Following a two week-long inspection in October, the report concludes that the council had successfully turned previous areas of weakness into areas of strength - thanks to an experienced and consistent leadership team who are focused on what children and young people need to succeed and celebrate the diversity and uniqueness of all children across the borough.
The council has improved and maintained progress in every area since the last inspection in 2020, with good support being provided to children and young people from the right people, when they need it, and timely responses to contact and referrals based on strong partnership working.
The council commissions Achieving for Children (AfC) to deliver its children’s services and Ofsted inspectors said that governance arrangements between the council and AfC continued to be effective.
Thorough plans are provided for children and young people that are easy to understand, provide clarity about what needs to change for a child to be safe and improve their outcomes, are owned by the family and also by the professional network.
Inspectors also praised the ‘wide range of high-quality community-based resources available to support families in need of early help’.
They said that the council has placed a strong focus on ensuring that Children in Care ‘live in safe, secure and caring homes in which they feel safe and thrive’ and that ‘services for Care Leavers, in particular, have been transformed with Care Leavers now receiving excellent support’ with the best possible help to progress into adulthood.
Care Leavers aged 18-25 years have an active say in how the council supports them and receive expert guidance from ‘tenacious’ and ‘ambitious’ Personal Advisors who help them to thrive when leaving care, entering work and starting families of their own. The council also helps Care Leavers to develop and drive their personal skills and understand the financial and practical help that is available to them as adults.
Inspectors said that practitioners undertake creative direct work with children. Children are visited regularly and develop trusting relationships with their social workers, who know them well. Staff fed back to inspectors that they are encouraged to develop and progress their skills, with a variety of training on offer to support this, and that ‘workers describe a highly visible senior leadership team and being part of an organisation in which they feel appreciated’.
Whilst inspectors also identified the need for more homes for Children in Care and improved oversight and consistency in the service that is provided to support children with disabilities, they noted that improvements were already underway in these areas. This will be assisted by the introduction of a new case management system that will help modernise day-to-day tasks and boost efficiency from early in 2025.
Cabinet Member for Children's Services and Education, Cllr Amy Tisi said: “These inspection outcomes are a fantastic reflection of the hard work that is being carried out every day by the Royal Borough and Achieving for Children to give children in our borough the best possible start to life and opportunities into adulthood.
“Our staff and elected members are committed to being good corporate parents and this report shows a significant turnaround in this service since the last inspection, with a powerful focus on increasing the support we provide to those children in our care and who are starting their lives as adults.”
| Judgement | Grade |
| The impact of leaders on social work practice with children and families | Good |
| The experiences and progress of children who need help and protection | Good |
| The experiences and progress of children in care | Good |
| The experiences and progress of care leavers | Outstanding |
| Overall effectiveness | Good |
