Published on Wednesday 29 January 2025
Children’s Services at Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council have been rated as ‘good’ by government inspectors.
The Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted) carried out their inspection into BCP Council’s Children’s Services in December last year.
During the visit inspectors looked at the whole journey a child might take with Children’s Services and the role of council leaders in supporting children’s services.
The inspection found a ‘positively transformed service, unrecognisable from that found at the last ILAC inspection in 2021.’
Cllr Millie Earl, Leader of BCP Council, said: “Improving our Children’s Services has been and remains an overriding priority for the whole council.
“Despite the significant and ongoing pressures placed upon local government finance, we have consistently invested in improving our services for the benefit of local children and young people.”
Cathi Hadley, Director of Children’s Services, said: “Keeping children safe and supported is the absolute goal of our Children’s Services department.
“We are extremely proud and delighted that Ofsted have recognised our hard work and determination to deliver a good service for the children of BCP.
“This ‘good’ rating is the culmination of a huge ongoing effort from everyone involved in delivering better Children’s Services, from social workers, support staff, politicians, parents and carers.
“In particular, it was really pleasing that Ofsted found that our social workers are now very positive about working for BCP Council and that significant progress had been made in improving the services to better help, protect and care for their most vulnerable children since the last inspection.
“But there is no room for complacency - this rating marks the next step on our journey and serves as a baseline for the consistent, high-quality care and support that we are determined to deliver for children across BCP who need our help.”
Following an ‘inadequate’ rating in December 2021 Ofsted inspectors carried out six monitoring visits looking at all aspects of BCP Council’s Children’s Services Social Care provision. These visits evidenced ongoing progress and improvements across Children’s Social Care.
The monitoring visits concluded with an Ofsted Inspection of Local Authority Children’s Services (ILACS) which took place between 2 -13 December 2024.
The outcome of that inspection was that Ofsted have rated BCP Children’s Services as ‘good’.
In particular, the report focussed on:
- The impact of leaders on social work practice with children and families
- The experiences and progress of children who need help and protection
- The experiences and progress of children in care
- The experiences and progress of care leavers
All the above sub judgments were rated ‘good’ bar the experiences and progress of care leavers which was rated ‘Requires improvement to be good’. But, inspectors did still record many positives in this area.
The overall effectiveness of the service was rated ‘good’.
Inspectors found that since the last inspection:
- Significant progress had been made in improving the services to better help, protect and care for their most vulnerable children since the last inspection
- Social workers are very positive about working for BCP
- Children in BCP receive good help and protection when needed, with significant improvements in social work since the last inspection
- Young carers receive exceptional support from a dedicated service
Cllr Richard Burton, Portfolio Holder for Children's Services, said: “Today’s Ofsted rating of good represents a real milestone in BCP Council’s progress towards delivering consistent high quality Children’s Services.
“We are now delivering a good level of help and support that the children of BCP need and deserve - achieving this has been our absolute priority.
“It has been hugely rewarding to see the dedication, passion and sheer hard work of all those involved in Children’s Services in getting us to where we are today, and I would like to thank all those who have helped drive and deliver this improvement.
“BCP Council’s Children’s Services have come a long way since the previous Ofsted rating and made real and tangible progress to support the people who need our help most.
“There is still work to be done but everyone at the council is united in our aim of continuing this good work into the future.”
John Coughlan CBE, the Government’s Improvement Adviser for BCP Council, said: “I am delighted on behalf of BCP Council for this exceptional outcome. In my experience it is very unusual for authorities which have been in intervention to receive such a strong inspection result at this stage.
“The Council’s leadership, including Cathi Hadley and her team, should be very proud because they have worked hard for this achievement. It is very good news for the vulnerable children of the area.
“It is now vital that the whole council and its partners continue to work together to build upon this success and especially to ensure they are never allowed to deteriorate again.”
The letter summarising the findings of the inspection will be published on Ofsted’s website.