Councillors have welcomed the news that services provided to children and families by Rotherham Council have been rated as ‘good’ across the board by government inspectors in an Ofsted report.

The Ofsted inspection team visited Rotherham Council in late June, speaking to lots of local children, young people and families about their experiences, interviewing social workers, senior staff, councillors and partner organisations and scrutinising a raft of case files.

They graded Children and Young People’s services in four key areas and found:

• The impact of leaders on social work practice with children and families is GOOD.
• The experiences and progress of children who need help and protection is GOOD.
• The experiences and progress of children in care and care leavers is GOOD.
• Overall effectiveness is GOOD.

The last Ofsted inspection of Children’s Services in Rotherham was carried out in 2017 when it was rated good overall. The Council was subject to intervention at that time, with Government appointed Commissioners overseeing the running of the Council. That intervention ended in 2019 and this latest inspection is the most significant assessment of children’s services since then.

Inspectors said that “Children’s services are a clear priority for the Council”, that there was a “whole Council commitment to children and families in Rotherham” and that “a learning culture is set from the top”.

The report praised the way that social workers supported vulnerable children and kept them safe. It said: “The vast majority of social work practice supporting children in need, child protection and children in care seen during this inspection is of a good quality. All the children the inspectors met reported on the high-quality support they receive from their workers. Actively listening and responding to what children say are key components of the local authority’s success in helping vulnerable children to be safer and have better lives”.

Specifically in relation to child sexual exploitation, the inspectors found; “The Evolve team works proactively with children to reduce risks associated with sexual and criminal exploitation. The co-location of partner agencies means there is effective sharing of information. Exploitation assessments and plans are live documents that are drawn together with the child, their family and the multi-agency network. These are comprehensive and child-focused and ensure that the right safety plan is in place for children. Evolve workers use a range of tools and strategies to explore children’s understanding of issues such as consent, internet safety and the effect of substances in relation to exploitation. Relationship-based practice supports children to make progress in understanding exploitation, and risks subsequently reduce for children. Where children are not ready to openly share information, the Evolve workers are relentless in continuing to make themselves available and in using all the intelligence at their disposable to understand the child’s experiences. Regular multi-agency meetings take place in order for professionals to review intelligence and risk effectively. The impact of these processes is helping professionals to be informed, to map activity and networks, and to undertake disruption work. Management oversight is analytical and clear.”

A small number of areas for improvement were highlighted by inspectors, including more consideration of previous history and current circumstances when concerns are first raised about children and the quality of individual case audits to inform wider service learning. These issues are being addressed.

Councillor Chris Read, Leader of Rotherham Council said:

“The Ofsted report makes extremely positive reading for the Council, our staff and partners. It describes a service that is doing amazing work with local families on a daily basis. When I became Leader of the Council in 2015, we were a long way away from providing good children’s services. However, we have continued to make this a priority since our last inspection in 2017. After leaving intervention, we’ve sustained that progress and improved even further on our own two feet.”

Councillor Victoria Cusworth, Labour’s Cabinet Member for Children and Young People at the Council said:

“The inspection team carried out a forensic review into how the Council works with children. Their findings should offer further reassurance to local families about how our children’s services have been transformed for the better over the last few years and that our most vulnerable children are being kept safe and supported to have better lives.

“I’m proud of everything we’ve achieved and continue to achieve for our children, young people and families. But we won’t stop here. We will continue to work hard and aim for outstanding”.

The full report can be found here.