A secure children’s home rated “inadequate” by Ofsted a year ago because youngsters suffered “unlawful, painful” physical restraint and unjustified solitary confinement for up to three days has turned around its fortunes and is now classed as “good”. The government watchdog’s latest inspection of Vinney Green found South Gloucestershire Council, which runs the unit in Emersons Green, had made major improvements in the last 12 months.
Its report, published on May 31 following the three-day visit in April, said the home was now “lively but relaxed” and awarded a rating of “good” in every category assessed – overall, education and learning, health, how well children and young people are helped and protected, and the effectiveness of leaders and managers. It was a very different story in June 2022 when Ofsted demanded urgent action, criticised the local authority for “repeated failures” over several years and said the Youth Custody Service had stopped placing kids at the home amid “serious concerns about children’s care, safety and wellbeing”.
At the time, the council accepted there were “practices happening which shouldn't have been” and took immediate steps to address them. A full reinspection last August concluded that improvements were still needed, and a subsequent monitoring visit found youngsters felt “safe”.
