Ofsted Reports Improvements in North Northamptonshire Children’s Service

Inspectors have indicated that a children’s care service within a specific borough, which had previously faced difficulties, has shown improvement. Ofsted conducted an inspection of North Northamptonshire’s children’s services in early October, focusing on the provisions for individuals leaving care between the ages of 18 and 25. Northamptonshire Children’s Trust (NCT) is responsible for delivering this service, and it received a rating of “requires improvement to be good” in 2022. According to Ofsted inspectors, the service provided to young people transitioning out of the trust’s care demonstrated “significantly improved” performance, although further efforts are still necessary. The inspectors assessed the support and preparation offered to young individuals as they moved into adulthood, alongside the service’s capacity to maintain contact with them. The assistance provided by the service to former unaccompanied asylum-seeking children was also part of the review. The inspectors’ report highlighted that children engaged with personal advisers “well in advance of their 18th birthday,” fostering “meaningful relationships” that endured for years before their departure from the care system. Nevertheless, a limited number of children were identified as having exited the service at a point when “further work with them was still required or should have been offered.” The report indicated that measures have been implemented to prevent such occurrences in the future. It was stated in the report that support was “provided according to need, resulting in most young people making good progress towards independence.” A significant number of these young individuals subsequently managed their own living tenancies successfully. However, the process of securing permanent accommodation for care leavers was “hampered by the poor communication and relations between the house department and care leaving service.” An additional concern pertained to the care leavers hub located in Northampton. Although numerous young people informed inspectors that it offered them a secure environment, some faced considerable travel distances to reach it. Nevertheless, leaders have obtained funding to establish a hub in Kettering, Northamptonshire, with the report noting plans for it to become operational within a year. Inspectors also voiced some concerns regarding former unaccompanied asylum-seeking children who had discontinued their available educational courses, potentially affecting their future employment prospects. Julian Wooster, who chairs NCT, expressed that it was “heartening” to learn that young people utilizing the service felt supported by its staff. He further stated that through collaboration with the council, the trust would be in a position to “take forward and implement” Ofsted’s recommendations to ensure the “best possible outcome” for service users. Scott Edwards, North Northamptonshire Council’s executive member for children, families, education and skills, acknowledged that the council recognized “still work to be done” and had incorporated the inspectors’ feedback. He also mentioned that the council would supply bus passes for individuals commuting to the Northampton hub. For updates on Northamptonshire news, follow BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content of external websites. Information regarding our external linking policy is available.