Children in Rochdale home not protected or monitored, Ofsted says

Staff acknowledged they were struggling to have a positive influence on the children

A children's home failed to protect young people at risk of sexual exploitation or "effectively monitor" their whereabouts, inspectors have found.

Ofsted has rated the council-run home in Rochdale, Greater Manchester as inadequate.

The home, which cannot be named, had previously been ordered to improve following an inspection in February.

The council said "decisive action" has been taken.

The Ofsted report detailed "serious failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded", the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Based on a two-day visit in June, the report said the care and experiences of children and young people were "poor" and they were "not found to be making progress".

Among the most serious findings was that staff had "not addressed the risks to children who are at risk of child sexual exploitation".

'At a loss'

Arrangements at night to reduce risks to children were also described as "weak".

Officials found no evidence of any plans showing staff were working with children to reduce their involvement in criminality and exploitation.

The report said: "Staff do not have measures in place to assure themselves of children's whereabouts, including when they are at risk of being criminally exploited."

Since the home was last inspected, there have also been a significant number of incidents of children going missing, it added.

The manager and staff acknowledged they were "at a loss" to positively influence the children or counteract the negative role models they identified with.

"Beyond phone calls or texts to children, staff do not have a system for assuring themselves that children are safe," the report notes.

Leadership at the home was also criticised. Inspectors noted that "the manager does not inspire or lead a culture in the home that ensures that staff are effective in their work".

The manager was also found to have "not robustly responded to an incident of children being in each other's rooms overnight".

A Rochdale Council spokesman said: "We are extremely disappointed with this inspection, the service was not good enough.

"Swift and decisive action has already been taken."

Ofsted has told the LDRS that an updated report would be published "at some point next week" but would not change the overall rating.

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