Children's home run by Gims Care Solution LTD

Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 1 Registered provider: Gims Care Solution Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is privately operated. It provides care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties or have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living at the home, who was spoken with.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2025.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

p.1

inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

inadequate

There are serious or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded.

p.1

inadequate

Date of last inspection: 18 December 2024

p.1

inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/12/2024 Full Good 19/04/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The home does not provide a nurturing or well-maintained environment. Repairs and decoration are delayed, giving the home a tired appearance and leaving the child feeling uncomfortable and embarrassed to invite friends to the house. This reduces the child’s sense of belonging and self-worth. Although the manager has raised maintenance issues, action to address them has not been effective.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff are not proactive in helping the child make progress. The staff have often needed prompts from professionals to initiate activities for the child. The child said, ‘It would be nice to have some games or books in the home.’ Staff have not developed consistent strategies to encourage the child’s engagement to reduce the likelihood of their exposure to risk situations. The child has gained some confidence and uses public transport independently.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff encourage the child to attend health appointments. The child is beginning to engage positively with professionals, including attending an upcoming optician appointment. However, education to help them understand how their choices may affect their future health and well-being is limited and not delivered in a meaningful or consistent way.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The child is engaged in education. They are enrolled on a course that matches their interests, following a significant period of disengagement. Staff are working with the education provider to make sure the child’s learning needs are understood. However, this work was not completed before their enrolment.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The child is preparing to move on from the home and is excited about their next steps. They felt involved in the process and understood their pathway to independence. The child said that staff are supporting them during this period of change.

p.3

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

The child said they have not always felt safe living at the home. They are unclear about the actions staff take to help keep them safe. Discussions following incidents are not always consistent or effective. However, the child recognises that staff’s approach to safeguarding them has improved over time.

p.3

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

Staff’s response when the child is missing from the home is not well coordinated. There is an unclear approach to recognising the child as missing, searching for them and reporting incidents to the police. Staff guidance for when the child has intermittent contact with staff or when the child stops sharing their location is unclear. During some of these incidents, the child came to harm. Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 4 Staff do not implement all conditions of the child’s deprivation of liberty order (DoL order) effectively. The child was able to leave the home and go missing on several occasions despite being supervised by two staff, and experienced harm as a result.

p.3

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

The manager supports least restrictive practice, but this has not always been in the best interests of the child. The manager advocated for the Dol order to be removed as he felt it was ineffective. However, the manager and staff did not use all aspects of the Dol order to help keep the child safe and staff practice was inconsistent. The DoL order has since been removed. Despite the safety plan in place, the staff response remains inconsistent when the child is away from the home.

p.4

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

Risk assessments do not always reflect the child’s needs. Information is sometimes duplicated or recorded in separate documents. This makes it for staff to find up to date information on strategies to help the child. Strategies to manage risk are not always reviewed after incidents to reduce the likelihood of them reoccurring.

p.4

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

The manager does not always review the use of consequences. Where consequences have been used to reduce the likelihood of repeat behaviour, there is no clear review or reason given as to why these have been removed. This has led to repeat incidents and further harm to the child. Consequences used at the home are proportionate, non- punitive and linked to helping the child stay safe.

p.4

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

The manager and staff respond to advice from external agencies and adapts practice when concerns are raised. However, this action is reactive and does not demonstrate a proactive approach to preventing risks before harm occurs.

p.4

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

The manager has not addressed concerns in a timely way, such as the premises and decoration of the home. They are not always effective in reviewing or escalating when safety practice does not meet the child’s needs, which limits professionals’ ability to provide effective guidance.

p.4

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

The manager’s oversight of the home is not always effective. Audit processes have not consistently identified gaps in practice, record-keeping and progress or captured feedback. This includes the quality-of-care report. The children’s guide is not helpful in supporting children moving into the home. The document uses overcomplicated language and has inappropriate images. On two occasions when shortfalls in staff practice have been recognised, the manager has addressed these in full.

p.4

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

Staff attend regular team meetings intended to promote reflection on practice. These discussions do not appear to result in meaningful change or inform reviews of incidents and consequences. Learning is not consistently shared or captured to improve the quality of support provided to the child. Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 5 The manager does not deliver support in line with the statement of purpose. It states that children will receive a therapeutic approach, but staff training, practice and documentation are not therapeutically informed. Professionals said the child would benefit from receiving emotional support from a specialist provision in line with the statement of purpose.

p.4

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

The manager can evidence the recent progress the child has begun to make. The culture and dynamics of the team have improved over the last year, which has led to a more consistent approach, which the child said has improved.

p.5

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

The manager has addressed previous recommendations and requirements from the last inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 6

p.5

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

p.6

Requirement Due date

*The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies (Regulation 12 (2)(a)(vi)(vii))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure staff have clear information and arrangements in place to follow when a child is at risk of harm.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person must ensure that all staff, including managers, must be able to demonstrate that they understand the child’s risk and what action they should take in response. This must include the use of deprivation of liberty order. 10 November 2025

p.6

Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

p.6

Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

p.6

Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 10 January 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 7 understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

p.7

Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home; (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a)(c)(i)(ii))

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that support to children is offered in line with the statement of purpose.

p.7

Requirement Due date

In addition, ensure that children’s privacy, dignity and comfort needs are maintained by ensuring that window coverings are in place and that the premises’ design and furnishings are maintained to a high standard in a timely way.

p.7

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—

p.7

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

p.7

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)(a) (h))

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that incidents and consequences are reviewed in full and any learning shared to improve the quality of care provided. 10 January 2026

p.7

Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 8

p.7

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them, by ensuring that conditions of any deprivation of liberty safeguards are consistently used to minimise all potential risks to children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

p.8

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: 2705299 9

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Gims Care Solution Limited

p.9

Children’s home details

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

p.9

Inspector

Vikki Thwaites, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2705299 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

p.9

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.10

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.10

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.10