A children’s home run by the country’s biggest autism charity has been barred temporarily from taking in any more young people after a highly critical Ofsted inspection.
Inspectors warned that children are “at risk of serious harm” in the home, which is run by the National Autistic Society, and issued a “notice restricting accommodation”.
The charity told Third Sector that it took safeguarding “extremely seriously” and was working closely with regulators on the report’s recommendations.
The Ofsted report, published late last year following an inspection in November, does not name the facility, which is understood to be in Yorkshire and is on the same site as a school attended by the children.
The report makes a series of recommendations for improving culture and safety at the home, which must be met before restrictions will be lifted.
The announcement comes after Third Sector revealed that the government was investigating separate concerns about safety at schools run by NAS.
It also emerged that the academies trust managed by the charity had breached governance laws.
Ofsted judged the home to be “outstanding” when it was inspected in March 2022 but now rates it as “inadequate”.
The report says: “Since the last inspection, there have been significant shortfalls in the safety and protection of children and [in] the leadership and management of the home.
“These shortfalls placed children at risk of serious harm.”
Incidents since March last year include children’s toys being broken or damaged and a pet fish being killed, the report says.
Inspectors acknowledged the “complex needs” of some children living in the home but criticised “a significant increase” in the use of physical restraints, including some judged “unlawful”.
Work to record the use of restraint techniques is described as “poor” and inspectors were told that some staff were unwilling to undergo essential training.
The report added: “Leaders and managers across the organisation have failed to identify that staff practice and/or a lack of suitable training have compromised the welfare, safety and protection of children.”
A spokesperson for the charity said: “The National Autistic Society takes safeguarding and the protection of children’s welfare within our settings extremely seriously.
“We have a robust action plan in place, which covers all the areas of improvement highlighted by Ofsted.
“We are progressing the recommendations of the report and working closely with regulatory bodies to ensure the quality of care returns to the high standards we expect and demand for autistic people and their families.”