Children's Home run by Halliwell Homes (Midlands Division) Limited in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 1 Registered provider: Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

The home provides care for up to 8 children who have social and emotional difficulties. The setting provides short-term care through a therapeutic parenting recovery programme, which is a time-limited intervention designed to address each child's individual needs. The programme is normally intended to last up to 2 years but may be extended in exceptional circumstances.

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Information about this children's home

The registered person registered with Ofsted in March 2026.

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Information about this children's home

Five children were living in the home at the time of the inspection and spoke with the inspector. No children have moved into or out of the home since the monitoring visit.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be 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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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 26 November 2025

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/11/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 11/02/2025 Full Outstanding 27/06/2023 Full Good 09/08/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 3

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Summary of findings

Children's experiences are not consistently good. The quality of care, leaders' use of monitoring to improve practice and the condition of the home environment require improvement. Children have warm relationships with staff who are committed to their care. They are making progress from their starting points, and professionals speak positively about the support they receive.

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improvement to be good

Children do not always receive care that consistently meets their individualised needs. Some children have remained in the programme for longer than planned. This has delayed planned moves and reduced opportunities for children to experience greater stability.

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improvement to be good

Children live in a home that is not consistently well maintained. Some areas require repair, and children's bedrooms are not consistently personalised. This does not always help children feel valued or proud of where they live.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to establish routines that enable them to engage positively in daily life. However, routines do not consistently reflect each child's age, stage of development and individual needs. Staff are reviewing these arrangements.

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improvement to be good

Children have warm relationships with staff. Children seek out staff for hugs and cuddles. Staff help children during difficult emotional events. Staff support children to spend time with their families. This helps children maintain important relationships and emotional connections.

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improvement to be good

The registered manager has advocated for external services to be delivered in the home, including child and adolescent mental health services and speech and language therapy. This has helped children access and engage with the support they need in a familiar environment, as they were not keen to attend appointments elsewhere.

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improvement to be good

One professional shared that one child has consistent care and boundaries and has been able to develop and maintain trust with adults. Their speech and language has improved, and they can self-regulate, which was evidenced by their observation of the child taking themselves away to calm down. In addition, the child is attending school, and the support in education is excellent. The child is now working towards their educational achievements after a period of non-engagement. Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 4

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improvement to be good

Children have experienced a high number of physical interventions. Staff use restraint when required, which is generally proportionate when viewed in isolation. However, staff do not always recognise the early signs of children becoming overwhelmed. This means opportunities for earlier intervention are missed, and situations sometimes escalate unnecessarily.

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improvement to be good

Staff have access to appropriate training that is specific to children’s needs. However, the registered manager does not consistently use learning opportunities from incidents to support staff to reduce recurrence. This limits possibilities to reduce incidents and improve children's experiences.

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improvement to be good

Staff have many allegations made against them by some children. This is often due to the use of restraint, which has impacted the stability and morale of the team. When allegations are made managers respond appropriately to concerns and follow appropriate safeguarding procedures. However, the lack of staff understanding of children’s triggers is not being fully explored to reduce restraint and in turn, some allegations.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand safeguarding procedures and recognise poor practice. Staff raise concerns when they see that children are not safe or at risk of harm. The registered manager responds appropriately and follows the required safeguarding procedures. They ensure that the staff team are appropriately recruited using safer recruitment processes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders do not use effective monitoring, audit and oversight systems to fully evaluate practice or drive improvement. This limits the identification and embedding of learning to reduce incidents and improve outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers recognise the safeguarding concerns within the home, including the high number of allegations against staff and the number of physical interventions. However, this has not translated into effective strategic action to reduce risk regarding how staff intervene and improve practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders are in the process of managing instability within the management team due to upcoming changes, with the registered manager and the manager, who is supporting in the absence of the responsible individual, due to leave. Leaders have begun a recruitment process. There is a plan to appoint experienced managers with expertise in delivering high standards of care to support the service during the transition period.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders are committed to ensuring that children's transitions from the home are well planned. Leaders are working with the responsible local authorities to support transitions Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 5 for children who have been in the programme for longer than planned. To support stability within the home, no new placements will take place during this time.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers know children well. They work with other agencies to try to ensure that the services and support children need is in place. Professionals for the children praise the team regarding their communication and engagement in meetings about the children. Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 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

Restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purpose of preventing—

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Requirement Due date

injury to any person (including the child);

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Requirement Due date

serious damage to the property of any person (including the child).

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate. (Regulation 20 (1)(a)(b) (2))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that incidents of physical restraint are subject to robust review to evaluate not only whether the intervention was proportionate but also the underlying and contributing factors that led to the incident. These reviews must identify whether earlier intervention, a greater understanding of children's individual needs, vulnerabilities and known triggers or alternative de-escalation strategies could have prevented the use of restraint. In addition, the registered person must ensure that learning from these reviews is shared with staff, embedded into practice and used to reduce the frequency of physical interventions. 14 August 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—

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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— 14 August 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 7 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

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home's workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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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)(c)(d)(e)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that effective systems are in place to monitor, evaluate and improve the quality of care provided to children. This includes learning from incidents, allegations and injuries is consistently identified and used to improve practice and reduce the likelihood of recurrence. In addition, the registered person must ensure that staff receive the guidance, support and development they need to meet children's individual needs and improve outcomes for children.

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children's home's overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children's needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(vii) 14 August 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 8 The registered person must ensure that the home is properly maintained and that identified issues are addressed in a timely manner. Children's personal spaces should be reviewed to ensure that they are appropriately maintained and personalised to support a sense of belonging.

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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: 2611027 9

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Pearce House, 80 Cawdor Street, Eccles M30 0QF

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Inspector

Reshma Kodampur, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2611027 10 regulates 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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