Havering Council set to boost Ofsted rating

Havering Council’s Children’s Services is seeking to boost its Ofsted rating and has outlined plans to make improvements to the services it delivers.

At this week’s Cabinet meeting, the Council agreed to invest an extra £750,000 in an ambitious improvement programme to be delivered over a two-year period.

It will tackle the recommendations made by Ofsted in June 2018, following an inspection earlier in the year.

Councillor Robert Benham, Havering’s Cabinet Member for Education, Children and Families, said:

“We were pleased with the outcome of the Ofsted report, but recognised that there is room for improvement and a robust plan of action will help us to boost our rating and ensure we deliver the best service to those who most need it.”

In the report, Ofsted said the determination of leaders in Havering to strive for improvement and their willingness to learn had been ‘pivotal in driving service improvements’. Inspectors also found that ‘social workers were tenacious in the work that they do with children.’

The Cocoon, the care leavers hub launched in October 2017 to provide support services such as education, health and housing for young people, was described as ‘highly impressive’. 

In October 2018, the service was visited by Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector Amanda Spielman, who said she was keen to see it after inspectors said how impressed they were with the service.

Overall, Ofsted inspectors recorded the following.

• Impact of leaders on social work practice with children and families – good
• Experiences and progress of children who need help and protection – requires improvement
• Experiences and progress of children in care and care leavers – good

The improvement plan will focus on seven key areas including the transition from care to adulthood, risk assessments and support for children returning home from care and adolescent safeguarding.