Solihull safeguarding report finds 'urgent action' needed following death of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes

Children in need of help and protection in Solihull "wait too long for their initial need and risk to be assessed", a report into the safeguarding services in the borough has found.

Findings from an inspection following the death of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes confirmed "urgent action is needed" for the council and local police intervention.

Arthur's case shocked the nation in 2021 after a harrowing nine-week trial revealed he was subjected to a horrific campaign of abuse at the hands of his dad Thomas Hughes and his partner Emma Tustin.

The six-year-old was murdered by his dad's partner at her home in Shirley in June 2020.

Tustin was jailed for a minimum of 29 years for his murder, while Hughes was sentenced to 21 years for manslaughter.

Last month, it was revealed the pair will have their "lenient" jail sentences referred to the Court of Appeal.

What does the safeguarding report into Solihull council say?

The report said the timeliness and quality of the initial decision-making in the MASH (multi-agency safeguarding hub) in relation to concerns received about children needs to be improved.

As children "waited too long", this means that for a significant number of children they remain in situations of unassessed and unknown risk, the report said.

The report finds West Midlands Police need to take urgent action to improve the quality of information held on its "Connect" record management system to avoid duplication.

The inspection, which took place from 10 to 14 January 2022, has found local children's bosses need to take urgent action to understand and identify the initial needs and risks of children.

This will allow any child at risk to be clearly seen and recognised, the report adds.

What issues did the inspection team uncover?

The team noted that social services and child protection teams in Solihull had experienced frequent staff changes and shortages over a lengthy period of time.

This resulted in a "loss of knowledge and experience" in area. Following the high profile court case, it's become apparent that social workers are "highly reluctant" to work in Solihull.

Many multi-agency meetings are poorly attended or attended sporadically, the team learned.

The lack of joined up, cross agency communication is apparent.

And police were also criticised for poor record-keeping. Inspectors "are concerned about incomplete records" within the police ‘Connect’ system.

Inspectors saw examples of separate records for the same person (because a name had been spelled incorrectly), children not linked on the system to their parents/carers, siblings or significant others and connections between children and those who pose a risk.

One young girl was exposed to a domestic abuse incident who was not linked to her father - who has a history of domestic abuse and drugs misuse - because of errors in the Connect system.

What has been the reaction to the report?

Joanna Barrett, NSPCC Nations Head of Policy, said: "It’s hugely concerning that this inspection has found systemic problems with the ‘front door’ of safeguarding services which mean a significant number of children are waiting far too long for their initial assessment, leaving them at risk of harm and cruelty.

"It is absolutely crucial that safeguarding agencies in Solihull are better resourced and work together more quickly and efficiently to share information and intervene as early as possible to prevent any more tragedies like the death of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes.

"However, these issues are not confined to one area and we know that this is one piece of a much bigger puzzle affecting many local authorities across the country.

"Therefore, it is vital that the government displays national leadership by addressing existing pressures on children’s services and ensuring the recommendations from the National Child Safeguarding Review Panel and the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care are a watershed moment that leads to significant change in our child protection system."

She adds: "A crucial first step will be for the Government to prioritise child safeguarding in the Health and Care Bill by ensuring every new Integrated Care Board created by the legislation is fully supported to deliver on their legal responsibility to safeguard children."

In a joint statement, Minister for Children and Families Will Quince, Minister for Care Gillian Keegan and Minister for Safeguarding Rachel Maclean said: "Arthur’s death was horrific and deeply disturbing.

"The two individuals responsible are in prison – but we must do everything we can to prevent any more cases like this.

"His death serves as a daily reminder of the urgent need for all the agencies tasked with protecting vulnerable children to work together. That’s why we commissioned this joint inspection of services in Solihull, which has identified two clear areas where priority action is needed.

"Each agency – police, health and children’s services – has an equal duty in this work and we are writing to all three to make clear our expectation that they participate fully in producing and delivering on a written statement of action."

What does the local authority say about the findings?

Steve Cullen, independent scrutineer for Solihull Local Safeguarding Children Partnership, said they accepted the conclusions of the review.

He said in a statement: “It is clear from the findings of the Joint Targeted Area Inspection published today, and following the analysis by organisations of their local practice, that there are areas that need to improve. 

"The Partnership needs to better understand the lived experiences of children in Solihull and individual organisations need to make improvements to the way that they respond to children – we haven’t waited until the report to do this, work has already begun.

"On behalf of the safeguarding partners I want to provide assurance that we have taken on board all of the comments from the inspectors and we committed to work together to improve the way we protect children in Solihull and to do everything we can to ensure positive outcomes for our children and young people.”

Mr Cullen added that the local authority had established a multi-agency Improvement board with an independent chair to drive forward the necessary changes.