Sandwell Council under fire after taking two weeks to take children back to carer
A council has been criticised by a watchdog for taking two weeks to return two young children to their foster carer after a criminal investigation into the adult was dropped.
The Local Government Ombudsman found shortcomings in the way Sandwell Council took the children from their placement.
An investigation uncovered problems with how the council removed the six and seven-year-old kids from their beds 90 minutes after police told the authority their foster carer was due to be arrested.
The incident dates back to March 12, 2014, when 'a serious allegation' was made against the foster carer, known only in the report as Mr X.
When the council became aware he was due to be arrested, it sent in a support worker who removed the two children.
After falling ill in police custody Mr X was taken to hospital and left on March 14.
Although the police closed the case with no further action taken on March 27, the children were not returned to Mr X until April 10.
The report stated: "Although this is a relatively short period, the council's failure to carry out a strategy meeting raises the question whether it could have returned the children sooner if it had acted without fault."
The damning report has sparked calls for action in the department.
UKIP's Sandwell secretary Ric Keeling blasted the council's children's services and said change was needed.
Mr Keeling said: "How much longer can Sandwell Council's children's services get away with this sort of behaviour?
"Someone has to be held to account.
"Earlier in the year they received a second successive inadequate rating in the Ofsted report and they just brushed it off as being wrong.
"What will it take before there is a proper inquiry into the full extent of Sandwell's running of their children's services?"
Cabinet member for children's services Councillor Simon Hackett said the authority had 'accepted and are implementing the ombudsman's recommendations'.
Councillor Hackett said: "We have a duty to respond in a timely way to make sure vulnerable children are protected.
"This will always be our top priority.
"We respond on the information available to us at the time, as in this case when we received information from the police.
"We also have a duty to ensure we have considered all the options and that we have evidenced this correctly.
"We have accepted and are implementing the ombudsman's recommendations.
"We have also met with the foster carer after receiving this report.
"We are pleased that the ombudsman's report acknowledges the council's duty to act promptly in response to child safeguarding risks."
In their report, the recommendations are that the authority apologises to Mr X and pays him a total of £1,500, apologises to the two children and pays them £500 each.
It also suggested the council review its policy on recording discussions in safeguarding cases and arranges training for staff.
A new handbook for foster carers should also be issued, according to the ombudsman.
