Children's Home run by Cambian Childcare Limited in Herefordshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 1 SC457068 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 is a privately owned children’s home that provides care for up to three children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home.

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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 requires improvement to be 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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Enforcement action since last inspection:

On 17 March 2025, an assurance inspection identified serious and widespread concerns relating to the care and protection of children. A suspension notice was issued on 18 March 2025, and a compliance notice was issued on 21 March 2025 under regulation 12 of the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015.

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

On 28 April 2025, Ofsted carried out a monitoring visit to monitor the provider’s progress in addressing the steps set out in the compliance notice. The provider had made progress. However, not all steps in the compliance notice had been met. The remaining Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 2 shortfall was subject to a revised compliance notice, and the suspension of the home’s registration remained in place.

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

A further monitoring visit took place on 2 June 2025. The provider had complied with the suspension notice and taken action to meet the steps in the compliance notice. As a result, no further enforcement was taken. The suspension notice lapsed on 6 June 2025. Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/05/2024 Full Good 17/07/2023 Full Good 24/01/2023 Full Good 01/03/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the home reopened, one child has moved into the home. This was well planned, and this has helped the child to settle into their new home environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well maintained and offers many opportunities for fun and engagement. Staff have supported the child to personalise their bedroom, helping them feel comfortable and settled. The home and garden are filled with toys, books and games that are tailored to the child’s needs. This supports both physical and creative play. Since moving in, the child has learned to play chess and now enjoys challenging staff to games on a daily basis.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are actively supporting the child to access education. The manager demonstrates high expectations and aspirations for children’s educational attendance and achievement. Staff provide both formal and informal learning opportunities, ensuring the child’s development is well supported. Clear structures and plans are in place to guide the child’s educational journey. The manager has established positive relationships with the child’s school, including holding weekly meetings to discuss their progress and emerging needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff regularly consult the child to gather their wishes and feelings. They use creative approaches to capture the child’s views, and this helps the child feel heard and valued. As a result, the child is now more able to express their feelings verbally to staff, rather than through negative behaviours.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have supported the child to engage in community activities that promote their health and social and emotional well-being. These include playing sports in the park and visiting the local skate park. During the recent school holiday, the child enjoyed a wide range of days out. These experiences have helped the child to develop confidence and build positive relationships outside the home.

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

The child says that they feel safe living at the home. Staff provide the child with good- quality direct work through individual sessions. These focus on important topics such as healthy eating, stranger danger and the importance of telling the truth. Staff use a variety of online resources to support the child’s understanding. As a result, the child’s emotional well-being and safety are improving.

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

Staff support the child to understand and manage their behaviour and feelings safely. A behaviour support plan is in place, tailored to the child’s individual needs and experiences. However, following one incident, staff did not complete follow-up work with the child to help them manage their emotions and understand risk. The behaviour support plan was also not updated to reflect the incident. These were missed Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 5 opportunities to support the child’s learning from the incident and ensure that staff had clear and up-to-date guidance about how to manage incidents.

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

Staff use physical intervention only as a last resort to keep children safe. There has been one physical intervention, which was proportionate and necessary and only used after de-escalation strategies were unsuccessful. Managers ensured that debriefs took place with both the child and staff, and they had effective oversight of the incident, including considering alternative strategies to support the child.

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

Leaders and managers ensure that safer recruitment practices are followed. Appropriate checks are carried out to reduce the likelihood of unsuitable staff being recruited, helping to keep children safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager is dedicated and child-focused and is supported by an experienced responsible individual. Leaders and managers are aware of the shortfalls identified relating to leadership and management, and a comprehensive plan is in place to address these areas.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Managerial oversight of incidents and of work being undertaken with the child is not consistent. This limits the manager’s ability to identify shortfalls in practice or areas where improvements may be needed. The manager is aware that, on occasion, the quality of staff practice has not been sufficient and is now seeking to address this through individual supervision sessions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Some staff have not completed their required qualification within the expected timescale. The manager has identified this issue and implemented support plans to address it. However, there has not been effective oversight of these plans, and no progress has been made. As a result, the child’s care is not being delivered by appropriately qualified staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff shared that they feel supported by the manager. They benefit from regular supervision sessions where they can reflect on their practice. Team meetings are held regularly and allow staff to air their views and discuss ways to enhance the care provided for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

There are monitoring systems in place to review the quality of care provided. However, six-monthly reviews of the quality of care have not been completed and sent to the regulator. This impacts and affects the manager’s ability to effectively oversee children’s care and the regulator’s oversight of this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

External professionals speak positively about the progress the child is making and attribute this to the care provided by staff. Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(v))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person needs to ensure that children’s plans are updated following incidents and that follow- up work is completed with children to help them understand how to keep safe. 27 October 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

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; 27 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 7 understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(b) (2)(b)(c)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person needs to have effective oversight of staff practice.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home. (Regulation 32 (1) (3)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff have completed the relevant qualification in the requisite timescale and ensure that any performance plans relating to this are reviewed regularly, with appropriate action taken if staff do not meet the actions. 27 October 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months. 27 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 8 In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review report”).

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed; and

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Requirement Due date

make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3) (4)(a)(b) (5))

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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: SC457068 9

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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

Kate Savage, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC457068 10 regulates 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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