Council-run children's home is rated 'inadequate' by Ofsted

It said the child could have come to harm and it was not raised as a serious event.

Ofsted inspected the home, which is not named but provides care for up to six children who have a range of social and/or emotional difficulties, at the end of June and rated it ‘inadequate’ in all areas.

The report said there were “serious and/or widespread failures that mean children are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded”.

Bradford City Hall. Picture: William D Oliver/T&A Camera Club (Image: William D Oliver/T&A Camera Club)

A report which followed an inspection in August last year said the home ‘required improvement to be good’.

But an interim inspection, carried out in March this year, found the home had “declined in effectiveness”.

A report said there had been no registered manager in the day-to-day running of the home since June 2021 which had led to a period of instability.

At the time of the last inspection, there was no registered manager. The report said there was an acting manager in post who was not yet registered with Ofsted.

Only one child was living at the home at the time of the inspection.

The report said: “There are failures in the safeguarding practices of staff, resulting in children not always making progress while living at this home.

“Staff do not consistently offer an effective level of care that the children need to help them feel safe and secure.

“There is only one child living in the home but other children, whose progress has been affected, have only recently moved to other services, or returned home.

“Staff have not had specialist guidance and support to enable them to understand the specific needs of one child. This means that they were unable to help to develop the child’s resilience, therefore preventing progress in their emotional wellbeing.”

The report said staff had “failed in their duty to safeguard a child because they did not complete welfare checks through the night”.

The report added: “Staff were unaware that a child had left the home during the night but recorded that the child was asleep in bed.

“Staff did not discover until late the following day that the child was missing. This significant failure could have resulted in harm to the child.”

The report added: “Staff and management did not notify this as a serious event to Ofsted.

“This prevented Ofsted from ensuring that management oversight of the incident had taken place to prevent harm to a child.

“Staff did not consistently follow the missing-from-home protocol for a child who was at significant risk.”

Ofsted said the team’s safeguarding practice lacked “curiosity and concern when warning signs of exploitation are part of a child’s behaviour”.

The report said: “This does not help to keep children safe.”

Training records were said to be disorganised and Ofsted said it was unclear whether staff had completed important learning to meet the needs of children, like training in preventing the exploitation of children and internet safety.

Marium Haque, Strategic Director for Children’s Services, said: “We accept Ofsted’s findings.

“The safeguarding incident referred to by inspectors should not have happened. As soon as it came to light, action was taken and Ofsted recognise the efforts of the new acting manager to swiftly  make the necessary changes.

“I am pleased that the report acknowledges the staff’s commitment to the children and young people, commenting that they provide ‘emotional warmth’. The young people who currently live at the home report that they feel well supported and safe.  We are continuing to rapidly improve the quality of the care in the home as we address all the issues raised.

“The children in our care deserve the very best and we are determined to make sure that all our children’s homes provide the best care for the children and young people who need them.”

Another Council-run home, also inspected in June, was judged to be ‘good’ and Ofsted said it provided “effective services”.

A major shake up of children’s homes in Bradford was approved by Council bosses in June.

Some homes, described as “institutions” rather than welcoming places for children in care, will close and the focus will now be on smaller homes.

Among the changes proposed by Bradford Council is the closure of the Valley View and Meadowlea sites, which will be replaced by two three-bed specialist residential homes for children aged eight to 11.

Proposals to build a new, large children’s home on Fell Lane will be scrapped due to “the scale and nature of the proposed project no longer being consistent with the service’s strategic needs.”

Other changes proposed include a potential new build project “aimed at increasing short term break capacity for disabled children and in particular those with complex needs associated with neuro-diversity developmental issues” and that the Council develops smaller group homes.

Marium Haque, Strategic Director for Children’s Services, said: “We accept Ofsted’s findings.

“The safeguarding incident referred to by inspectors should not have happened. As soon as it came to light, action was taken and Ofsted recognise the efforts of the new acting manager to swiftly make the necessary changes.

“I am pleased that the report acknowledges the staff’s commitment to the children and young people, commenting that they provide ‘emotional warmth’.

"The young people who currently live at the home report that they feel well supported and safe. We are continuing to rapidly improve the quality of the care in the home as we address all the issues raised.

“The children in our care deserve the very best and we are determined to make sure that all our children’s homes provide the best care for the children and young people who need them.”