children social care

Supported Accommodation For 16 And 17 Year Olds And The Requirement To Register With Ofsted

As of 28 October 2023, providers in England wishing to provide supported accommodation for looked-after children and care leavers aged 16 and 17 years of age (“Care Leavers”) are required to register with Ofsted and become subject to inspection, and regulation, in connection with Ofsted’s new quality standards. As Ofsted registration is a new requirement …

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Concerns over damaging impact of staff shortages on children’s social care

On 27 July 2022 Ofsted published a report entitled ‘Children’s social care 2022: recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic’ (“The Report”). The report investigates the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to children’s social care, using focus groups, inspections, and interviews with inspectors to aid the investigation. The report concluded that the pandemic has …

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Local Authorities pay up to £1m per child in private children’s homes

On 19 April 2022 The Guardian published an article revealing that some local authorities are paying substantial costs for children to be placed in a privately run children’s care home.  Private providers have defended these figures, citing the rising cost of living alongside high staffing levels needed for complex children as justification for the costs. …

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Reintroducing Joint Targeted Area Inspections – What Providers Need to Know

The Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (“Ofsted”), the Care Quality Commission (“CQC”) and HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (“HMICFRS”) announced on 28 March 2022 that they will restart their joint targeted area inspections (“JTAI”) programme. Programme JTAIs are carried out under S.20 of the Children Act 2004 …

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If Ofsted cancelled your registration would you know what to do?

Many of the children’s home providers we advise at Ridouts are exasperated by the sheer speed at which concerns expressed by Ofsted can escalate into serious enforcement action. Regulatory concerns may start with relatively straightforward recommendations for improvement but quickly escalate to compliance actions and, in the most severe of circumstances, cancellation of registration. It …

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Ofsted backtracks and withdraws ‘intrusive’ guidance for childminders

Ofsted has withdrawn guidance which has suggested childminders should notify the watchdog if they have depression or have been bereaved following criticism that the requirement would be ‘intrusive’. The guidance, originally published on Wednesday, called for Ofsted-registered childminders, nannies or day-care providers to report “any significant events” that might affect their “suitably” to look after …

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Ofsted Accelerating Plan to Inspect Schools in England Sparking Fury

Headteachers among the country have strongly criticised the policy of ensuring all schools are inspected by the summer of 2025. Ofcom’s plan to accelerate inspections have been condemned by teaching unions, which have highlighted the extraordinary pressure schools are currently still under due to Covid. Headteachers have reacted with fury and disbelief to government plans, …

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Half of Ofsted’s 4,000 ‘Outstanding’ Schools Expected to be Stripped of Grade Following Imminent Inspection Overhaul

Amanda Spielman, the chief inspector of education expects the number of ‘outstanding’ schools to ‘fall from 4,133, to roughly 2,000’ following a new inspection regime which is set to overhaul education standards. The Ofsted chief said she wouldn’t be ‘surprised’ if half of schools that were once inspected and graded outstanding fail to achieve this …

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Childcare providers must notify Ofsted of significant events online

From 28 January 2021, Ofsted-registered childminders, nannies, nurseries and all other childcare providers must use an online notification form to inform Ofsted about significant events. Providers should no longer notify Ofsted by phone or email and should instead use the online notification form to notify Ofsted of significant events.  Significant events  Childcare providers should notify …

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