Forest Hall home shut after 'at risk of death' Ofsted report

Bradbury View has space for 20 young people aged between six and 11

A charity has closed its home for disabled children after inspectors said it posed a serious risk of death.

Ofsted had suspended services at Bradbury View Children's Home in Newcastle amid "serious and widespread concern" after visiting in September.

Issues included staff not knowing the "complex" health needs of children causing one child "actual harm".

Home owners the Percy Hedley Foundation said the coronavirus pandemic caused "a number of very concerning issues".

The inspectors report said children at the home in Forest Hall were at "serious risk of harm" and "of loss of life" because of the way the home was run.

"Children and young people are not safe in this home," the inspectors said.

Incidents the inspectors noted included:

• One child suffering "actual harm" after staff failed to supervise them as required by a risk assessment

• A fire caused by a build up of dirt in an oven

• Staff failing to respond to reports a child was being hurt by another young person, leading to that child being hurt again

• Not all staff trained to deliver emergency medication, for example when a child has an epileptic episode, which could cause "loss of life"

• High staff turnover means staff are "unfamiliar" with children's individual needs

• Lack of management and oversight at the short-staffed home

The home, which has space for up to 20 children aged between six and 18, was rated good by Ofsted at its last inspection in October 2018.

Percy Hedley said it reported concerns to Ofsted prompting the inspection and, while disputing some of the report's factual accuracies, accepted the "thrust of its main conclusions".

The charity said: "Rather than continue the uncertainty by trying to put actions in place to enable the home to re-open whilst managing the impact of Covid-19 across all of our services, the board made the decision that this residential home should not re-open in the near future."

Eleven residents have been affected by the closure, some of whom have already been moved to new homes.