Children's homes future in doubt

The future of three of Devon’s Children’s homes - including one at the centre of a sexual abuse investigation- are in doubt as the council reviews its care of vulnerable children.

The Birchen Road home in Tiverton currently closed after concerns were raised about the potential sexual exploitation of residents outside the home and the placements to the Rifford Road home in Exeter suspended due to a critical Ofsted report.

Blossom Corner in Exeter, the councils third children’s home has been rated good by Ofsted but it currently has only three young people living there despite having capacity for six.

This is in light of the new Ofsted guidelines indicating that children’s homes with more than three placements are unlikely to  achieve a ‘good’ rating.

The council’s cabinet is due to consult with police, health and other partners on the best way to provide care in the light of new regulations proposed by Ofsted.

The Cabinet member responsible for children’s services, Will Mumford, said: “We need to make sure we are providing the best care possible for these young people, who are among the most vulnerable we look after.

“We have already commissioned a review of our homes from a specialist external organisation which has now made a number of recommendations.

“Since placements were suspended at Birchen Road and Rifford Road, some of the young people who would have been there have been looked after by specialist foster carers.

“We’ve been able to work with our child, adolescent and mental health teams to ensure they are getting individual care, shaped to their specific needs.

“We are currently reorganising our foster service so we will have a greater range of foster carers able to look after children with the most challenging behaviour.

“This is likely to reduce the need for places in children’s homes and so it is important that we now have a thorough review of our provision.”