Press Coverage

Herefordshire Children’s Services History

Over the past decade, Herefordshire Children’s Services have been roundly criticised by High Court Judges, MPs, Councillors, Ofsted, church representatives and the public for failing the children and families of Herefordshire. Much of this has been documented in the press. Links to the press coverage and significant reports can be found below.

A brief history of chronic failure

In April 2021, after the damning judgement of Judge Keehan emerged in the YY case the Director of Children’s Services was sacked. An Extraordinary General Meeting of the Council was called to discuss what the Judge described as “egregious and long-standing failings”. There was much breast beating and calls for the service to do better.

A new Chief Executive was appointed, who had no previous experience as a Chief Executive in an authority responsible for Children’s Services. A new Director of Children’s Services was also appointed. There have now been four in four years. The current one was in charge of the safeguarding team in Worcester who failed to protect Alfie Steel, despite 64 referrals to police and social services.

After the Panorama expose in May 2022, an Ofsted inspection belatedly rated the service as inadequate in all areas in July 2022. This led to the appointment by the Department of Education of a Children’s Services Commissioner in September 2022 to oversee urgent reforms.

In March 2023, after the publication of the Commissioner’s first report, which noted the slow pace of progress, the council was given six more months to demonstrate substantial improvements.

In June 2023, a report by two former Councillors entitled “Mind the Gaps” criticised the superficial analysis in the Commissioner’s report and drew attention to some of the elephants in the room including the toxic organisational culture and the failure of leadership from the Chief Executive. Their argument was that until the toxic organisational culture was addressed, there could be no significant improvements.

In December 2023, 18 months after the damning Ofsted report, the Commissioner once again noted the slow pace of changed but granted Herefordshire Council yet more time to improve. Families in Herefordshire were still reporting terrible practice failures, and an intensification of the hostile culture towards parents which had led to Herefordshire having sky high rates of children in care, over 70% higher than in comparable areas.

In December 2024, the Commissioner published another report which once again acknowledged the slow pace of change. By this stage she’d been in post for well over two years. She was finally replaced by a new Commissioner in January 2025, and yes, you guessed it, the Council was granted more time to improve.

Today, families are still reporting today appalling practice failures including in areas identified by Judge Keehan in April 2021. The families of Herefordshire deserve better, and this website will be a space where they can share their experiences.