Care home staff found to be beating children after ‘good’ Ofsted ratings

A BBC investigation has discovered children in care homes were subjected to a catalogue of horrific abuse three years before they were eventually shut down.

Children’s homes in Doncaster inflicted physical abuse on children – a child at one home would rub washing up liquid all over his arms so the night staff couldn’t grab him. The alarming revelations were made in a BBC investigation into the children’s homes in Doncaster, South Yorkshire.

A total of 104 reports of concern were made at the homes between early 2018 and the spring of 2021, Doncaster Council was sent 66 warnings about the homes run by the Hesley Group and Leaked documents show Ofsted was alerted 40 times about abusive incidents but didn’t step in until March 2021.

The homes, which included two residential special schools, harmed more than 100 children, involving some who were too young to speak.

Through leaked Hesley Group documents, including confidential safeguarding reports, and interviews with 15 former staff – the BBC revealed the scale of the failure of authorities to act.

The investigation found:

• Children were locked overnight in bathrooms, left in soiled clothes, and made to sit in cold baths and deprived of medication for days
• The mother of a girl – who is autistic and has severe learning difficulties and epilepsy – told us her daughter had been dragged across the floor of a home
• Criminal record checks were not signed off for some staff for up to six months after they started working with vulnerable children
• South Yorkshire Police – currently investigating some Hesley staff for alleged abuse -was warned by support workers three years before the closures
• Hesley’s account recorded a 16% profit of £12m for all the sites it runs – almost the same margin regarded as ‘excessive’ by a government watchdog

The Hesley group, who are owned by private equity firm Antin Infrastructure, continues to run a school and placements for adults with learning disabilities. However, three residential care homes owned by the group in Doncaster are undergoing an investigation by South Yorkshire Police.

The latest findings have been described as the worst care scandal since Winterbourne View in 2011 by the providers’ group, the Children’s home Association. 11 years ago a TV programme showed some staff at Winterbourne View Hospital slapping and bullying autistic patients.

Speaking to Social Care Today, Abigail Gill, Head of Policy at the NSPCC, said: ‘No child should be subjected to the shocking and appalling treatment that took place in these homes, especially not vulnerable children who may have already experienced abuse.

‘There are serious questions for every agency involved about how this systematic and sustained abuse was allowed to go on despite multiple warnings. Service providers must have appropriate management and oversight processes in place to prevent this kind of behaviour happening in the first place and ensure that a culture of mistreatment cannot develop.

‘Local authorities must take active responsibility for safeguarding children in their area ad it is vital that the inspection regime holds providers accountable and functions effectively as a safety net.

‘It is now paramount that every child who suffered harm now has support to help them recover, and crucial that measures are put in place to ensure this kind of shocking abuse cannot happen again to children in the care of institutions which should be there to protect and care for them.’

Photo by Kelly Sikkema and Christian Erfurt