Children's Home run by Bay Tree House (Gravesend) Limited in Kent

Inspection report for children’s home: 1244108 1 Registered provider: Bay Tree House (Gravesend) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to three children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, three children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2024.

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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: 1244108 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/05/2024 Full Good 05/02/2024 Full Inadequate 10/01/2023 Full Good 18/05/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1244108 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive good-quality, personalised care and make significant progress from their starting points. This is because staff understand children’s needs and are committed to improving outcomes for children. Strong relationships between children and staff contribute to positive experiences for children. Children say that they like living at the home and that staff are caring.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make meaningful progress in relation to their emotional, social and psychological well-being. One child has formed positive relationships with children from outside the home and has learned how to save money to buy items they choose, such as a games console. Another child, who previously did not like going out, now enjoys various community-based activities, supported by staff. This year, the child felt able to join the group holiday for the first time and enjoyed being with their peers. Furthermore, all children are carefully supported to strengthen their independent living skills. Children enjoy cooking various meals for everyone at the home and willingly carry out other household tasks. Children’s bedrooms are exceptionally well personalised to reflect their interests and identities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are enrolled in full-time education. One child is not attending their school, as they cannot manage the travel. Staff are providing support with alternative education plans while they identify a more local school. All children enjoy learning and take pride in their educational achievements. Staff advocate effectively for children and seek better education arrangements when they identify that children’s needs are not being met. This allows children to attend and achieve in education and reach goals related to their future aspirations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s moves into and out of the home are managed well. Staff are provided with information that helps them understand children’s needs before they arrive at the home. Managers and staff ensure that moves take place in a manner and at a pace suitable for the child. One child was helped to feel less anxious about moving into the home by leaving their teddy after their first visit. Staff put effort into creating for the child a social story of the teddy’s time at the home with various photos and descriptions that matched the child’s routines. Staff advocated for another child to move to their preferred home when they reached adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand and promote the importance of family time. They ensure that clear plans are in place for each child to spend time with their families and other significant people. Furthermore, staff take proportionate risks when advocating for certain restrictions to be reduced for children and families. This allows children to maintain and strengthen the relationships with significant people in their lives. Inspection report for children’s home: 1244108 4

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

Staff identify, understand and address children’s individual risks and vulnerabilities. This is because they know children well and form strong relationships with them. Furthermore, staff consistently adhere to agreed support plans and risk assessments.

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

Staff place emphasis on educating children about their risks and vulnerabilities. As a result, there are no incidents of children going missing from home, self-harm, or situations that require physical restraint. Children receive in-depth debriefs after behavioural incidents. They are keen to participate and express their views. On occasion, external professionals are invited to the home to help children understand how some situations may compromise their welfare and safety. Therefore, staff proactively help children to become increasingly safe.

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

Managers work transparently with external professionals and consult the local authority designated officer when allegations and concerns about staff conduct are brought to their attention. However, when allegations are made, the staff working arrangements are not consistently assessed in a timely manner. Furthermore, the outcome of investigations is not always documented and shared with relevant professionals.

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

The registered manager declines to use agency staff at the home, and this ensures that children experience consistent care from regular staff. Recruitment checks are carried out for all staff. However, gaps in candidates’ employment histories are not always explored with sufficient scrutiny.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is passionate about ensuring that children make good progress. They are ambitious about the quality of individualised care that staff should provide for children. The registered manager’s expectations are appropriately filtered to staff, who share the same vision for children. The registered manager forms strong relationships with children and staff. Staff respect the registered manager’s commitment and dedication. All children and staff speak positively about the registered manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager understands the home’s weaknesses and strengths. There is a focus on further developing staff’s skills and reflective practices. When the registered manager identifies any shortfalls in staff practice, they design relevant learning tools. Regular staff meetings enhance staff’s professional development and understanding of how to best meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

All staff members have completed the organisation’s mandatory training. Staff supervision sessions take place at agreed intervals and are of good quality. The staff team’s development is continuously encouraged and promoted during supervision sessions. All staff are appraised annually and have clear developmental goals. Inspection report for children’s home: 1244108 5

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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

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, when allegations are reported to the registered person, they should ensure that staff working arrangements are consistently assessed, investigations are carried out and outcomes are reached. 1 October 2025

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that they maintain good employment practice. In particular, the employment history of candidates should be obtained in the format of years and months. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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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: 1244108 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bay Tree House (Gravesend) Limited

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Inspector

Sonata Brisley, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1244108 7 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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