Ofsted inspections
About the Inspections of Local Authority Children’s Services (ILACS)
Ofsted is the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills.
They inspect and regulate services for:
- children
- young people
- families
- services providing education and skills for learners of all ages.
During the inspection a team of Ofsted inspectors visit us and look at specific cases in detail and meet:
- parents and carers
- children and young people
- staff
- managers
- partners.
They also review documents, performance information and case audits to make their judgement.
Ofsted review April 2025
A review of Medway's children's social care services took place in April 2025. This visit looked at our arrangements for children in need and the child protection plan.
Key strengths highlighted by Ofsted:
- strong corporate and political commitment to improving services for children and young people
- positive work supporting 16 and 17 year olds at risk of homelessness
- continued improvements in services for children with disabilities and adolescents at risk of exploitation
- social workers know children well and provide regular, meaningful visits
- effective partnership working across agencies
- access to a wide range of services and interventions for families
- positive outcomes from family group decision-making forums
- staff feel supported and value opportunities for professional development and career progression.
View the full Ofsted report for children's services in 2025.
What we'll continue to improve
During the review, Ofsted highlighted the following areas for improvement:
- improving the quality of assessments and planning
- ensuring timely interventions and decision-making
- strengthening management and supervision.
We are addressing issues with service demand and recruitment to improve these areas.
Keeping you up to date with what we're doing
We will provide regular updates on developments and improvements to our staff and partners through newsletters and briefings.
Regular updates will also be provided to our different committees including the Children and Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee.
Keeping Medway's children safe
We are taking all necessary steps to ensure that children are kept as safe as possible.
We will take immediate action where we do identify any risk to children.
Our commitment to children in Medway
Councillor Adam Price, Portfolio Holder for Children’s Services, said:
“Children’s Services in Medway have been on a significant improvement journey in recent years, and we welcome this latest feedback from Ofsted.
Children matter in Medway, and our ambition is to ensure every single child has the support they need to get the best possible start to life. We remain committed to working hard to make sure children in Medway remain at the heart of everything we do.”