Ofsted rates North Somerset's support for children in care and care leavers as good. Help and protection still requires improvement, including out-of-hours cover.

Ofsted has rated North Somerset Council’s children’s services good in three of the four areas it inspected. The fourth, help and protection for children at risk, requires improvement to be good.

Inspectors visited from 21 September to 2 October, and the report was published on Tuesday 10 November (Ofsted report). They found that children’s experiences “have significantly improved” since the last inspection in 2023, when services overall were judged to require improvement.

The four grades

Area Grade
Impact of leaders on social work practice Good
Children who need help and protection Requires improvement to be good
Children in care Good
Care leavers Good

Ofsted no longer gives councils a single overall grade. The council says only one area was rated good in 2023 (North Somerset Council, 10 November).

What inspectors praised

The report says children in care “live in safe, stable and loving homes and are thriving”. It also found:

  • care leavers have consistent personal advisers who “know them well” and are “strong advocates” for them
  • most care leavers live in suitable homes, and some stay with their former foster carers under “staying put” arrangements
  • children have had fewer changes of social worker, as the workforce has become more stable
  • the council has cut its reliance on agency staff since 2023, helped by “grow your own” and international recruitment
  • almost all children in care now live in registered placements, after a big fall in the use of unregistered children’s homes

Plans are under way to open two new children’s homes and improve short breaks for disabled children, the report says.

What still needs to improve

Ofsted listed four areas for the council to work on:

  • decisions about children when concerns are first reported, out of hours, and in pre-court proceedings
  • the response to children who go missing from home or care, and children at risk of exploitation
  • support for children in care and care leavers with emotional and mental health needs
  • how much children in care and care leavers can shape services through the corporate parenting panel

Inspectors said the out-of-hours emergency duty service is “not sufficiently robust”. Serious safeguarding concerns raised out of hours do not always lead to a strategy discussion, though day teams “swiftly pick up” those cases. Children who go missing get “an inconsistent response”, and return-home conversations do not always happen.

Some care leavers face delays getting their leaving care grant, the report adds. Leaders are aware and have acted on it.

What the council says

Councillor Catherine Gibbons, the Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, called it “fantastic news for North Somerset”.

“While there is always more to do, this report gives us confidence that our improvement journey is making a real difference,” she said.

The council says it will build on the strengths inspectors found and strengthen its help and protection services.

What it means for you

  • If you are a foster carer, or thinking of becoming one, the report calls the council’s assessment, approval and training of foster carers strong, and says the number of carers is rising.
  • If your child goes missing, Ofsted’s findings mean the council’s follow-up after they return is one of the things it has been told to tighten.
  • The council is separately planning to recruit volunteer mentors for care leavers from January 2027, as we reported this week.