THE Education Secretary has said the Government “will not hesitate to hold local leaders to account” following the horrific death of Star Hobson.

Kit Malthouse MP was responding to Robert Halfon MP, who is chair of the Education Committee, following its oral evidence session on the murders of Star and Arthur Labinjo-Hughes in Solihull.

The cross-party group of MPs wrote to Mr Malthouse to say they were “extremely concerned” about whether the chief executives of Bradford and Solihull Councils would be up to the job of improving children’s services

In a response, he said: “I want to make it clear that failure to deliver a high-quality children’s social care service is unacceptable and that all children in this country deserve the very best of care.

“The tragic events leading up to the deaths of both Arthur and Star should not be allowed to happen again and my department takes our role in this incredibly seriously.

“The Government will not hesitate to hold local leaders to account in order to keep children safe.”

Star died in September 2020 from catastrophic abdominal injuries caused by blunt force trauma. She was just 16 months old.

Savannah Brockhill, 28, the girlfriend of Star's mother Frankie Smith, was jailed for life with a minimum term of 25 years for Star’s murder, while Smith, 20, was given a 12-year sentence which she is serving in a Young Offenders’ Institution.

Mr Malthouse highlighted that control of children’s social care services has been removed from the Council and will be placed in the hands of a Trust, which is due to launch next April.

“Recognising the time it takes to set up a Trust, our commissioner continues to support and challenge the delivery of an ambitious improvement plan in Bradford to bring about a fundamental shift in how children’s social care services will be delivered,” he added.

A Bradford Council spokesperson said: “We agree with the Minister that we are working constructively with Government to implement our Children’s Trust in April next year. 

“As a Council we are clear about the actions we need to take to improve services and make sure that children in our district are safe.

“We are implementing these at pace under the guidance of the Government’s Commissioner.

“The most recent Ofsted monitoring visit, the result of which was published last month, has also highlighted recent improvements in the delivery of services but we know there is still more to do.”