Tell Ofsted about a serious incident in a children’s home or secure children’s home
Tell Ofsted about a serious incident in a children’s home or secure children’s home.
Applies to England
Do not use the serious incident form to send updates about an incident you have already reported. Read our guidance on when you should submit an update.
What incidents to report
Children’s homes and secure children’s homes must report the following incidents (sometimes called incident ‘notifications’ or ‘events’) to us:
- the death of a child
- if you have reported someone under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006
- you know or suspect that a child has been involved in or subject to sexual exploitation
- a serious incident with a child that required police involvement
- an abuse allegation against the home or someone working there
- if a child protection enquiry has started or concluded
- if a child has a serious accident or injury (secure children’s homes only)
- if a child has absconded (secure children’s homes only)
- if a child makes or receives unauthorised contact with someone that their plan states they should not be in contact with (secure children’s homes only)
- any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers serious
Your Ofsted record will automatically update when you submit your report.
When you must report an incident
You should report the death of a child immediately.
All other incident reports should be made without delay and, where possible, within 24 hours. In situations where you need to gather further information, we recognise this may take more than 24 hours.
Report an incident
The serious incident reporting form will ask you for the following:
- your unique reference number (URN) (you can find your URN on your registration, your inspection reports and on your Ofsted reports page)
- the type of incident
- your contact details and the details for your service and relevant members of staff
- when and where the incident happened
- details of any child involved and the initials of all staff involved
- the registered person’s evaluation of the incident and actions taken
- if you have informed any other relevant people or organisations such as the Secretary of State, the placing authority or relevant local authority
To alert Ofsted in urgent situations, particularly if there is a lot of press interest, call 0300 123 1231.
Report an incident in a different children’s social care service
Death of a child
You must use the serious incident reporting form to report the death of a child to us without delay.
The reporting form will ask you to provide the following details of the incident:
- a brief summary of the incident
- the cause of death, including the date of diagnosis or time of the incident that led to death
- any treatment the child has received and details of the hospital the child has been admitted to (if any)
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time
Safeguarding referrals
Use the serious incident reporting form if someone in your service has been referred to the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) as unfit to work with children or vulnerable adults.
Children’s homes and secure children’s homes must tell Ofsted if they have reported someone under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.
Telling Ofsted about safeguarding referrals
The reporting form will ask you to provide details of the incident. You should include:
- a brief summary of the incident
- the date of referral
- the role of the person referred
- the reason for referral
- the date and reference number of any previous notification to Ofsted relating to this person
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time and planned prevention measures
Report a safeguarding referral
Known or suspected sexual exploitation
Children’s homes and secure children’s homes must use the serious incident reporting form to tell Ofsted if they know, or suspect, that a child has been involved in or subject to sexual exploitation.
Secure children’s homes also need to report if a child accesses or receives electronic material that may suggest they are at increased risk of, or being subject to, sexual exploitation.
Telling Ofsted about known or suspected sexual exploitation
The reporting form will ask you to provide details of the incident. You should include:
- a brief summary of the incident or incidents
- the reasons that have led you to believe that a child has been sexually exploited
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time and planned prevention measures
Report known or suspected sexual exploitation
Police involvement
Children’s homes and secure children’s homes should use the serious incident reporting form to tell Ofsted about any incident involving the police that the registered person considers to be serious.
Usually this means the police are taking action on an incident in your service, for example:
- making an arrest
- taking witness statements
- responding to an incident in the home
You do not need to send a serious incident report about police involvement just because you are in contact with the police about an incident.
For example, if the police are helping you with another incident that you are reporting, but you don’t consider their involvement requires a report in its own right, you can mention on that incident report that the police are helping you. You do not need to send a separate report to Ofsted about police involvement.
Telling Ofsted about about police involvement
The reporting form will ask you to provide details of the incident. You should include:
- a brief summary of the incident
- the outcome of any police investigation
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time and planned prevention measures
Allegations of abuse
Children’s homes and secure children’s homes must use the reporting form if any allegation of abuse is made against your service or a member of your staff.
Telling Ofsted about allegations of abuse
The reporting form will ask you to provide details of the incident. You should include:
- a summary of the allegation
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time and planned prevention measures
Start or conclusion of a child protection enquiry
You must send one serious incident report when a child protection enquiry has started (‘instigated’) and another report when it has finished (‘concluded’).
Do not use the reporting form to send any other updates about an enquiry to Ofsted, you only need to report the start and conclusion. If you have already reported a child protection enquiry, but you want to provide an update, you can do this by sending an email to your allocated inspector.
Telling Ofsted about the start or conclusion of a child protection enquiry
The reporting form will ask you to provide details of the incident. You should include:
- a brief summary of the event that led to the start of the enquiry, including the date and time
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time and planned prevention measures (if known)
If you’re reporting that an enquiry has finished, you need to include:
- the date that you reported the start of the enquiry
- the outcome of the enquiry
- your notification reference number
- actions taken by staff and managers in response to the enquiry
Report the start or conclusion of a child protection enquiry
Serious accident and injury (secure children’s homes only)
Secure children’s homes must report any serious accident to a child, whether in the home or away with an escort.
A serious accident usually means that a child has been injured and needs medical treatment (other than basic first aid) onsite or in a hospital.
Do not send a report to Ofsted:
- for minor injuries that require no treatment or only basic first aid on-site
- if a child is taken to hospital but they do not receive any treatment there.
Telling Ofsted about accidents or injuries
The reporting form will ask you to provide details of the incident. You should include:
- a brief summary of the incident
- the cause of the accident and injury, including the time and date of the accident
- any treatment the child has received and details of the hospital the child has been admitted to (if any)
- planned prevention measures
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time
Report serious accident and injury
Child absconding from the home (secure children’s homes only)
Secure children’s homes must send a serious incident report if a child is missing from the home or if they have gone missing with an escort service while away from the home.
Telling Ofsted about about a child absconding from the home
The reporting form will ask you to provide details of the incident.
You should include:
- a brief summary of the incident
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time and planned prevention measures
Report a child absconding from the home
Unauthorised contact (secure children’s homes only)
Secure children’s homes must report a serious incident to Ofsted if a child has unauthorised contact with someone that their plan states they should not be in contact with.
Telling Ofsted about unauthorised contact
The reporting form will ask you to provide details of the incident. You should include:
- a brief summary of the incident
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time and planned prevention measures
Any other serious incident
You should report any incident relating to a child that the registered person considers serious.
Examples include:
- reporting serious assault
- serious complaints against the service
- child illness
- self-harm
For secure children’s homes only, a serious incident may include:
- failure or damage to any part of the building that presents a safety or security risk (including the power supply or CCTV)
- concerns about drones
- prohibited items found in the setting that are high risk
- a serious incident away from the home, such as restraint in a public place
Children’s homes should consider reporting any accident to a child that the registered person considers serious. This would usually mean that the child has been admitted to hospital. If you are considering reporting self-harm, you do not usually need to send a serious incident report for self-harm that results in minor injuries.
If a child goes missing from a children’s home (non-secure), you should only report it if any of these apply:
- you have serious concerns about unusual behaviour or patterns of behaviour that could indicate an increased risk to the child
- the missing child will be at grave risk due to their age or vulnerability
- the child has been missing for a considerable period of time and you do not know where they are
Telling Ofsted about any other serious incident
To report any other incident, select the option “Other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious” on the form.
The reporting form will ask you to provide the following details of the incident:
- a brief summary of the incident
- planned prevention measures
- actions taken by staff and managers at the time