Children's home run by Care Givers Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2822623 1 Registered provider: Care Givers Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for one child with emotional and behavioural difficulties or learning disabilities. There is one child living in the home, who moved into the home in September 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

This is the home’s first inspection. The home registered in July 2025. The previous registered manager left shortly after the home registered. A new manager has been appointed and has applied to register 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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2822623 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are warm, caring and consistent. They have built a trusting relationship with the child. They understand the child’s needs well and respond to them with patience and care. Due to this support, the child has made positive progress in their behaviour and independence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home managed the child’s move into the home effectively. Staff worked closely with external professionals to prepare the child, despite the move being arranged at short notice. Familiar staff supported the child from the community into the home, which helped the child to feel safe and reassured.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work closely with the child’s family and other professionals. Staff contribute to clear care plans and actively encourage regular family contact. This collaborative way of working helps the child feel connected to the important people in their life and supports their emotional wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff place importance on the child’s education. They communicate regularly with the school to share progress and celebrate achievements. Consistent expectations between home and school help the child feel supported and more confident in their learning.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively support the child’s health and wellbeing. They work with the child’s parents to make sure health appointments are attended and encourage healthy daily routines. Staff also support the child to enjoy activities that they like, such as listening to music, going for walks and spending time in the community. This helps the child relax, build confidence and enjoy positive experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is safe and comfortable for the child. The bathroom has been renovated to meet the child’s needs. Safety measures are in place in the rest of the home to reduce risks. The home offers a sensory environment, including outdoor equipment, which supports the child’s sensory needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff make an effort to understand the child’s wishes and feelings, such as to interpret the child’s views through gestures and other expressive actions or reactions. Staff also include the child’s parent in decision making regularly. However, staff often rely on the parent to convey the child’s wishes, and efforts to understand and develop the child’s communication and their wishes or feelings lack coordination and consistency across the staff team. An absence of independent advocacy means the additional safeguards provided by such an approach are missing. Inspection report for children’s home: 2822623 3

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

The child is safe and well protected in the home. Professionals and family report that safeguarding arrangements are effective and concerns are responded to appropriately.

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

Staff understand the child’s behaviour well and respond calmly and consistently. The child has a detailed behaviour support plan that clearly explains triggers and sets out effective de-escalation strategies. Staff work closely with the positive behaviour support team and have taken part in workshops to strengthen their practice. As a result, staff respond confidently when the child is unsettled, providing clear routines and boundaries. This has helped the child feel calmer and make positive choices.

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

Staff manage behaviour without the use of restraint. There have been no recorded restraints, and staff use a range of distraction and redirection techniques to support the child. Although restraint is not part of the child’s care plan, all staff have completed relevant training and understand the procedures should it ever be required. This approach supports the child’s dignity and helps maintain trusting relationships.

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

The manager ensures that the home is safe and well organised. Fire risk assessments are up to date and any actions identified are addressed. Staff complete fire drills with the child so they know what to do in an emergency. Other health and safety checks take place regularly.

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

Staff take photos of minor bruises, which are common as part of the child’s movement needs. These are normally reported to the social worker and parent. However, on one occasion, this did not happen. Photos are not always accompanied by clear records, and some reports lack professional curiosity about how the bruise occurred or what actions were taken afterwards. This makes it harder to identify patterns or fully understand what may have happened.

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

The child has a care plan in place. The plan draws on information from other professionals but lacks good evaluation on how relevant this information is to the child. Targets have been included, but records do not show that staff evaluate whether they are suitable or evidence the support they provide the child to make progress towards these goals. As a result, it is not evident how staff are supporting the child to make progress towards suitable goals.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have provided stable leadership during a period of change. Since opening, the home has experienced a change in manager, and the current manager is in the process of registration. She has a good understanding of the home and is assisted by the deputy manager and the responsible individual.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager maintains oversight of staff practice and development. Staff receive regular supervision in line with the home’s statement of purpose. Supervision records Inspection report for children’s home: 2822623 4 show that the manager identifies gaps in staff knowledge and encourages relevant training linked to the child’s specific needs. Team meetings take place monthly and give staff space to reflect on practice, safeguarding matters and the child’s needs. This helps staff feel supported and improves the quality of care provided to the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers build positive relationships with parents and professionals. Parents and professionals describe open and respectful communication with staff and management. Staff provide regular updates and respond promptly to concerns. Parents value the support offered by staff, particularly during difficult periods. This strengthens trust and reassures the child that adults around them work together.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home benefits from a stable and committed staff team. The provider has not needed to use agency staff. This means the child receives care from familiar adults who understand their needs and routines. Recruitment records show that safer processes are followed, and new staff receive structured induction.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands the home’s strengths and areas of development. She welcomes constructive feedback and actively seeks learning opportunities. There is a culture of learning across leaders and staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders maintain positive professional relationships, and communication with professionals is generally good. However, several key documents were not in the child’s file, including the delegated authority agreement and placement planning meeting record. The manager has not escalated concerns when key documents were missing. This limits clarity about roles and responsibilities for the child and risks confusion in decision-making.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Record keeping shows strengths alongside clear development needs. Some reports, including weekly updates to the local authority and parents, are detailed and informative. However, other records lack sufficient details, and some do not clearly identify the author. This reduces the potential effectiveness of oversight and accountability. Inspection report for children’s home: 2822623 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

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; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, when a child is injured or bruised, the likely or possible causes must be evaluated and clearly recorded. 10 January 2026

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ‘seek to involve’ the placing authority that places a looked-after child in the home, which in practice means working primarily with their statutory social worker. In particular, the registered manager should ensure that children’s files have all key documents, including a placement plan and an in-date Inspection report for children’s home: 2822623 6 delegated authority/section 20. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 11, paragraph 2.5)  The registered person should ensure that the child’s plan forms the basis of their care, and providers should use their judgement as to what is relevant in each case, taking the plans listed in the definition in the Regulations as a starting point rather than a complete list or a tick-box exercise. In particular, the registered manager should ensure that all plans include clear, measurable goals with regular and

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Recommendations

effective evaluation of progress against targets. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 11.1)  The registered person should ensure that they do not automatically use the views of the parent as a proxy for the child’s views. Children will have their own perspective, and arrangements should be in place to engage with them directly. In some cases, the view of a relevant person, such as a social worker or IRO, might be included in discussions where the person is interpreting or advocating on behalf of a child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 24, paragraph 4.25)  The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. The registered manager should ensure that staff record information on

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Recommendations

individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 2822623 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Care Givers Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 11 1 George Williams, Colchester CO1 2JS

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Clementine Sanyaolu

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Inspectors

Daniel Rankin, Social Care Inspector Thembie Mzila, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2822623 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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