Tameside children's services downgraded over 'serious failures'

Oftsed found Tameside Council's child services had deteriorated since 2019

Vulnerable children remain at risk of harm due to "serious failures" by a council's children's services, inspectors have found.

The services in Tameside have been rated inadequate in most areas following an Ofsted inspection.

It found poor planning and lack of oversight meant "too many children experience drift and delay".

Tameside Councillor Bill Fairfoull said the council accepted it must "do better", and that it would.

Mr Fairfoull, the cabinet's member for children's services, said "swift and decisive steps" had already been taken to address the problems.

The latest inspection report came after an MP called for the department to be taken out of council control in 2022, when Ofsted uncovered a "systemic delay" in dealing with cases.

'Neglectful situations'

Inspectors found "ineffective senior leadership" meant care had "deteriorated" since the last full inspection in 2019 when the service was rated "requires improvement to be good".

Caseloads in some areas had increased, there was an "over-reliance" on newly-qualified or agency staff, and assessments of the risks to children are "not good enough".

Interventions were found not to take place "at the right time", meaning children lived in "neglectful situations for too long, without timely authoritative action being taken", the inspection - carried out in December - found.

Inspectors - who found children were at "ongoing risk" of harm - called for improvements in council oversight, response to risk, the quality of assessments, placements, and staff recruitment and support.

Mr Fairfoull said Tameside Council had "invested significantly" to improve services and had appointed a new leadership team in August last year to oversee changes.

Ofsted said it was "too soon to see the impact of these changes for children and to know whether they will lead to sustained improvements".

Council leader Gerald Cooney said the council was "whole-heartedly determined" to "get this right and give our children and young people the quality of service they need and deserve".