Children’s home closes after staff fail to act on signs child could be selling drugs

By Robert Firth, Local Democracy Reporter

A children’s home where staff failed to act on signs a child was being recruited by criminals to sell drugs has closed weeks after Ofsted rated it inadequate in all areas.

The home in Lambeth, which hasn’t been named but was managed by Mitcham-based SP Homes Limited, was warned at a previous inspection in November 2022 that workers hadn’t recognised a child staying there may have been drawn into selling cannabis.

After Ofsted’s most recent two-day visit in May, an inspector found improvements to protect the child hadn’t been maintained.

Staff also failed to consider that a vulnerable child who kept going missing at night might be at risk of exploitation by criminals.

The child in question had acquired an expensive electric scooter that was stored in the home, but workers had failed to find out where the child had got it from and how.

Workers were also found not to be giving kids medication as prescribed, nor monitoring that it was being taken properly.

The report said: “There has not been a registered manager at this home since August 2022.

“Two managers have been appointed since then, but have not been registered.

“The current manager, who was appointed in January 2023, has still not applied for registration.

“Her oversight of the quality of care and protection provided at this home is inadequate.”

After the inspection, Ofsted issued the home with a restriction of accommodation notice, which prevented it from accepting more children.

The home, which opened in 2005, was looking after six children at the time of the inspection.

(Picture: Ofsted logo)