A statutory direction has been issued to West Sussex County Council due to poor performance in children’s social care services. See Gov.uk website
West Sussex Council was found by OFSTED at an inspection carried out between 25 February and 8 March 2019 that its Childrenās Services are āinadequateā. The Secretary of State for Education has therefore taken away the Councilās administration of the children’s social care functions and handed them to neighbouring Hampshire County Council.
| Judgement | Grade |
| The impact of leaders on social work practice with children and families Inadequate | Inadequate |
| The experiences and progress of children who need help and protection | Inadequate |
| The experiences and progress of children in care and care leavers | Inadequate |
| Overall effectiveness | Inadequate |
Source: Table from OFSTED 2018-2019 report
The OFSTED report judged the overall effectiveness of West Sussex County Councilās runningofits Childrenās Social Care services to be inadequate. Until OFSTED are satisfied that West Sussex County Council are able to manage Childrenās Social Care services the department in its entirety will be handed over to John Coughlin, Chief Executive of Hampshire County Council.
The fact that the Conservative controlled Council has received such a poor OFSTED result that it has given control of its Childrenās Services to the neighbouring local authority of Hampshire County Council is a damming indictment of its politicianās inability to run the Council.