Council apologies over 'deteriorated' children's care services

East Riding of Yorkshire Council has apologised after its children's social care services was rated as inadequate.

Ofsted said the service had "deteriorated" since 2016 with children experiencing delays and remaining "in situations of risk".

Inspectors said shortfalls, including high caseloads and weak management, had led to a "drift and delay" system.

The authority said it was "a complex and highly sensitive area of work" and was committed to supporting children.

During a five-day inspection in December, inspectors found there was "weak management oversight" when it came to children needing help and protection.

They said services for disabled children, those in private fostering and children at risk of exploitation were "poor".

"Due to insufficient staffing, and weak management oversight, this system is not safeguarding children effectively," Ofsted said in its report.

"Inspectors found referrals were not looked at for several days, leaving children at unassessed risk and without timely interventions to help them."

It said "weaknesses" in the system had left children waiting "for too long" and safeguarding risks were "not always identified".

"Inspectors had serious concerns about the response to those highly vulnerable children who were at risk of child sexual exploitation," the report noted.

But it praised the authority for its work with children in care and care leavers, saying most "receive a good service that improves their life chances".

Caroline Lacey, the authority's chief executive, said she was "very disappointed" with the report, given the short inspection.

"We succeed in many areas however we apologise for any aspects of our work which haven't lived up to our aspirations for the services we want to provide."

She said the council was "determined to provide the best possible" service for children and young people, and it was working on making improvements.

"We had already identified and put plans in place for improvement before the inspection and we will now need to redouble our efforts to ensure these are delivered."

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