Liverpool City Council’s Children and Young People’s Services received positive feedback from Ofsted during their latest monitoring visit. The inspection took place over two days in December 2024, where the Care Leaving Service and the lives of care-experienced young people were the focus. Inspectors also met directly with care-experienced young people themselves to hear their views. This was the fourth monitoring visit undertaken by Ofsted, with the full report available here.
Ofsted praised the staff’s “enthusiasm” and “tenacity” of working with and providing support to care-experienced young people. The service showed ongoing progress and capacity has increased with the employment of additional personal advisors and managers, resulting in more manageable caseloads. Inspectors were able to find strong evidence that support was being provided to young people, including young parents, those in custody, and those temporarily accommodated.
Additional assessment discovered that young people are feeling safe and supported in their accommodation and the ‘local offer’ for care-experienced young persons had been developed and is now easily accessible. Strengthened efforts are being put in place to support young people at risk of becoming Not in Education, Employment, or Training (NEET) who require the commitment of multiple agencies.
The report recognized the progress made by Liverpool City Council’s Children and Young People’s Services, but they also helped to locate areas for improvement. This included better coordination to ensure greater clarity about who was responsible for supporting young people through their transitions and how this support is to be delivered. Permanent housing continues to pose a challenge, and the roles of social workers, carers and independent reviewing officers that require strengthening to better prepare young people for adulthood. A new system to help young people understand their health histories also needs further embedding.
Commenting on the findings, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Councillor Liz Parsons, highlighted how the report reflects their own assessment and reaffirms that Liverpool is moving in the right direction. The progress made is a fantastic testament to the hard work, dedication and teamwork of the incredible teams working with young people. As a service, Liverpool City Council’s Children and Young People’s Services is committed to driving improvements to ensure the city’s care-experienced youth receive the support to help them thrive. They want to create a better future for all children and young people in Liverpool.
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