Children's home run by Gracewells Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 1 Registered provider: Gracewells Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted in October 2019 and is privately operated. It provides care for up to four children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

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

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Information about this children’s home

The manager is not yet registered with Ofsted.

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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

Date of last inspection: 21 January 2025

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/01/2025 Full Good 14/11/2023 Full Outstanding 22/11/2022 Full Good 07/09/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are gentle in their approach to supporting children. This helps children manage their feelings safely. Staff regularly reflect on their practice and adjust their methods to ensure that they provide effective, safe care for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and staff invest time in developing trusting, nurturing relationships with each child, enabling them to offer meaningful support. There is a focus for staff on understanding children’s individual experiences and the specific risks they face. For one child at the home, staff has worked hard to develop their understanding of types of communication and how their previous experiences can affect their behaviour.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has a welcoming feel, having had extensive renovations throughout. At the time of the inspection, building work was still ongoing. Each room has been repainted, a new kitchen has been installed, and new carpets have been fitted throughout. Two bedrooms now also have ensuite bathrooms, allowing for more bathroom availability upstairs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s individual health needs are known by the staff team, and the child is supported to attend health appointments with their GP and specialist health professionals, such as the child and adolescent mental health team and the looked-after children’s nursing team. Staff engage with the child to encourage a healthy lifestyle, including improving sleep routines and eating healthily.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is promoted in a way that prioritises the child’s emotional well-being, ensuring that they are not overwhelmed. Staff maintain a careful balance, encouraging consistent engagement in learning while being mindful of the child’s needs. Staff have high aspirations for the children and actively support their success. Children engage in activities that are interesting, with an educational purpose, as well as supportive one-to- one tuition. A school professional commented that after only one week at the home, a child’s focus and attitude to learning had significantly improved, attributing this to the support he was receiving at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff prepare children for moving on from the home in the best possible way, taking into account their unique circumstances. They assist children by developing their independence and social skills and support their transition to their new homes. A child who has recently left maintains contact with staff and another child who continues to live in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children new to the home are welcomed sensitively. Before children move in, an assessment is carried out to consider the children’s needs alongside the other children living there and the skills of the staff team. Parents and professionals, including those from school and health and specialist support services, are involved in this process. Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 4

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

Positive behaviour is consistently promoted. Negative consequences are rarely used, and rewards are chosen by the children. The limited use of negative consequences aims to help regulate children’s behaviour. Managers track and monitor children’s behaviour using a therapeutic model, and the company recently employed a psychotherapist. Staff consistently work together as a team to maintain clear boundaries and routines while addressing negative behaviours.

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

Incidents of staff physically holding children are rare. When incidents occur, staff manage them well. Methods used are proportionate and only last as long as necessary. Staff are appropriately trained, and all incidents are recorded, reviewed and monitored by the manager. The views of the child are sought afterwards and are documented; however, they lack full details of the child’s opinions and are not recorded in a child-friendly manner.

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

Staff have a clear understanding of the risks and vulnerabilities of the children at the home and how to manage and support them. Risk assessments and behaviour support plans are clear and easy to understand. They provide a detailed summary of the risks, triggers related to the behaviours, as well as the appropriate actions staff should take in response. These plans are updated regularly and reviewed whenever there are changes in children’s risks or behaviours.

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

Room searches have not always been carried out. Since the last inspection, there has been a lack of oversight in incident management. When a serious incident occurred at the home, Ofsted was not informed, and staff reflection has not been recorded in relation to this matter. A recent fire-setting incident did not prompt a search of the child’s bedroom. This matter was not discussed in the staff member’s supervision session or brought up at a team meeting for wider learning.

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

Changes to the management and staffing of the home have affected a child living there. This has led to an increase in negative behaviour. However, new staff have provided consistent care in line with the child’s plans. As a result, the child says they now feel safe and are happy living at the home. One child said it is the best home they have ever had.

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

Recruitment of new staff is safe. The manager and the provider are confident that the staff are suitable to work with children. The home does not use agency staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A new manager has been appointed. The monitoring and oversight of incidents has improved. Documents are more detailed in content, often using theory to inform practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and suitably qualified. The manager provides strong and effective leadership, fostering a culture of positivity and aspiration across the staff team. Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 5 Staff are nurturing, child focused and enthusiastic. The staff speak highly of the manager and say they feel supported in their work. Staff spoken to said that the home now feels more ‘homely’ and there is more support from the manager to think creatively for the best outcomes of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Some of the children’s discussions are not documented in a child-friendly manner; however, the new manager has already identified this area of weakness among staff and has taken decisive and effective action, including staff training on effective incident recording. Staff say they now feel supported in their decision-making.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

When new children move into the home, the manager chases up important paperwork and documents that enable him and staff to provide the best care to the children. At the time of this inspection, one child had only been in the home for one week; however, the manager had taken swift action to obtain documents relating to their education, healthcare and local authority care plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular, practice-related supervision. This provides opportunities for them to reflect on their practice and receive additional support if required. Staff receive inspiring yet adaptable support to deliver care to the children, and the staff say they feel valued and supported.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff regularly attend team meetings, which provide them with opportunities to engage in detailed discussions about the children and reflect on their care. Research and development, including managing communication with children, attachment theory, and physical interventions, now underpin meetings. This helps staff identify how to best support children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff come from a range of diverse professional backgrounds and have varying experiences, which enhances the overall experience for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 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

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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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

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(j)(iii)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered provider must ensure that children do not have access to areas in the home used to store items that could be unsafe for them.

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Requirement Due date

Additionally, the registered provider must ensure that room searches take place when necessary. 5 December 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

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

promotes their welfare. 5 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered provider must ensure that there are effective systems in place for the oversight and monitoring of the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

A notification made under this regulation—

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Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter;

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Requirement Due date

must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(e) (5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement has been restated. 5 December 2025

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Discussions with children should include accurate and up-to-date information and be recorded in the child’s voice. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 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: 2545733 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Gracewells Care Limited

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Inspector

Nicola Jeffery, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 10 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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