Council's 'front door' children's services criticised by Ofsted

A SECTION of a council's children’s services has been criticised by Ofsted.

- By DANIEL HODGSON Local democracy reporter [e-mail]

Middlesbrough Council’s “front door” children’s services received a “focussed visit” by Ofsted on December 9 and 10, 2025.

“Front door” services are first contact between the authority and others regarding the safety and wellbeing of a child.

It is made up of the council's assessment service and the multi-agency children’s hub (MACH).

It's where concerns are often raised and initial work is completed before a decision is made on what needs to be done to support a child or family.

No headline rating was issued by Ofsted - only this part of the wider department was under the spotlight - and while certain aspects were recognised positively, an inspector's public letter highlighted negatives too.

HM Inspector Nabeel Hussain to Annabel Bates, director of children's services at Middlesbrough Council, says the visit was carried out in accordance with the inspection of local authority children’s services framework.

A full Ofsted inspection of children’s services is anticipated later this year, while the last inspection, held in March 2023, resulted in an overall rating of ‘requires improvement’.

The council's quality of initial responses to children is deemed “inconsistent”, not always resulting in proportionate decisions for children and families.