Children's home run by Capital Children’s Care Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2838720 1 Registered provider: Capital Children’s Care Ltd

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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. It is registered to provide care for up to 2 children with emotional and social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Two children were living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since April 2025. This is the home’s first inspection.

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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: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2838720 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Two children live in the home. Both children spoke with the inspector during the visit. The children shared that they feel happy and listened to by staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have built warm and trusting relationships with the children. They understand their routines, preferences and vulnerabilities. Staff plan activities based on the children’s interests, including shopping trips, visits with friends and community outings. This supports their confidence and sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is a clear priority. One child had not attended school consistently for several years before moving into the home. Staff worked closely with virtual school and found an appropriate school. The child’s attendance has greatly improved as they now attend regularly. The second child also attends school more consistently, despite travelling a considerable distance each day. Staff actively support transport arrangements to maintain this progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children maintain important family relationships. Staff facilitate family time and support children emotionally for seeing family. Parents reported noticeable improvements in their children’s emotional wellbeing and communication. One parent described their child as happier and more able to express their emotions. These changes demonstrate increased emotional stability.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Care plans are in place for both children, however, they do not consistently reflect the children’s views or demonstrate meaningful involvement in shaping their plans. In addition, some identified needs are not supported by clear and measurable targets. This limits children’s involvement in decisions about their lives and makes it difficult for the home to assess progress and the impact of its support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

An assessment was completed before one child moved into the home. However, it did not fully explore the child’s cultural needs or detail the staff training needs. This weakens the home’s ability to demonstrate that it was fully prepared to meet the child’s individual needs at the point of admission.

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

Children said they can identify trusted members of staff and feel able to raise concerns. Staff respond promptly when children are distressed. Risk assessments address known vulnerabilities and staff understand children’s risks. Staff know how to follow safeguarding procedures. Inspection report for children’s home: 2838720 3 There have been a high number of missing incidents for both children. Staff recognise the seriousness of this risk and work proactively with partner agencies to increase safety for children. They collaborate with relevant professionals, including the local authority, to develop plans aimed at reducing the missing-from-home episodes. When children go missing, staff act promptly and follow agreed procedures. On occasion, return home interviews have not been completed by the local authority, leaders have challenged this to ensure children receive appropriate follow-up support.

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

Staff use de-escalation techniques to reduce harm and provide reassurance during periods of heightened emotion. Increased staffing levels are clearly explained to children, so they understand the purpose of additional support. This helps children experience safeguarding measures as protective.

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

There has been one restraint in the home. This incident was not clearly identified and recorded as a restraint. Although leaders followed the restraint procedure and completed debriefs, the recording did not accurately reflect the nature of the intervention. This reduced clarity within the records. Staff have since completed restraint training, to ensure that future incidents are clearly identified and accurately recorded.

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

Leaders follow safeguarding procedures, when incidents occur and ensure relevant professionals are informed. In one incident, a child made an allegation against a staff member. The home shared this information with the child’s social worker, and they completed an internal investigation. However, a referral was not made to the local authority designated officer. The absence of a local authority designated officer referral reduced independent oversight and limited external scrutiny of how the allegation was managed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager provides stable and committed leadership. Staff describe the manager as approachable and supportive. Supervision is regular and covers staff wellbeing, children’s experiences and risks. This promotes consistent and reflective practice across the team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders maintain clear oversight of practice. They review incidents and provide direction to staff, when improvement is required. Team meetings reinforce expectations and promote accountability.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff morale is positive. Leaders invest in staff development and provide opportunities for learning and reflection. Clinical supervision supports reflection and also creates space for staff to manage the emotional demands of their roles. This contributes to a stable and confident workforce.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home’s statement of purpose has not been updated to reflect the current workforce structure. This limits transparency. In addition, some key local authority documents are Inspection report for children’s home: 2838720 4 not held in children’s files. The absence of these documents reduces the strength of partnership working. Inspection report for children’s home: 2838720 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure records of restraint must be kept and should enable the registered person and staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint, to identify effective practice and respond promptly where any issues or trends of concern emerge. The review should provide the opportunity for amending practice to ensure it meets the needs of each child. In particular, to ensure that all incidents involving physical intervention are clearly identified and recorded as restraints where appropriate (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59)  The registered person should ensure that the essential point is that a child’s plan should form 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

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Recommendations

particular, the registered manager should ensure that all plans include the voice of the child and clear, measurable goals with regular and effective evaluation of progress against targets. (‘Guide to Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55-56, paragraph 11.1)  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 placement plan and in date delegated authority/section 20. (‘Guide to Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 11, paragraph 2.5)  The registered person should ensure that the staffing structure and the experience and qualifications of staff are included in the statement of purpose. (‘Guide to the

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Recommendations

Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.5)  The registered person must ensure that when completing an assessment for children before they move in, the manager should take into account children’s cultural needs and ensure that the assessment identifies and addresses any staff training gaps. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4) Inspection report for children’s home: 2838720 6

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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: 2838720 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Capital Children’s Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 4 Pike Way, North Weald, Epping CM16 6BL

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Inspectors

Thembie Mzila, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2838720 8 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

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

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