'Serious and widespread failures' at Peterborough children's home Clare Lodge mean youngsters 'are not protected'

Ofsted have said that there are ‘widespread failures’ at a Peterborough children’s home, which has meant youngsters are ‘not protected.’

Inspectors raised a wide range of concerns following their visit to Clare Lodge in Glinton in September.

Peterborough City Council, who run the home, said they were ‘working to deliver improvements.’

Children do not receive levels of care they need

In their report on the home, which looks after five children, the inspectors said: “There are serious and widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.”

The report highlighted the experience of one youngster, saying: One child’s bedroom was dirty and had damage to the walls, and significant graffiti was visible throughout child’s living area. In the same area, inspectors found takeaway food,

which had been left out for several days. This does not support children’s emotional and mental well-being.”

The home’s management was criticised in the report, with the inspectors saying: “A lack of management oversight and poor care planning decisions mean that children do not receive the levels of care that they need. This was particularly

evident when a child whose needs were assessed as beyond the scope of the home was admitted at the direction of senior managers in the local authority. This had a significant and detrimental impact on children and staff who were already

struggling.”

‘Staff fail to maintain good standards of security’

The inspectors rated children’s health as ‘inadequate,’ saying: “Several factors have contributed to children’s emotional and mental well-being being significantly compromised.”

There were also issues raised about security at the home. The report said: “There have been incidents of physical restraint when the legal criteria for restraint have not been met. An incident of significant concern relates to staff forcibly

removing a hooded top from a child on the basis that she may tie a ligature. From the evidence obtained, on this occasion, there is no evidence to suggest that the child was at immediate risk of harm.”

They added: “Staff are failing to maintain good standards of security. Several staff were seen wearing smartwatches despite these being listed as a prohibited item and having the potential to compromise children’s privacy. Also, inspectors found several internal doors, which lead to areas which are unsafe for children, to be unlocked.”

‘We have developed a robust plan to address issues’

A spokesperson for Peterborough City Council said: “We accept the findings of the report and take Ofsted’s recommendations seriously including those related to management oversight. We have developed a robust action plan to address the issues highlighted by the inspectors and are working directly with Clare Lodge and Ofsted to deliver improvements.

"These include providing additional management capacity and other specialist support to bolster the existing team and addressing the difficulties we and other local authorities have experienced recruiting to these highly specialised roles.”

To read the report in full, visit https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/2/SC033362