Somerset children's home charity terminates contract after critical report
A charity operating children's homes in Somerset has ended its contract following a critical report.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
A charity that runs eight children's homes in Somerset is terminating its contract with the county council, following a highly critical inspection report that led to the closure of one home after serious failings, including an allegation that a child was hit by a member of staff.
The partnership between Somerset Council and the Shore Trust was launched in 2022 with the aim of keeping vulnerable children closer to home and reducing the high cost of private placements, which can reach up to 15,000 pounds per week. The initiative won a national award last year, but the charity has now decided to end the contract by autumn 2025.
Inspectors condemned one of the homes within months of its opening, forcing its closure. The council's entire children's services were later judged by Ofsted to require improvement. The authority is already in special measures after years of financial struggles.
A spokesperson for the Shore Trust said the combination of children's needs and the demand for care had changed, and that finding enough qualified staff in Somerset had proved "significantly more challenging" than estimated. The rural nature of the county, with homes located away from transport links, has also made it difficult to recruit professionals.
Somerset Council must now find a new operator to run the homes. The authority acknowledged that the rurality of the area and a limited pool of social care professionals make the task harder. The termination comes only weeks after the Ofsted judgment, adding further pressure on the council's children's services.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | BBC One |
|---|---|
| Ofsted judged Somerset Council's entire children's services as requiring improvement. | |
| One of eight children's homes was closed after inspectors found serious failings, including an allegation that a child was hit by a member of staff. | |
| The Shore Trust is terminating its contract with Somerset Council by autumn 2025. |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The BBC focused on the background and context of the partnership, highlighting the initial fanfare and national award, then contrasting it with the rapid failure and closure of a home. It emphasised the challenges of rural Somerset, staff shortages, and the council's financial difficulties, presenting a balanced but critical narrative of the system's struggles.
- “The combination of the children and the demand for care has changed I think what we have discovered is the quality of the staff and the availability of people that want to be engaged in in Somerset in this space is significantly more challenging than than we estimated.”
- “The rurality that we have in Somerset does make things harder some of our homes are in places that are away from say transport links it's people have to travel to get to that work we don't have a huge pool of of professionals to draw on and that does make life harder for many of our professionals but particularly I think in social care.”
Broadcast Timeline
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