BRADFORD Council’s leadership has “put Bradford on the map” for failing its young people - an opposition Councillor claimed during a heated discussion on the District’s Children’s Services.

Just 90 minutes before the first full meeting of Bradford Council in 2022 on Tuesday, it was announced that the Council’s Children’s Services would be run by a newly created Trust, owned by the Council but run at arm’s length by independent figures.

The move was due to the painfully slow progress in improving the department after an Ofsted review found Children’s Services inadequate in 2018.

 

It also comes at a time Children’s services came under fire for failing to intervene earlier in the case of Star Hobson, a toddler who was murdered in Keighley aged just 16 months.

A Government appointed commissioner who had been brought in to monitor progress late last year has produced a report that claimed the Council “lacked the capacity and capability” to improve the service fast enough.

The report led to the Council agreeing to set up the Trust, which will be supported by Government.

The shake up was the main issue of the Full Council meeting on Tuesday, held in St George’s Hall rather than City Hall due to social distancing concerns.

Leader of the Conservative Group on Bradford Council Rebecca Poulsen said: “This is devastating to the leadership of the Council. It demonstrates that the Council can no longer run children’s social care.

“After the Ofsted report in 2018 I remember Councillor Hinchcliffe saying the Council would act quickly to improve. We’re now in 2022.

“The Commissioner said the Council can’t run this vital service.

Bradford Children's Services to be run by trust after report found Council 'lacked capacity and capability' to improve fast enough

“Responsibility must be taken. The Leader has said she would put Bradford on the map. She has put it on the map for a failing leadership and a service that continues to fail our children.”

Cllr Susan Hinchcliffe (Lab), Leader of Bradford Council, described the death of Star Hobson as a terrible moment in the history of Bradford, and added: “There is no escaping the fact that chances to protect her were missed.

“I feel a huge sense of responsibility for this case and I’m deeply sorry we failed to keep Star safe.”

Referring to the new Children’s Service Trust she said: “I will do everything in my power to support this service, and any concerns will be acted upon.

“But this is not something the Council can do alone.”

She said she had recently spoken to leaders at Sunderland Council - an authority where a similar trust had helped turn Children’s Services from inadequate to outstanding. Cllr Hinchcliffe said: “That is the future I want to see for the Bradford District.”

The Trust would “take time and resources to set up” and would “cost well into the millions” - the meeting was told.

Leader of the Liberal Democrats on the Council Jeanette Sunderland (Idle and Thackley) said: “Once again a Labour controlled Council has proved that when it comes to looking after children in the District they are not up to the job. This is an admission of defeat after years of failure.”

She described the establishment of the Trust as a “soft option” and added: “When are you going to take responsibility for what has happened over the last few years?

“There needs to be some real change before I’d be confident improvement will happen. Now is the time for leaders to go."

Responding to the criticism, Cllr Hinchcliffe said: “We need to take the politics out of children’s services. This is not the soft option, this is the right option. With this option the Government will bring expertise, support and finances. It will be a fresh start for children, and it will attract social workers who may not have wanted to work for Bradford Council."

Councillor Brendan Stubbs (Lib Dem, Eccleshill) was critical of the Leader’s response, saying: “There is still no acceptance of responsibility.”

Cllr Hinchcliffe replied: “I said I felt a huge sense of responsibility, and this was something I felt quite sincerely about. That was quite clear and it is disingenuous to claim I didn’t say that.”