Guidance

Protocol between Ofsted and services managed by local authorities: children’s social care providers

Updated 22 December 2023

Purpose

This protocol sets out the working relationships between the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted) and services managed by the chief executives of local authorities regarding children’s social care providers. It does this by:

• establishing the legal basis for Ofsted’s regulatory responsibilities

• explaining how Ofsted carries out those responsibilities

• explaining the responsibilities of local authorities

• explaining how agreed working arrangements can help both organisations to meet these responsibilities

• establishing the legal basis for Ofsted’s inspection responsibilities

Ofsted and local authorities share a great deal of information and have different memorandums of understanding and data-sharing agreements in place to support this work. This protocol is specific to the following:

• checks with local authority children’s services on those associated with applications for registration with Ofsted

• local safeguarding partners

• safeguarding and child protection concerns

We have separate guidance and protocols that set out how we share information in other circumstances regarding social care providers .

Ofsted’s role

Ofsted regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. As part of this, we inspect local authority children’s services.

We are also responsible for regulating and inspecting the following children’s social care establishments and agencies:

• children’s homes, including secure children’s homes and residential special schools registered as children’s homes

• independent fostering agencies

• voluntary adoption agencies

• adoption support agencies

• residential family centres

• residential holiday schemes for disabled children

• supported accommodation

The legal framework under which Ofsted regulates

The legislation under which Ofsted regulates children’s social care includes the following:

• Care Standards Act 2000

• Care Standards Act 2000 (Registration)(England) Regulations 2010

• The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015

• Adoption Agencies Regulations 2005

• Adoption Support Agencies (England) and Adoption Agencies (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2005

• Residential Family Centres Regulations 2002

• Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011

• The Residential Holiday Schemes for Disabled Children (England) Regulations 2013

• The Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023

Powers and duties

A person must register with Ofsted if they carry on or manage any of the children’s social care establishments or agencies listed above. Failing to do so is an offence.

Those who apply for registration must demonstrate to Ofsted that they are fit to provide or manage social care services and that they meet the legal requirements, as set out in the legislation above.

The Care Standards Act 2000 gives Ofsted a range of powers to deal with:

• people carrying on or managing a children’s social care service without the appropriate registration

• registered persons who fail to meet the legal requirements for social care establishments or agencies and supported accommodation services

The types of enforcement actions we can take against registered providers or managers for breaching requirements include:

• refusing a registration

• imposing or varying conditions of registration

• serving compliance notices

• suspending a registration

• restricting accommodation

• imposing an urgent condition

• prosecuting for offences contrary to The Care Standards Act 2000, including unregistered care

• cancelling a registration

Inspection and reports

Legislation sets out how frequently Ofsted should inspect each children’s social care service that is registered. We inspect them under the ‘Social care common inspection framework’ (SCCIF) and publish a report afterwards.

Ofsted’s applications, regulatory and contact team

Our central point of contact for the public and all providers is the applications, regulatory and contact (ARC) team. It is responsible for:

• being the first point of contact with Ofsted

• giving information and guidance on using our website, including technical help for online applications

• carrying out all relevant suitability checks, including social services checks, references and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks, on all applicants and anyone connected with an application

• processing our registration work across early years and social care and the regulatory risk assessment of childcare providers

See contact details for the ARC team. Local authorities can contact us at extranetqueries@ofsted.gov.uk or on 0300 123 1231.

Carrying out checks on those associated with applications to register with Ofsted

As the regulator of children’s social care establishments and agencies and supported accommodation services, we must assess whether those who provide and manage these are ‘fit’ for registration.

As part of this, we carry out a check with local authorities about individuals who are connected with a children’s social care registration. We need to see whether the local authority has any information about those individuals that may affect their fitness for registration.

Under part 2, regulation 3(6) of The Care Standards Act 2000(Registration)(England) Regulations 2010, applicants must provide any information or documents we reasonably require in relation to their application for registration.

Who we check with local authorities

We carry out these checks on applicants for the following roles connected to a children’s social care application for registration:

• registered managers/registered service managers

• where the registered provider is an organisation, the responsible individual or nominated individual

• where the registered provider is an individual, the individual person

• where the registered provider is a partnership, the partners

What Ofsted does

Applicants and people connected to an application complete forms stating that they accept that Ofsted will carry out a range of checks on them. This includes each applicant agreeing that Ofsted will ask local authorities to carry out a check against children’s services’ records.

