Child protection mistakes highlight Ofsted school safeguarding failings

"Procedures for safeguarding pupils are robust; staff and the designated governor are well informed about child protection; good practice in multi-agency work to support individual pupils is an example of the school's effective partnership work."

Any primary school head teacher would be pleased to have safeguarding at his school described this way in an Ofsted report. The parents will be reassured by such a ringing endorsement of good practice.

There's just one small problem. Those words were written by Ofsted about Little Heath Primary, the school attended by Daniel Pelka. Less than a year later, he was dead - his emaciation, hunger and visible bruises noticed but unreported by the school as child protection concerns. The serious case review, after detailing all the symptoms that were noticed but not passed on, stated the following: "The system within the school to respond to safeguarding concerns was therefore dysfunctional at this time. The school's own safeguarding and child protection policy does not make it clear what the internal arrangements were for reporting and recording concerns."