A local council was told that it needed to improve the care it provided to homeless youth and children leaving homeless care.
Cheshire West and Chester Council was also reprimanded by Ofsted for still placing a small number of children in “illegal”, unregistered care homes.
The regulator also raised concerns about the authority’s inadequate planning in dealing with young people at risk of exploitation.
The Council expressed disappointment at the ruling, but said the report “recognizes a high level of positive practices.”
“Illegal accommodation”
In its first review of the council’s children’s services since 2019, Ofsted highlighted that too many missing children were not questioned on their return about where they had been and who they were with.
This makes it difficult to see how the Council can ensure that it effectively addresses the risk of exploitation, the report says.
The care of 16- and 17-year-olds who are at risk of becoming homeless is “inadequate”, the inspectors found.
They also said that services for children in care homes were generally good, although a “very small number of children were placed illegally in unregistered children’s homes”.
Last year, the BBC reported that at one point there were 370 unregistered care homes across the country, but most of them were eventually closed.
In 78 percent of cases, the young people were placed there because no regulated residential places were available at the time.
The then Conservative government promised £259 million to create additional childcare places.
“Robust plan”
Adam Langan, cabinet member for children and young people in Cheshire West and Chester, said the council was developing a “robust improvement plan”.
“It is clear from the report that there are some areas that need improvement. And the areas for development highlighted by the inspectors correspond to those that we suggested need to further strengthen during our preparatory meeting,” he said.
“Our outstanding teams will continue to work hard to deliver the best outcomes for our children, young people and families.”
Ofsted also said that the “over-optimism” of those in charge meant that improvement plans, while focused on the right areas, “lacked sufficient pace and impact”.
Adrian Waddelove, deputy leader of the Conservative group on the council, said the report was “worrying”.
“Ofsted’s report makes it clear that the council was overly optimistic about its own performance levels, meaning the improvements identified were not implemented quickly enough – unfortunately a familiar story,” he said.