Bradford children's homes downgraded by Ofsted
Getty ImagesThe state of council-run children's homes in Bradford is "beyond shameful", according to one councillor in the city.
The comments were made as elected officials considered a report about why Ofsted recently rated three of the city's homes as "inadequate".
The education watchdog had raised concerns about staffing and sickness levels.
Urgent action was being taken to address the issues, said the council.
Independent councillor Talat Sajawal told the council's children's services scrutiny committee meeting he was "overwhelmed" by the state of the city's homes.
"It is beyond belief that as a council we can't safeguard our children. It is beyond shameful."
Ofsted, the education watchdog, has inspected seven of Bradford Council's homes since June.
It found three to be "inadequate", a fourth to "require improvement" and the remaining three retained their "good" rating.
Inspectors raised concerns over the resignation of senior managers, the number of staff on long-term sickness and a high reliance on agency staff.
They also pointed to the poor physical state of some of the homes.
The inspections were followed by a variety of suspensions and warning notices being issued, with affected homes temporarily banned from taking in new children.
Homes downgraded by Ofsted
Getty ImagesSince June 2021 Ofsted have downgraded four of Bradford's children's homes:
- Valley View was rated "inadequate" from previously being classed as "requires improvement" - Ofsted issued a suspension of registration and a compliance notice
- Owlthorpe rated "inadequate" and had previously been rated as "good" - a suspension of registration and compliance notice issued
- The Willows was downgraded from "good" to "inadequate - a compliance notice was issued
- Wedgewood rated as "requires improvement" and had previously been rated as "good"
Bradford Council's deputy director for education, Marium Haque, said urgent action had begun, including the appointment of an external organisation to review the quality of provision and identify improvements.
"This report details the urgent action we are taking to make sure that the improvements we all want to see are put in place and that this happens quickly," she said.
"This includes building improvements to the homes as well as making sure that our processes are robust and the right staffing is in place."
Bradford's entire children's services department was judged "inadequate" in 2018 and the authority is three years into an improvement plan.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service said Liberal Democrat councillor Brendan Stubbs told the meeting: "Our job is to care for these children, and we are failing them spectacularly."
Bradford's Labour portfolio holder for children and families, Sue Duffy, said she had asked officers "to implement, at pace, clear plans for improvement".
"The children in our care have often been through such a lot before they come into care, they deserve the very best from us," she added.
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