England has recorded another surge in term-time school holiday fines, as cheaper off-peak travel continues to attract families, particularly those on low incomes or with larger households. New figures from the Department for Education show a record 459,288 penalty notices were issued in 2024–25 for unauthorised absence, up 4% on the previous year. Term-time holidaysContinue reading “School absence fines hit record high as Harrow mirrors national trend”
Tag Archives: education
Who holds the challenge in Harrow’s children’s services governance?
Following our recent article examining the blunt use of legislation to appoint an interim Director of Children’s Services in Harrow, attention must now turn to a wider safeguarding concern: whether the structural design of the Director of Children’s Services (DCS) role itself provides sufficient independence, challenge and accountability within the system. Safeguarding failures do notContinue reading “Who holds the challenge in Harrow’s children’s services governance?”
Lawful but risky: Harrow’s interim children’s services leadership under safeguarding scrutiny
The operation of Section 18 of the Children Act 2004, and the safeguarding governance risks now associated with its routine use, is not a local or isolated issue but a matter of clear national interest. Harrow Council’s emergency decision to designate its Managing Director as interim Director of Children’s Services following the unexplained departure ofContinue reading “Lawful but risky: Harrow’s interim children’s services leadership under safeguarding scrutiny”
£17.4m SEND boost for Harrow welcomed – but can troubled services deliver for children?
Harrow West MP Gareth Thomas has welcomed confirmation that Harrow will receive £17.374 million as part of Labour’s national programme to expand provision for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), promising new specialist places and improved local support. The funding forms part of a multibillion-pound national investment aimed at creating around 50,000 specialistContinue reading “£17.4m SEND boost for Harrow welcomed – but can troubled services deliver for children?”
Harrow’s apparent rightward shift leaves vulnerable children exposed as poverty crisis deepens
The government’s new child poverty strategy risks having limited impact in Harrow, where rising child poverty, increasing numbers of children living in B&Bs and mounting failures across children’s services continue to place vulnerable families at risk. The borough’s recent political direction – giving an ever-stronger sense of a council shifting to the right with inadequateContinue reading “Harrow’s apparent rightward shift leaves vulnerable children exposed as poverty crisis deepens”
Is Harrow really ‘putting residents first’ – or just leaving vulnerable children behind?
The administration-designed Harrow Council slogan, “putting residents first,” sits increasingly uneasily alongside the persistent problems in its children’s services. The departure of yet another Director of Children’s Services – requiring the Managing Director to assume the statutory role on an interim basis – underscores ongoing instability at a time when the service remains under aContinue reading “Is Harrow really ‘putting residents first’ – or just leaving vulnerable children behind?”
Harrow children’s services plunged back into instability as another director departs
Harrow Council is facing renewed turmoil in its children’s services following the departure of the Director of Children’s Services, prompting the emergency appointment of Managing Director Alex Dewsnap as interim DCS. The statutory role, required under the Children Act 2004, is now being filled on an interim basis “to ensure continuity of leadership” while theContinue reading “Harrow children’s services plunged back into instability as another director departs”
Another blow for Harrow: Ombudsman exposes failures in children’s services
Harrow Council’s crisis-hit children’s services have been dealt another blow after the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) found serious fault in the way it handled a family’s complaint about respite care. The ruling, published in July 2025, comes amid continuing fallout from Ofsted’s “inadequate” judgement and a government improvement notice that has placedContinue reading “Another blow for Harrow: Ombudsman exposes failures in children’s services”
Ofsted tightens focus on SEND: providers warned to raise inclusion standards
Ofsted has signalled a tougher stance on inclusion and SEND provision under its renewed inspection framework, warning that schools and education providers will now face closer scrutiny of how they meet the needs of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). In a detailed response to Harrow Monitoring Group’s publication, Rebuilding on Weak FoundationsContinue reading “Ofsted tightens focus on SEND: providers warned to raise inclusion standards”
Harrow children’s services still in recovery
Harrow’s latest HMI monitoring visit paints a picture of a service on the mend – but not yet out of intensive care. Inspectors found that the Leaving Care Service has made “significant progress” since January, with leaders showing honesty, determination, and a renewed focus on caring for their young people. Yet beneath the optimism liesContinue reading “Harrow children’s services still in recovery”
Harrow Monitoring Group 