21 Accepted

Responsibility and accountability for getting looked-after children into their most appropriate local good or outstanding...

Recommendation
Responsibility and accountability for getting looked-after children into their most appropriate local good or outstanding school should lie with the Virtual School Head.
Government Response Summary
Looked-after children already have priority in school admissions, and guidance states that schools judged 'Good' or 'Outstanding' should be prioritised for their placement.
Paragraph Reference
58
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government Accepted
As set out in the response to other recommendations above, looked-after children have priority in school admissions and statutory guidance for VSHs states that, when arranging a looked after child’s education placement, schools judged by Ofsted to be ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’ should be prioritised. There may be circumstances where it may be more appropriate that a looked after child is not placed in a school judged by Ofsted to be ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’, for example, where a school judged ‘Requiring Improvement’ is evidenced to be providing high-quality support to its vulnerable pupils. However, the guidance is clear that unless there are exceptional evidence-based reasons, looked after children should never be placed in a school judged by Ofsted to be ‘Inadequate’.
Addressee Bodies
Department for Education
Timeline
Recommendation age 3.9 yrs
Report published 08 Jul 2022