Josie Gibson is never happier than when she’s surrounded by children. “They are good for your soul,” she says. “If I hadn’t had the career that I’ve had, and I had met the right man, I probably would have had about 10!“I would love to foster children, like Debbie [Bright] from TOWIE, one day. I look at her and think, ‘You are really, really special.’ She’s got a lot of love to give.”The same could be said of Josie, 41. The former I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! star is a beacon of positivity and clearly relishes being a mum to son Reggie, seven. But she’s brutally honest when discussing the challenges of juggling a busy work schedule with life as a single parent.‌“It’s so hard, solo parenting,” says Josie. “Juggling and doing it all, trying to hold down a career as well as being mum. I take my hat off to any parent anyway, but any solo parent – it’s the hardest thing in the world.”Josie admits she’s able to manage thanks to her support network, which includes Reggie’s dad, her ex-partner, property developer Terry James.“I’ve got a good family, so I’m very lucky,” she says. “I do get a bit of help from his dad now, and God bless childminders. I am very fortunate. I’ve got the same amazing group of friends that I’ve had since I was about 17. It’s probably why I’ve never needed therapy.”Josie is busier than ever, working on This Morning, being an ambassador for Iceland Foods and filming her own ITV renovation show... more on that later.‌She also gets parenting tips from her This Morning co-host and fellow solo parent Alison Hammond, 51. “Alison has helped me a lot,” Josie reveals. “Her son Aidan [21] is older now – he has a lovely soul. She’s been telling me all her stages throughout the years and I’m thinking, ‘Ooh, I’ve got all that to come.’”With her love of children, it’s no surprise that Josie is also an ambassador for TUI’s Small Adventures, which celebrates those little moments that help children grow in confidence. According to data commissioned by TUI and the UK’s first-ever Childhood Independence Index, more than four in 10 children say that being trusted by their parents makes them feel independent, while 36% associate independence with confidence.And it can be anything from buying something with their own pocket money to a sleepover. To celebrate those milestone moments, TUI has launched a My Holiday Firsts Passport, to mark everything from trying new foods to making new friends on holiday.It’s something that really resonated with Josie. “What we see as minor things in life are massive things to our kids,” she says. “Reg learnt to swim on our first holiday to Greece and I think when you travel with a child, it helps them grow, opens their minds and builds their confidence. I’m over the moon with how [Reg] has turned out.”‌Not that bringing up a child on her own has been all plain sailing. “You do get the mum guilt,” she says. “He’s had to be an independent little soul since he was young because I’ve worked and travelled a lot.“I used to feel a bit guilty, but now I’m so proud. He’s such a confident little boy. He has his own pocket money and he’s got a little girlfriend. He’s been with her since he was four.”Josie, who is the eldest of seven, can’t help but compare Reggie’s upbringing to her own. “My childhood was dysfunctional, but it has made me who I am,” says the star, who shot to fame after winning the 2010 series of Big Brother. “At one point, my mum and my auntie lived together and there were 17 or 18 of us.“The thing is, I’m on my own here with Reg and I’m used to people around and I don’t have that. I love nothing more than throwing a big kids’ party.”‌As to her parenting style, Josie says she’s definitely no “helicopter mum” or “tiger mum”.“I’m really laid-back,” she tells us. “I let Reg make his own decisions. If we are out having a meal or going for a buffet, he will go up and get his own food. If he doesn’t like it, I say, ‘That’s down to you Reg, that’s your meal.’ I give him the tools.”Talking of tools, Somerset-based Josie has been getting her hands dirty as part of her huge house renovation. It’s currently being filmed for her new seven-part series for ITV, Josie Gibson ’s Big Country Build, which sees her teaming up with her brothers, scrap metal traders Josh and Charlie, her builder cousin Tom and a cast of locals.“I’ve taken on a bit much really,” Josie confesses. “I may as well have knocked the thing down and started again. I’m not actually working out at the moment, I’m doing manual labour! The builders can’t believe it. I really graft. When I cut all the bushes back on the drive, I was sweating.”‌Earlier this year, Josie had liposuction surgery on her arms for lipoedema, having had similar surgery on her calves last September. “Experts say it’s where your body holds on to fat,” explains Josie. “You swell up a lot and you can’t really out-train it. If I had been out working all day, my legs would be like a balloon. I was always having to wear compression pants. And if I hadn’t got hold of it now, it would have got worse.”She says the surgery on her arms healed really well and she was back at work after two weeks. “I had to. If I don’t work, the bills don’t get paid,” she admits.‌“I hired this hyperbaric oxygen chamber, Oxydise. I rented it for £500 a month. It was pricey, but helped the healing because oxygen renews all the cells. I’d get in it for 90 minutes when I had time.”Josie tells us she has been given some “really good opportunities lately”, so we can’t help but wonder if she’s referring to those Strictly rumours. “I don’t know why everybody thinks I’m doing it,” she exclaims. “It would be brilliant for weight loss, but for me, trying to remember the steps, I think I’d really struggle. I would have to start the year before.”It seems Josie already has enough on her plate without Strictly’s notoriously punishing schedule adding to her load. “I’ve got to realise you cannot do it all,” she reasons. “You can only do what you can and I feel very fortunate. I pinch myself every day.”Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .