Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she plans to take to help improve the standard of service provided by Herefordshire Children's Services.

In its inspection report, published 21 September 2022, Ofsted judged the overall effectiveness of Herefordshire Council’s children’s services to be inadequate.

There have been regular subsequent visits by Ofsted over the past 18 months, as well as two reports on the service by the Children’s Services Commissioner appointed following the inspection. All acknowledge progress, but challenge the pace at which change is being achieved.

The department is mounting a significant intervention to improve services, deploying the Commissioner and an improvement adviser to provide challenge and support, and brokering a comprehensive two-year improvement partnership with a stronger local authority, Leeds City Council.

Most recently the department has committed £300,000 this year and next to strengthen the delivery of early help arrangements so that a greater number of children and families can access help at an earlier stage and receive a more tailored response to that need.