Luton council selected to improve children’s services nationally

The council has been selected by the Department for Education (DfE) to join its Children’s Social Care Improvement Teams programme.

The move comes six years after Luton’s Children’s Services was rated ‘Inadequate’ by Ofsted in 2020 and now rated ‘Good’ earlier this year following a sustained programme of improvement.

The DfE’s sector-led improvement programme uses stronger-performing local authorities to provide support and expertise to councils working to improve their children’s services.

The department says participating councils are selected through a DfE process and must be rated ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted.

Luton will now use the experience it has gained through its own improvement journey to support other local authorities, the first partnerships between improvement teams and councils receiving support are expected to begin in October.

It has also become involved in national reform programmes including the Families First for Children Pathfinder, SEND reform and fostering reform.

The council’s Youth Partnership Service was also rated ‘Good’ following a recent national Youth Justice inspection.

The latest Ofsted inspection in January found “significant progress” had been made by the service, with inspectors also praising the care shown by staff towards children and young people.

The inspection highlighted improvements including earlier support for families, greater stability for children in care and stronger involvement of children and young people in shaping services.

However, inspectors also identified areas where further improvement was needed, including ensuring care leavers consistently receive a good service.

The council said work to address those areas is already under way.

The DfE programme marks a significant change in Luton’s position within children’s social care and is now expected to share its experience and expertise with other authorities.