Setting

Steph How Director of Children’s Services (interim) Children’s Services Department 3 rd Floor, Elizabeth II Court North The Castle Winchester Hampshire SO23 8UG

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Focused visit to Hampshire children’s services

This letter summarises the findings of the focused visit to Hampshire County Council children’s services on 24 March and 25 March 2026. His Majesty’s Inspectors for this visit were Michael Taylor, Monique Lindsay and Penny Ademuyiwa.

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Focused visit to Hampshire children’s services

Inspectors looked at the local authority’s arrangements for care leavers, which included a specific focus on:

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Focused visit to Hampshire children’s services

◼ The quality and suitability of accommodation.

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Focused visit to Hampshire children’s services

◼ Care leavers at risk of specific types of harm, such as criminal or sexual exploitation or domestic abuse.

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Focused visit to Hampshire children’s services

This visit was carried out in line with the inspection of local authority children’s services (ILACS) framework. Inspectors looked at a range of evidence, including discussions with care leavers, leaving care workers, and managers. They also looked at young people’s case records, local authority performance management and quality assurance information.

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Headline findings

Since the last ILACS inspection in June 2024, when children’s services were judged to be outstanding overall and the experiences of care leavers were judged to be good, leaders have maintained a clear focus on continuing to improve services for care leavers. Political and corporate leaders have ensured continued investment in Ofsted

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Headline findings

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 Textphone 0161 618 8524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.gov.uk/ofsted children’s services, making sure there is sufficient capacity and resources to sustain and further enhance these services.

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Headline findings

Care leavers receive consistent and responsive support from practitioners who know them well. Planning is mostly strong and reflects young people’s views, with effective management oversight. Most care leavers live in appropriate accommodation and are supported effectively towards independence. Support for education, training and employment is improving, and services respond well to the needs of specific groups of care leavers.

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Main findings

Political and corporate leaders in Hampshire demonstrate an unwavering commitment to continually improving services for care leavers. They maintain high aspirations, ensuring sustained investment and a clear strategic direction for the service. The proactive succession planning following the recent retirement of the previous Director of Children’s Services has ensured continuity and momentum in the development of the service. This collective drive from senior leaders creates the positive environment in which improvements can be embedded, enabling the delivery of high-quality, responsive support that reflects the needs of care leavers.

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Main findings

Personal advisers (PAs) build strong, trusting and enduring relationships with care leavers, beginning from the age of 16, prior to young people leaving care, from which point they work alongside the social worker. This early involvement enables practitioners to develop meaningful relationships with young people and to progress independence building work at a pace that is right for them.

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Main findings

Young people who inspectors spoke to describe consistently positive experiences with their PAs. Several young people highlighted the significant impact their PA had made on their lives, particularly in supporting them with their education, accommodation and understanding their needs.

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Main findings

PAs undertake meaningful visits to young people. When necessary, they increase the frequency of visits to match young people’s changing needs, and PAs are flexible in how and when they meet with young people to promote positive engagement. Inspectors also saw examples of tenacious practice where PAs worked persistently to contact young people who had disengaged, ensuring they continued to receive support.

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Main findings

‘My Life My Future’ pathway plans are completed collaboratively with young people and record their views, wishes and aspirations clearly. Most plans are completed at appropriate intervals and set out clear, actionable steps to support the young person’s progression. In the strongest of these plans, managers provide detailed oversight and reflective comments, demonstrating that they understand the young person’s needs.

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Main findings

Care leavers who are parents receive strong support from PAs, who advocate effectively for them and recognise their needs both as care leavers and as parents. PAs consider a wide range of support options and work closely with children’s social workers and staff from partner agencies when children are subject to child in need or child protection planning.

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Main findings

PAs support care leavers with their emotional and mental health through a sensitive and proactive approach. When young people are at increased risk due to their mental health, PAs coordinate support effectively and ensure that appropriate services are in place. Robust management oversight, in these situations, provides guidance to the PA that helps to ensure that young people remain safe.

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Main findings

Care leavers have good access to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) when specialist mental health support is needed. When care leavers have more complex or significant health needs, PAs offer strong advocacy, making sure care leavers receive the right help at the right time.

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Main findings

PAs hold high aspirations for care leavers and work hard to keep them engaged in education, advocating strongly for additional support or flexibility when challenges arise. Young people who are not in education, employment or training are supported to consider realistic next steps, with PAs working closely with them and their wider support networks to address barriers such as physical or mental health difficulties. PAs draw effectively on a strong knowledge of local opportunities and work in partnership with the virtual school and virtual college, who regularly share information about available courses, training and pathways.

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Main findings

Most care leavers live in accommodation that is appropriate for their needs and receive support that aligns with their individual levels of independence. When care leaversare ready to move on, PAs help them transition to fully independent living and ensure they can access essential items through the Independent Living Grant.

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Main findings

Young people who were formerly unaccompanied asylum-seeking children are supported by the Refugee Team, whose staff have developed strong specialist expertise, from which young people benefit. PAs take time to understand each young person’s history and the impact of past trauma, providing practical support and encouragement to pursue their ambitions. ‘My Life My Future’ pathway plans for former unaccompanied asylum-seeking children are culturally informed and include clear, tailored actions.

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Main findings

There is a comprehensive local offer, which PAs understand and share with young people, helping them understand their rights and entitlements. While progress has been made in responding to the finding of the previous ILACS, the offer remains insufficiently clear about the specific support available to particular groups of care leavers.

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Main findings

There is effective support for care leavers who are in custody. PAs carry out regular meaningful visits that focus on young people’s safety, wellbeing and their plans for accommodation and employment on release. This results in strong and well-targeted support that helps prepare care leavers effectively for their move back into the community.

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Main findings

Vulnerable care leavers, including those at risk of exploitation, receive strong support from PAs who are tenacious, curious and focused on identifying and responding to risk. PAs work effectively with staff from partner agencies and make good use of specialist services such as the pathways to safer living team to strengthen safeguarding arrangements for care leavers. PAs also recognise the risks of financial exploitation and develop strategies with young people who may be especially vulnerable, ensuring they are supported to manage these risks.

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Main findings

As young people approach the age of 21, PAs have open and transparent conversations with them about whether they wish to continue receiving support, ensuring there is no pressure to close their case. For those young people who prefer their case to remain open, PAs maintain a minimum of six-monthly visits with ongoing contact, keeping in touch at a frequency and in a manner that is proportionate to the level of need. Young people who decide not to continue with PA support understand that they can return at any time should they want further help.

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Main findings

Management oversight is effective, providing helpful direction and guidance to PAs. Supervision sessions are regular and create space to consider each young person’s circumstances and what these mean for their ongoing support. While actions are clearly noted, timescales for completion are not always consistently recorded.

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Main findings

Following the transition to a new case management system in 2024, reporting tools for care leavers’ performance data are still being overseen and developed by the deputy director.

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Main findings

There is a consistent commitment to quality assurance, and audits make good use of a structured, strengths-based tool. While audits support compliance and have had some positive impact on practice, some lack deeper analysis to explain the rationale behind judgements reached. The link between audit findings and supervision could be strengthened further. However, this sits within a wider, well-established effective quality assurance framework.

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Main findings

Care leavers in Hampshire are supported and encouraged to pursue a diverse range of interests and hobbies. There have been clear improvements in participation since the last inspection. Some care leavers are now contributing to the care leaver council and are actively involved in advocacy at the Corporate Parenting Board. Leaders also have plans to further strengthen opportunities for care leavers to participate and influence service development.

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Main findings

Ofsted will take the findings from this focused visit into account when planning the next inspection or visit.

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