Children's Home run by Hazelmont Social Care LTD in Walsall

Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 1 Registered provider: Hazelmont Social 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 owned by a private company. It provides care for up to 3 children who may have social and emotional difficulties. Since the most recent monitoring visit to the home, one child has moved into the home, and one child has moved out of the home. At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living in the home. They both spoke with the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager post has been vacant since March 2025. The acting manager 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 requires improvement to be good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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good

Date of last inspection: 30 September 2025

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/09/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 11/02/2025 Full Good 27/02/2024 Full Good 08/03/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 3

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Summary of findings

This home has had a good inspection history until the last inspection in September 2025. It has been requires improvement to be good since this time. Inconsistent staff practice means that children have been put at risk of harm and their experiences within the home have been poor.

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Summary of findings

Leaders and managers have identified a culture of complacency within the home but have worked hard to address this. They have taken appropriate action, but it is too soon to conclude that this has resulted in sustained improvements to children’s experiences.

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Summary of findings

Despite these shortfalls, one child in the home is settled and is making good progress from their starting points.

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improvement to be good

Since the monitoring visit to the home in April 2026, there has been a significant incident arising from poor staff practice. This led to one child having to move from the home in an unplanned way, and for another child, it has undermined their trust in adults and their ability to form trusting relationships with staff. Despite this, one child living in the home is settled and is making progress. Professionals working with that child have described how the home has provided them with an important sense of continuity, familiarity and stability.

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improvement to be good

On one occasion, staff have missed an opportunity to challenge discrimination and support children to understand differing identities. When children have been unkind to one another, staff have not supported children to make amends. This has resulted in one child feeling targeted and unsupported.

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improvement to be good

Staff regularly have important conversations with children to help them be safer and healthier. They help children learn new ways to understand and manage their feelings. On one occasion, when supporting a child to better understand a sensitive area of safeguarding, staff did not consider the emotional impact of seeing some scenes contained within a documentary. This brought up unpleasant memories for the child and resulted in them feeling upset and anxious.

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improvement to be good

Despite these shortfalls, there are areas of positive practice. Children’s physical and mental health needs are well met. When needs arise, staff ensure that children receive the help they require promptly. Children attend school and are doing well in their education. The manager and staff work in partnership with children’s schools to ensure that any barriers to education are identified and addressed. Similarly, children Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 4 are well supported to develop the skills they will require in later life and are making progress in developing their independence.

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improvement to be good

Poor communication between staff, and staff not adhering to children’s plans, resulted in a significant safeguarding incident that negatively affected 2 children. Following that incident, leaders and managers took appropriate action, notifying the relevant professionals, suspending staff, completing an investigation and ensuring the child was supported. However, the child was not told that staff actions were being investigated. This has left them feeling let down and that staff failures have not been looked at or addressed.

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improvement to be good

For the most part, staff are supported in understanding children’s risks and in keeping them safe through detailed plans. However, a known risk to a child from the misuse of aerosols was not captured in a child’s plan and was not appropriately mitigated. A lack of supervision and staff vigilance resulted in a child having access to an aerosol and inhaling it. Fortunately, this has not resulted in any lasting impact for the child; however, this represents a near miss.

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improvement to be good

Despite these shortfalls, there are examples of proactive and appropriate safeguarding. Staff are skilled in supporting children to understand and manage their feelings. As a result, there have not been any incidents of children going missing from the home or of staff holding children to keep them or others safe.

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improvement to be good

Appropriate internet safety measures are in place, and phone checks have been used effectively to safeguard children from online risks. When a child has presented as under the influence of alcohol and cannabis, staff have consulted the relevant health professionals, ensured that the child is safe and well, involved specialist external agencies to provide support and have had important conversations to support them in making safer and informed choices.

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good

Leaders and managers acknowledge that there has been a culture of complacency in the home, which has resulted in serious incidents for children. While leaders and managers have taken prompt action to address this, it is too soon to conclude that those changes have resulted in sustained improvements to children’s experiences.

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good

Despite the shortfalls identified, staff enjoy working in the home and feel well supported. They describe the manager as supportive and available. Leaders and managers ensure that staff are supported through regular supervision and team meetings, which provide them with space to reflect on their own feelings, and the care children receive. Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 5 Staff turnover has been minimal because they enjoy working in the home. This means children have benefited from a known group of adults caring for them. This consistency is supporting children to form positive relationships and to feel settled and secure.

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good

Leaders and managers ensure that children are protected by robust safer recruitment practices and that staff have training relevant to children’s needs. This means children are cared for by staff that are knowledgeable. Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 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, 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 positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

strive to gain each child’s respect and trust;

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Requirement Due date

understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children;

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Requirement Due date

understand and communicate to children that bullying is unacceptable; and 30 September Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 7 have the skills to recognise incidents or indications of bullying and how to deal with them; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(viii)(ix)(xii)(xiii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person ensures that staff’s actions promote trusting relationships with children. That staff appropriately challenge incidents of discrimination in the home, and staff, when addressing sensitive or emotive topics, appropriately prepare children for those conversations or work.

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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

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)) 30 September Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 8 In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff follow children’s plans and take effective action to keep children safe.

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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—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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

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;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff understand their roles and responsibilities and work effectively as a team to safeguard children and promote their welfare. 30 September

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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: 2667768 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hazelmont Social Care LTD

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: West Midlands House, Gipsy Lane, Willenhall, West Midlands WV13 2HA

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Inspector

John Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2667768 10 and inspects 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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