We contact the children’s services department for any local authority areas the individual has lived in within the previous 5 years.

For those connected to an application for registration, we ask the local authority whether it holds any relevant information about that individual that may affect their fitness to carry on or manage the social care establishment or agency. For example, this information could include:

• whether the individual has been connected with a child protection inquiry

• whether the individual has had a child removed from their care because of their care of that child

• whether allegations about the individual have ever been referred to a local authority designated officer in relation to working with children in any setting, and the outcome of those allegations

The local authority may also hold personal information about any children of the people we are checking. We do not ask for this information, so those children do not need to give consent for their data to be shared (even if they are now adults). However, we may sometimes need to process personal data relating to children. We may receive this data as part of:

• the information that we reasonably require from applicants under part 2, regulation 3(6) of The Care Standards Act 2000(Registration)(England) Regulations 2010

• the information that the local authority shares with us as it may impact on someone’s fitness

We therefore need to process this data in order to carry out thorough and effective checks on individuals. This is part of how we perform our public function and task as the regulator of children’s social care establishments and agencies.

Our privacy notice for social care sets out what personal information we collect, what we do with it, how long we keep it and individuals’ rights under data protection legislation.

What local authorities do for Ofsted

When carrying out checks, local authorities will:

• accept that Ofsted has obtained consent from the person concerned to get information from children’s services records

• decide whether information can be released to Ofsted

• arrange a check of child protection records and other appropriate case records

• respond to Ofsted within 2 weeks of receiving the request stating that either:

• the person is not known

• information is held that may be relevant to the application, and a summary of that information

• the person is known to children’s services, but information cannot be provided within 2 weeks and details of when the director of children’s services will provide Ofsted with the information

• provide information in writing so that Ofsted can make a decision about a person’s suitability

• be aware that any information provided to Ofsted may be shared with the subject of the check and that Ofsted may need to use the information to determine the outcome of the application for registration

What we do when a local authority gives us information

When a local authority gives us information about a person as part of our checks, this does not automatically mean that we will decide that person is unfit for registration. We consider any information we receive and assess whether it has an impact on the fitness decisions we need to make.

We may discuss the information with an individual at interview and it will inform our registration decision.

Local safeguarding partners

Local authorities have the lead responsibility for investigating safeguarding concerns about children in their area. They have duties under section 17 of the Children Act 1989 to provide services to children in need for the purposes of safeguarding and promoting their welfare. Under section 47 of the same Act, they have a duty to make enquiries where they suspect that a child is suffering or is at risk of significant harm.

The Children Act 2004 (as amended by the Children and Social Work Act 2017) requires the 3 safeguarding partners in an area to agree local arrangements for working together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

The 3 safeguarding partners are:

• the local authority

• an integrated care system for an area, any part of which falls within the local authority

• the chief officer of police for a police area, any part of which falls within the local authority area

Local safeguarding partners’ responsibilities

Local safeguarding partners will ensure that processes are in place to inform Ofsted about child protection concerns involving:

• a registered provider or manager of a children’s social care establishment or agency

• a person employed in a children’s social care establishment or agency

They will also make sure that they inform Ofsted if they become aware of any unregistered children’s social care establishments or agencies.

Safeguarding and child protection concerns

We follow our safeguarding policy and guidance in ‘Working together to safeguard children’.

We are not the statutory authority for enquiries into specific child protection concerns, under section 47 of the Children Act 1989. If we receive any concerns about safeguarding or allegations of abuse, we will refer them to the relevant local authority children’s services and/or the police. It is for the local authority to determine how it responds to the concerns.

We will escalate to the director of children’s services if we remain concerned that appropriate action has not been taken. We will also carry out our own assessment of whether the provider meets the requirements for continued registration and decide on the appropriate action to take. We will work closely with the local authority and the police when there is a section 47 investigation. If the information suggests risk of harm, we may use our urgent enforcement powers.

Local authority children’s services arrange strategy discussions to help them to decide whether the information they hold about a child meets their threshold to investigate a child protection concern and, if so, the steps they need to take in response. We may attend strategy meetings if appropriate.

Ofsted’s role at strategy meetings is explained in the social care enforcement policy.

We will always carry out our own immediate assessment of risk to children based on the information we hold. This will determine whether there are any actions we should take, as the regulator. We will liaise with the local authority, police and other agencies as necessary, but we will always carry out our own inspection where appropriate. We will work jointly with local authorities to consider how to best to do this.

