Children's Home run by Oak House Children's Home Limited in Essex

Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2671486 1 Registered provider: Oak House Children’s Home Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private provider and offers care for up to four children who experience social, emotional and learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager at the home since June 2024.

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Inspection date: 9 September 2025

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Inspection date: 9 September 2025

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Information about this inspection

At this inspection, the inspector evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. The inspector has looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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’. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2671486 2

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Findings from the inspection

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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Findings from the inspection

At the time of the inspection, two children were living at the home, and both children were involved in the inspection. One child who has court-ordered restrictions recently moved into the home.

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Findings from the inspection

Children have mixed experiences of living at the home. Staff have provided stability for one child. This child has lived at the home for two years and staff have helped them progress in many areas of their life. However, staff have not been able to provide the same stability for another child, who recently moved in. This child has spent most of their time missing from the home. This has a negative impact on their ability to keep safe and their wider development. As a result, the child’s local authority has decided that a more secure environment is needed to keep the child safe.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff support children’s education and promote regular school attendance. For one child, this has had a positive impact. The child now attends school consistently, engages with their full timetable and is making progress in their attainment. Staff have worked jointly with teaching staff to support another child’s gradual reintegration into education. However, this has been unsuccessful due to them going missing from the home.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff support the children to attend health appointments and follow the advice of health professionals. Staff ensure that children with particular health conditions attend specialist appointments as appropriate. Staff support children to manage their own personal care. As a result, one child has developed improved self-care skills.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff involve the children in making decisions about their activities and meals. One child is supported to attend a youth club and to take part in activities they enjoy, such as going to escape rooms. This child has developed friendships with peers in the local community.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff facilitate regular family time for children. They encourage families to visit children in the home. This helps the children to maintain relationships with the people who are important to them and helps them develop a positive sense of identity.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff are aware of children’s risks and vulnerabilities and understand the impact of trauma. However, an agency staff member was not fully informed about a child’s risk triggers and the environmental checks required to keep them safe in line with their court-ordered restrictions. Consequently, the required physical safeguards were not maintained, and supervision was not appropriate. Staff did not identify that the child Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2671486 3 had woken at night and left the home. As a result, this child went missing from the home and was exposed to further risks for a significant period.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff have regular conversations with children about keeping safe online. Staff use suitable parental controls on children’s devices to monitor safe internet usage. These measures help staff to reduce risks for children.

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Findings from the inspection

There have been leadership changes in the home. The home has been without a registered manager for 15 months. A manager was appointed in May 2025 but left shortly afterwards. The deputy manager has recently been appointed to take on the role of manager. They have yet to submit an application for registration. In the interim, the responsible individual has increased the frequency of their visits to provide management oversight.

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Findings from the inspection

The home has sufficient staff to meet the children’s needs. Staff complete the organisation’s mandatory training as well as additional training to help them understand the children’s specific needs. Most staff are either qualified to or working towards the relevant level 3 qualification within the timescales. However, one staff member has exceeded the deadline for completing the level 3 qualification.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff benefit from team meetings focused on children’s needs and clinical supervision. However, due to leadership changes, staff have not consistently received regular supervision. Lack of supervision means that staff may potentially not have the support they need to perform their roles effectively.

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Findings from the inspection

Leaders seek to learn from incidents and gather feedback from other professionals. They use this learning to prevent recurrence.

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Findings from the inspection

Leaders have met four requirements and three recommendations from the last inspection. Two requirements have been restated. One requirement in relation to safeguarding has not been met. One requirement in respect of the quality of care review report has been restated because no new report is yet due. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2671486 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/04/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 24/04/2024 Full Good 28/06/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 31/01/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2671486 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. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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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;

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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)(a)(v)(b)) 9 October 2025

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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

employ an individual to work at the children’s home;

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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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 9 December 2025 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2671486 6 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; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a) (3)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff obtain the relevant qualification within the specified time frames.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 9 October 2025 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2671486 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Oak House Children’s Home Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: A B C Care Solutions, 249 Cranbrook Road, Ilford IG1 4TG

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Inspector

Priscilla Koroka, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2671486 8 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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