Children's Home run by Golden Care Estate Ltd in Barking and Dagenham

Inspection report children's home: 2765662 1 Registered provider: Golden Care Estate 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 privately owned children’s home provides care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties. This home was registered with Ofsted in September 2024. The manager registered with Ofsted at the same time, and is suitably qualified. Since the last inspection, 1 child has moved out, and at the time of the inspection 1 child was living at the home.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 2765662 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/06/2025 Full Good 20/01/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children's home: 2765662 3

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Summary of findings

The child within the home benefits from consistent individualised care from a staff team that understand their needs and preferences. Direct work and activities provide opportunities for the child to develop their learning, confidence and skills. The child has settled in well and has developed trusting relationships with staff, who reinforce appropriate boundaries and expectations, which help the child to feel safe. However, decision making and management monitoring are not consistently robust to ensure that identified issues are always addressed and reviewed promptly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child receives care that is tailored to their individual needs. Staff know the child well and understand their individual abilities, preferences and needs. Staff support routines with visual aids such as daily routine checklists, emotion toolkits and weekly planners. Staff are sensitive and consistent in their approach. The child appears comfortable in the presence of staff and is able to express their wishes, staff respond flexibly and appropriately. When children move out of the home, there is continued contact and support offered where appropriate, for instance with accompanying to appointments. This provides children with a sense of security and confidence in staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child living within the home is supported to enjoy positive experiences that align with their interests. Staff encourage the child to take part in a range of activities such as tennis, swimming and trampolining. The child is supported to develop their confidence and independence through everyday experiences such as maintaining personal hygiene and preparing meals. Staff provide appropriate encouragement and interact positively with the child. As a result the child is able to enjoy their time at the home and make some progress. When asked using a 5-point scale, the child scored 5 – that living at the home is great.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is a strong focus on education. Staff work with education professionals to ensure the child’s education needs are understood and addressed. Where suitable provision is not immediately available, staff take appropriate steps to move forward with this. Staff within the home have a clear focus on helping children achieve positive educational outcomes, with previous children moving on into further education. This demonstrates a strong commitment to improving children’s opportunities and prospects.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child within the home is supported to maintain important relationships. Staff promote and facilitate regular family time and recognise the importance of children maintaining significant relationships. Photographs of family and loved ones throughout the home also strengthen this. This contributes positively to the child’s emotional wellbeing, stability and sense of belonging. Inspection report children's home: 2765662 4 Keywork sessions are regular and responsive to individual ability and need. Staff adapt sessions to support learning. Engagement and understanding are monitored through established tools and approaches. These provide staff with clear information about the effectiveness of the methods used.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Care planning is generally effective, but communication and the timely escalation of concerns needs improvement. Suitability assessments are robust, and transition planning is well considered, with information gathered from multiple sources to inform children’s care and plans to move in. However, differing professional views about the home’s suitability once the child had moved in led to notice being served by the provider. Although this was later withdrawn, the decision was unexpected and disproportionate rather than focused on constructive discussion and joint planning. This creates uncertainty and undermines confidence in the long-term stability and suitability of the home.

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

The child’s behaviour is managed effectively, with incidents reducing as they settle into the home. Staff benefit from clinical advice and multi-agency support. This has strengthened their understanding of the child’s needs and informed consistent responses. Staff recognise triggers and respond appropriately to presenting behaviours. This helps the child to feel safe and settled.

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

Staff use appropriate strategies to support children when they are distressed. They understand the child’s individual triggers and use de-escalation techniques effectively. Staff do not use physical intervention and respond promptly when children require support. This promotes positive behaviour and reduces the need for restrictive responses.

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

The child within the home benefits from clear boundaries and consistent expectations. Staff provide clear guidance about acceptable behaviour and respond consistently when expectations are not met. Staff understand the child’s needs and adapt their approach appropriately. This consistency provides the child with reassurance, supports their understanding and helps them to develop greater emotional regulation.

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

Risk management arrangements are comprehensive and regularly reviewed. Risk assessments identify known and potential risks and set out clear strategies to reduce them. Staff have access to relevant information about the child’s needs including risk assessments for activities and community access. This provides staff with clear guidance and supports proportionate decision making.

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

Safeguarding practice is supported by accessible guidance and monitoring tools and external professionals report that they feel the child is safe within the home. Staff have access to refresher materials, an escalation process and behaviour monitoring records. These provide useful guidance and support staff to identify patterns and respond to emerging concerns quickly. Inspection report children's home: 2765662 5 However, some safeguarding arrangements are restrictive and limit the assessment of progress, and ongoing or perceived risk. For example, the front door remains locked as a security measure, and the child is supported by a 3:1 staffing ratio. In addition, staff did not have access to the legal documentation for a child previously placed at the home who was subject to a deprivation of liberty order. This meant staff could not be entirely assured that they were working in accordance with the order.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager provides good leadership and has high aspirations for staff. Most staff have completed the relevant qualifications and feel well supported. There is a good level of oversight, and the manager knows the child well. This provides a positive foundation for consistent and effective care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring systems provide a clear oversight of the child’s progress and wellbeing. These systems track progress, engagement and mood. They also support staff to identify changes in the child’s presentation and needs. This demonstrates a good understanding of the child’s individual needs and supports timely responses.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from good access to professional and clinical support which helps staff to understand the child’s behaviours and identify potential triggers. Team meetings are regular and are complemented by input from a clinical psychologist, who supports the teams understanding and will promote best practice based on the child’s needs. This also provides and opportunity for staff to triangulate and contextualise their experiences of supporting the child. This strengthens staff understanding and promotes more consistent responses to the child’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff supervision is regular, reflective and focused on the child’s needs and experiences. Staff are encouraged to think about their practice and consider how care can be strengthened. Debriefs are held following incidents and staff also have the opportunity to access 1-1 clinical input. This provides good support for staff and contributes to positively to practice. However, there are some areas that require strengthening such as improved tracking of actions and ensuring that the staff training matrix remains up to date and accurate. Inspection report children's home: 2765662 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, 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 care planning standard is that children receive effectively planned care in or through the children's home; and have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

that arrangements are in place to manage and review the placement of each child in the home;

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Requirement Due date

that each child's relevant plans are followed;

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Requirement Due date

that the child's placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child's relevant plans is requested, if the registered person considers that the child is at risk of harm or has concerns that the care provided for the child is inadequate to meet the child's needs;

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(ii)(c)(e)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular the registered person must ensure that there is timely and transparent communication with the placing authority where the child's needs indicate that the placement requires review. 21 September 2026

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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 helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h)) 21 September 2026 Inspection report children's home: 2765662 7 In particular the registered person must ensure that the staff training matrix is kept accurate and up to date.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that arrangements for locking the home's external door are necessary and proportionate to the identified risks, are regularly reviewed and allow children as much freedom of movement as possible. (Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 50, paragraph 9.62)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staffing arrangements are regularly reviewed against children's assessed and changing needs, with consideration given to reducing the level of staffing when this can be safely achieved (Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 54, paragraph 10.15)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all staff caring for a child subject to a deprivation of liberty order have access to and understand the order to ensure they are working in line with this order. (Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 50, paragraph 9.63)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that supervision records clearly identify actions agreed, timescales for completion and provide evidence that outstanding actions are reviewed and completed. (Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 61 paragraph 13.3)

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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 children's home: 2765662 8

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Golden Care Estate Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Broadway Chambers, 1 Cranbrook Road, Ilford, Essex IG1 4DU

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Inspector

Kay Barnett, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2765662 9 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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