Handling child protection concerns

The address of the registered childcare provider may be in a different local authority to that of the child concerned. In these cases, the registered provider’s local authority will tell us as soon as possible which local authority will take lead responsibility for the assessment or investigation.

Child protection concerns that relate to a registered children’s social care establishment or agency

Local safeguarding partners, Ofsted and relevant agencies may be made aware of concerns that relate directly to a child’s experience within a children’s social care establishment or agency. These concerns may become known as a result of a formal complaint made to:

• a registered provider

• Ofsted

• local authorities

• another relevant agency

Where the responsibility and decision lie with the employer, and the provider prevents a person from working or being present at the establishment or agency, we will take this into account, and monitor the situation. We may suspend a registration if we reasonably believe that the continued provision of children’s social care by the registered person may expose someone to a risk of harm. In some cases, we may take steps to cancel the registration. Further information on the action we may take can be found in our social care enforcement policy.

Child protection concerns that involve a registered provider as an individual

Local safeguarding partners, or Ofsted, may receive concerns involving a registered provider that do not relate directly to the children being cared for in the establishment or agency. For example, the concerns may relate to the person’s own children or a person being arrested for accessing pornographic images of children online.

Local safeguarding partners will tell us about these concerns as soon as possible because the concerns may affect the fitness of the registered person or manager. If available, local safeguarding partners will provide sufficient information to enable us to make a decision about the individual’s fitness.

Supplying written information to Ofsted at the conclusion of a child protection investigation

Following the outcome of a child protection investigation concerning a registered person, the lead local safeguarding partner will ensure that information is passed to us to help us in making a decision about the registered person’s continued ability to meet the requirements for registration.

The local authority (or police if they are the lead agency) will give us a written statement that includes:

• the nature of the concern

• a written assessment of risk

• an outline of the conclusions of the investigation

• a clear statement of the assessed risk to children, with particular reference to any concerns identified on behalf of the registered person that we might need to pursue

• confirmation that the agency has informed the provider in writing of the outcome of the investigation

• a recommendation, if relevant, on the need for the registered person, or Ofsted, to provide information to the Independent Safeguarding Authority or to any other body about any person who is found unsuitable to work with children

Learning from serious safeguarding incidents

Local safeguarding partners are responsible for identifying and reviewing serious child safeguarding cases that raise important issues in their area. They will sometimes commission a local child safeguarding practice review to learn lessons from the incident and identify improvements that can be made to the systems and services that protect children. Serious child safeguarding cases are those in which abuse or neglect of a child is known or suspected and the child has died or been seriously harmed.

Serious child safeguarding cases sometimes involve a provider that is registered with Ofsted. If so, local safeguarding partners may ask Ofsted to contribute to the review.

Media interest in child protection investigations

In cases of possible or known abuse involving a registered provider where there is likely to be media interest, it is important that the relevant agencies liaise with one another before releasing a press statement. These agencies may include the Department for Education, police and local authorities as well as Ofsted.

We will contribute to this process by making relevant information available to local safeguarding partners’ member agencies.

Appeals to the First-tier Tribunal (Care Standards)

When we take regulatory action against a children’s social care provider or manager, which can include suspension, cancellation of registration or changes to conditions of registration, the provider or manager has the right to appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Care Standards). The tribunal will only uphold any action we have taken if it is satisfied the action is lawful, justified and proportionate.

If a provider appeals against suspension, the tribunal will hear the appeal within 3 weeks of it being made. We may require relevant supporting evidence from local safeguarding partners and relevant agencies to help us defend our action.

If the tribunal considers evidence provided by local safeguarding partners as important in reaching its judgment, we may ask a representative of a local safeguarding partners to attend a tribunal hearing. We may also ask the local safeguarding partner to give a written statement.

Although not part of the initial child protection process, decisions made at a tribunal hearing may be of direct relevance to local safeguarding partners’ objectives, as set out in ‘Working together to safeguard children’.

Ofsted’s contribution to any civil or criminal action by local safeguarding partners

We will comply with the Care Standards Act 2000 and associated regulations General Data Protection Regulation and Data Protection Act 2018, the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Freedom of Information Act 2000, and any requirement by a court to make available any relevant information that we hold. This includes written statements or verbal evidence at court hearings for any civil or criminal proceedings initiated by local safeguarding partners.