NORTHUMBERLAND County Council’s children’s services department has been upgraded to “outstanding” following an inspection by education watchdog Ofsted.

The upgrade from “good” in 2020 to “outstanding” places the council among the top 15 per cent of all local authorities in the country. It follows an inspection from May 20 to May 24 this year.

The department was rated as outstanding in three categories, including overall effectiveness, and good in two more including the experiences and progress of children in care.

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Reacting to the report, Councillor Guy Renner-Thompson, cabinet member for children’s services, said: “I’m incredibly proud that Ofsted has recognised Northumberland’s Children’s Services as outstanding.

“This really is an impressive report, and I would like to congratulate everyone involved on this fantastic achievement. It makes us one of the top councils in the country for children’s services and means everyone in Northumberland can have confidence that, as a council, we care for and look after our most vulnerable children and families.

“It is testament to the dedication and passion shown by all our teams across the service and our partners to put children and families at the heart of all that they do. They are all true children’s champions.”

The inspection report said children who need help and protect receive a “highly effective response” from council services. Furthermore, disabled children are supported by specialist workers who have “excellent insight into their needs and experiences”.

For children in care, the report identified the “meaningful relationships” built by social workers with children. It added that children were supported to stay in touch with “important people” in their lives.

Young people leaving care are supported by the Northumberland Adolescent Service, which maintains “strong relationships” with them up to 21 years old, or even 25 in some cases.

Leaving care workers are described as “strong advocates” for young people and provide “strong support”.

Children’s services leaders “have developed strong and effective working relationships to ensure that children are a priority across the whole council” according to the report. Senior leaders were said to “know their service well” and have “excellent oversight of frontline practice”.

The report’s only recommendation for improvements were around the quality of written plans and records of management oversight, in order to “fully reflect
the quality of social practice and the impact on children’s experiences”.

Audrey Kingham, executive director of Children, Young People and Education, said: “We are delighted with our outstanding Ofsted report, and I am very proud that it reflects the hard work and commitment that our teams show every single day.

“We do what we do for our children and young people, and it was brilliant to read that their message for us is: ‘keep doing what you are doing, you’re doing mint.'”