The Ofsted inspection of the Harrow children’s services in January 2025 has identified insistencies in the services due to the impact of leaders on social work practice with children and families not being good and needing improvement.
Since the last inspection when services for children were judged to be good, though improvements have been made to some areas of practice, significant leadership “churn”, including four directors of children’s services and two chief executives, has contributed to a deterioration in the quality of service and practice for care leavers, says the report.
While the experiences and progress of children who need help and protection is good, the quality of support provided to care leavers has deteriorated and is now inadequate because the risk of harm to care leavers is not always recognised or responded to effectively, and there are serious failures in keeping in touch with some care leavers, the inspection finds.
Previous shortfalls identified in 2023 for prevention and early intervention practice have been mostly addressed effectively, but the strategic and operational focus on prevention and early intervention has, however, not extended to services for care leavers in Harrow, the inspection judged.
Despite financial investment to strengthen services and increase staffing capacity, the care for leavers* is inadequate because “the corporate and political support for children and care leavers in Harrow has not adequately ensured that the needs of children and young people have been consistently met. The lead member appropriately acknowledges that there is much more to do for care leavers in Harrow”.
Harrow Monitoring Group finds the subsequent response of the cabinet member for children’s services quite naïve.
He said, “We accept the findings of this report and have moved quickly to ensure those who have been let down, now have a dedicated worker and will have the support they so rightly deserve to thrive in everything they go on to do, as adults.”
Developing and sustaining good practices across the service is not a five minutes job but a longtime challenge to change the ethos and culture of the services, to avoid situations like:
[Inconsistency in the Special Educational Needs and Disability Information Advice and Support Service advertised and provided.
Inaccurate information during the child protection inquiries: 22 016 751 of 8/12/2023, Mrs X complained that the council used false and inaccurate information during child protection inquiries to create a negative assessment of her and her family. She also said the council did not communicate properly and failed to consider her human rights.
“We found the Council was at fault in that it included inaccurate and irrelevant information in various documents, causing Mrs X distress. In recognition of the injustice caused, the Council has agreed to amend the documents, apologise to Mrs X and make a payment to her” the Ombudsman determined]
*According to data from Harrow Council, care leavers in Harrow are disproportionately from Black, Mixed, and “Other” ethnic backgrounds. They need to be treated equally well.
Since the last inspection when services for children were judged to be good, though improvements have been made to some areas of practice, significant leadership “churn”, including four directors of children’s services and two chief executives, has contributed to a deterioration in the quality of service and practice for care leavers, says the report.
While the experiences and progress of children who need help and protection is good, the quality of support provided to care leavers has deteriorated and is now inadequate because the risk of harm to care leavers is not always recognised or responded to effectively, and there are serious failures in keeping in touch with some care leavers, the inspection finds.
Previous shortfalls identified in 2023 for prevention and early intervention practice have been mostly addressed effectively, but the strategic and operational focus on prevention and early intervention has, however, not extended to services for care leavers in Harrow, the inspection judged.
Despite financial investment to strengthen services and increase staffing capacity, the care for leavers* is inadequate because “the corporate and political support for children and care leavers in Harrow has not adequately ensured that the needs of children and young people have been consistently met. The lead member appropriately acknowledges that there is much more to do for care leavers in Harrow”.
Harrow Monitoring Group finds the subsequent response of the cabinet member for children’s services quite naïve.
He said, “We accept the findings of this report and have moved quickly to ensure those who have been let down, now have a dedicated worker and will have the support they so rightly deserve to thrive in everything they go on to do, as adults.”
Developing and sustaining good practices across the service is not a five minutes job but a longtime challenge to change the ethos and culture of the services, to avoid situations like:
[Inconsistency in the Special Educational Needs and Disability Information Advice and Support Service advertised and provided.
Inaccurate information during the child protection inquiries: 22 016 751 of 8/12/2023, Mrs X complained that the council used false and inaccurate information during child protection inquiries to create a negative assessment of her and her family. She also said the council did not communicate properly and failed to consider her human rights.
“We found the Council was at fault in that it included inaccurate and irrelevant information in various documents, causing Mrs X distress. In recognition of the injustice caused, the Council has agreed to amend the documents, apologise to Mrs X and make a payment to her” the Ombudsman determined]
*According to data from Harrow Council, care leavers in Harrow are disproportionately from Black, Mixed, and “Other” ethnic backgrounds. They need to be treated equally well.
Harrow Monitoring Group 