Commitment to improve children's services and education in Peterborough
Ofsted found the city council has made significant strides since being rated inadequate almost a year ago but that a 'more consistent' approach could be taken
One of the people in charge of children's services in Peterborough has told us the city council's committed to making improvements.
Ofsted's found the local authority's made significant strides since being rated inadequate almost a year ago in November 2023.
But inspectors have also recommended a more consistent approach to all those in the council's care.
Katy Coles has told us one of the ways that recommendation's being implemented:
"We're partnering with the national house project to improve outcomes for children as they turn 18 and leave care. This means that children and young people are given practical support with CV writing, budgeting, how to apply for a tenancy".
During an Ofsted monitoring visit inspectors focused on the experiences and progress of care leavers aged 18-25, especially those facing extra challenges like unstable housing, not being in school or work, or involvement with the criminal justice system.
Inspectors noted that senior leaders have been dedicated to improving outcomes for these young people, even with financial and political challenges.
However, the report also indicates that support is not consistent for all young people.
Katy Coles said:
"We have and continue to focus our efforts on delivering meaningful change and improvements to Children's Services. This visit focused on our efforts to ensure our care leavers have better outcomes, and we are pleased that Ofsted has recognised our improvements. More importantly, we are confident this will offer the support our care leavers need to thrive.
"We’ve worked closely with external experts, staff, and care leavers to refocus the service. Financial resources have been committed to add much-needed capacity and resources. While there is still work to be done, we are confident that our ongoing efforts will lead to even better outcomes for our young people, and we remain dedicated to ensuring that every care leaver receives the support they need.”
Peterborough City Council said:
"We are committed to ensuring better outcomes for care leavers and will continue to work with our care leavers, staff and partners across the system to sustain and build on these improvements."