Cheshire East children's services rated 'requires improvement'

Cheshire East Council was previously criticised for leaving some children at risk of harm

Children's services in Cheshire have been ordered to improve again, seven years after young people were found to be at "increased risk of harm".

Ofsted said Cheshire East Council had made "significant progress" since its child protection arrangements were rated inadequate in 2013.

But a new report found "avoidable delays" remained, while some help was still "inappropriate".

The services have been rated "requires improvement".

The council previously received the same rating in 2015, two years after it was rated inadequate.

Mark Palethorpe, the council's executive director of people, said he was "proud of the progress we have made" in the interceding years.

But he conceded: "We must continue to make further improvements to achieve the rating of 'good'."

The council said it was "proud" of improvements made since 2013

A 2013 inspection found some allegations of children being at risk of harm were not thoroughly investigated.

The most recent report, from a 2019 inspection, found social workers were sometimes too slow to take children away from their families into care.

That meant "a few children remain in harmful situations longer than they should".

The report also said children experiencing long-term neglect, children who are privately fostered, and homeless 16 and 17-year-olds were not always receiving appropriate help.

Inspectors also found some older children leaving care were sometimes placed in emergency accommodation where they did not feel safe.

Council officials were told to improve the "quality and consistency" of the support they offer and the way they assess concerns.

Mr Palethorpe added: "Senior managers at the council are fully committed to building on our areas of good practice and bringing consistency across all service areas."