: Rebecca Langdon (maternity leave), Ted Haines

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Inspector

Helen Cushnie, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2614511 8 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Inspector

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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