Children's Home run by Gims Care Solution LTD in Essex

Inspection report for children's home: 2728656 1 Registered provider: GIMS Care Solution 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 home which provides care for up to four children. The home supports children’s social, emotional and mental well-being.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in June 2023 when the home opened.

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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: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2728656 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home opened in June 2023. Since then, three children have moved to the home and one child has moved out in a planned way. At the time of the inspection there were two children living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Both children are supervised well in the home and the community. This has helped the children to develop good relationships with the staff. They are able to talk with staff about any issues, and enjoy living at the home. Staff provide an upbeat and nurturing atmosphere. The children are keen to do activities with the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One of the children is home tutored while working towards returning to mainstream school. This is significant progress for the child, and shows how hard he has worked. The other child attends an education placement that is focused on providing skills for work. This includes carpentry, building skills and boat building. Although one of the children is not currently in school, the staff supervise his learning. The staff are very proactive and have referred the child to a skills centre.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One of the children enjoys using construction toys and skateboarding. The other child spends time on his scooter. Staff are keen that children enjoy activities. They encourage children to try new sports or games. The children enjoy the garden. They practise tricks on the scooter and skateboard, learn how to service the scooter and go out in the community to meet friends.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff have a good understanding of the children’s health needs. They encourage the children to think about how to keep themselves physically healthy. Staff speak openly to children about emotional well-being and the importance of being able to talk about how they feel. This has supported the children to have conversations with staff about low mood. One child has recently requested to speak to a therapist.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s identity and culture are openly discussed. The staff talk to the children about cultural identity and encourage them to ask questions. One of the children is creating a project about Black History Month. He has written a slogan that will be the heading for the work. He is talking about showing the project to staff. This is purposeful for the child, who has not had a successful education placement for some time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff advocate for the children to spend time with the people they love. One child has regular time with extended family, and is able to enjoy seeing the people he cares about most. Staff supported one of the children to have a family holiday. This helped him to enjoy activities with his family.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children do not always have a home-cooked meal. The children would like some meals that reflect the foods they have enjoyed with their families. Managers have identified this as an issue, and are considering how meals are prepared and cooked. Inspection report for children's home: 2728656 3

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

Managers and social workers work jointly to update risk assessments to reflect current concerns. Staff understand how to support the children in line with their safeguarding plans. This helps children to have new experiences that are appropriate to their age, ability and understanding.

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

Children take part in reflective key-work sessions that are designed to be stimulating and thought-provoking. Staff discuss a wide range of topics with children, helping them to develop personal relationships. As part of independence planning, children are encouraged to develop negotiation skills that will help them to prepare for adult life.

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

There has been a serious safeguarding incident that involved all of the children. Staff acted appropriately and communicated effectively with social care agencies, the police and the local area safeguarding team. The managers have taken steps to ensure that staff continue to safeguard children. However, there has been no reflective exercise to support learning from safeguarding incidents and to identify training needs.

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

Restraint is used as a last resort. Staff are aware that the children have experienced severe trauma, and consider talking through any issues is the best way to support them. Both the children are keen to show that they care about the staff and want to be able to manage their emotions in a more positive way. One child said, ‘I want to behave better than I have been. I know that living here is good for me.’ The staff encourage the children to take appropriate risks that help support their development. Both children are aware that they have the opportunity to change their safeguarding plans if they continue to make positive choices.

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

Staff discuss online safety to ensure the children use their mobile devices responsibly. One child has undertaken a number of supported training sessions in health and safety and fire safety. He helps staff to carry out the weekly safety audits. This has helped him to understand the need to keep everyone safe at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably qualified and new to the management role. The staff are also new. They are starting to gel as a team and to make effective safeguarding decisions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a two-week induction training period for new staff. New staff work some shifts shadowing experienced team members. The staff say that this a valuable learning opportunity that helps them to understand the culture of the organisation. Staff receive reflective supervision sessions that help them to identify their training needs. The staff provide positive feedback about the support that they get from the manager. Inspection report for children's home: 2728656 4 There is currently a full staff team and staff retention is good. Safer recruitment procedures are followed. The manager supplements staff training with scenario- based conversations that help to embed learning. The staff are young and come from diverse cultural backgrounds. They are energetic and enthusiastic about working with the children. Staff say that they love working at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from external professionals is positive. Social workers praise the communication between the manager, staff and the wider professional network. Parents are enthusiastic about the managers and staff. They know staff are keen to work collaboratively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has identified monthly audits that help to ensure that the children receive good-quality care. Training needs are identified from the manager’s audits, which help to make the changes necessary to manage risks. Patterns and trends from safeguarding incidents are identified but these reviews are limited and therefore there are aspects of the management monitoring systems that are not effective. Inspection report for children's home: 2728656 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should use internal monitoring systems to ensure continuous improvement. They should be skilled in anticipating difficulties and reviewing individual incidents when necessary. They are responsible for proactively implementing lessons learned to sustain good practice. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)  The registered person should ensure that children are provided with nutritious meals suitable for their needs. When appropriate, children should be involved in choosing and preparing meals, and should have opportunities to sit together and eat. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.8)

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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: 2728656 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: GIMS Care Solution Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Office 10, The Old Courthouse, Orsett Road, Grays, Essex RM17 5DD

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Inspector

Trudy Potter, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2728656 7 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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