Improvement notice issued over ‘unlawful’ use of force at Oakhill STC

A joint letter from Ofsted, the Care Quality Commission and HM Inspectorate of Prisons, has been sent to Justice Secretary Dominic Raab following a full inspection at Oakhill earlier this month.

It found that vulnerable children face frequent violence and excessive use of force at Oakhill, while living conditions are “dilapidated”.

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Inspectors criticised the Milton Keynes centre, over “unjustifiable – and in some cases unlawful – levels of force being used on children as young as 15”. 

“Staff lack the skill to carry out restraint safely, while oversight of the use of force is inadequate”, inspectors found, adding that systems for keeping children safe are in “disarray”, leaving children at risk of serious harm. 

A monitoring inspection report, published this week, based on a visit in September, found that children at Oakhill were spending up to 23 hours a day in their rooms due to inadequate staffing. While this practice has ended, children’s experiences during this period were “bleak”, and “barely met minimum standards of human decency”, the inspectorates say.

Concerns were also raised over the staffing of the centre which inspectors say “remains fragile”. 

Records show Oakhill is losing almost 30 per cent of its staff each year, leading to unstable, transient relationships with children.

A new interim director took up post at Oakhill in September but will only be in place for up to three months. 

“While the director acknowledges inspectors’ concerns and has begun to address some of the issues raised, permanent leadership has yet to be arranged,” inspectors said.

The urgent notification marks the third time in two weeks that inspectors have highlighted concerns about treatment of children in secure centres following a damning report into conditions at Rainsbrook STC, run by MTC Novo, which was recently downgraded to “inadequate”.

Since 2017, G4S-run Oakhill has not been judged higher than “requires improvement to be good” for the “overall experiences and progress of children”.

Raab now has 28 days to respond to the urgent notification with an action plan for improvement at the centre.

Amanda Spielman, Ofsted’s chief inspector, said: “This is a centre in chaos, with children bearing the brunt of staff shortages and poor organisation. These are vulnerable children in need of care, yet they are living with excessive use of force and violent incidents, in conditions that no one would want for their own children. Stable leadership and a full, effective workforce are vital if children are to get the rehabilitation they so desperately need.”

Charlie Taylor, chief inspector of prisons, said: “Oakhill STC is failing to provide adequate care for such a vulnerable group of children and it was hugely disappointing to find a staff team that was unable to manage behaviour effectively, failed to safeguard children, and overused physical restraint. 

“Urgent action must be taken to make sure that there is a strong leadership team in place and sufficient, high-quality staff to transform the outcomes in this long-troubled centre.”