Children in a private care home were found to have been sexually exploited by men and felt unsafe, but nothing was done by staff to help them, a report by Ofsted has found.
Two children living at the Warrington home were frequently going missing and were at risk of child sexual exploitation, an inspection into the facility run by Cambian Childcare Ltd found.
The report from the watchdog said that on a number of occasions the children told staff that they had “met unknown adult males and had engaged in sexual activities to gain money”.
“Children have also informed staff that they have been scared about their own safety when out of the home,” it noted, adding that staff were “not sufficiently responsive in their approach”. It was not clear what the care home staff had done to reduce the risks for these young people or prevent them from going missing.
“Despite the seriousness of a recent incident when a child alleged that she had been sexually assaulted by an older male, the interim manager has not identified clear strategies or processes for staff to follow to reduce this risk,” Ofsted said.
The home has not been closed, but the watchdog said that a child may be at risk of harm at the facility. A notice restricting accommodation has been issued, as well as two compliance notices under regulation 12, the protection of children standard, and regulation 13, the leadership and management standard.
The watchdog inspected the home on 23 February.
Cambian Childcare Ltd is one of the main private providers of care to children in England. Children’s care has become increasingly privatised: three-quarters of children’s homes are privately run, up from just 40% 20 years ago, and about a third of children are placed with foster families using private agencies.
Cambian has been approached for comment.
