Section:GDN 1N PaGe:7 Edition Date:190807 Edition:01 Zone: Sent at 6/8/2019 19:59 cYanmaGentaYellowbla
Wednesday 7 August 2019 The Guardian •
7‘To just pull the plug
without any due
care to the lives of
those children is
unbelievable. It was
absolutely dreadful’James Cole
ParentWhaley Bridge
Dam could take years
to be repaired
Page 9Rolling Stones review
Giving ever more
satisfaction on tour
Page 15Families devastated after
special needs school close s
over safeguarding issues
Sally Weale
Education correspondentParents have expressed their devas-
tation at the sudden closure of a special
needs residential school in Bristol,
which has left their children – who
have severe and complex learning
diffi culties – distraught and without
suitable alternative placements.
Parents were called at work and
summoned to pick up their children
from St Christopher’s , an independ-
ent special school and care home in
Westbury Park in the north of the city,
after the schools regulator Ofsted sus-
pended its registration because of
safeguarding concerns.
Police have confi rmed they are
investigating allegations of child
cruelty and a number of staff have
been suspended pending the outcome
of the investigation. However, p arents
are furious at the way the closure was
handled, with little warning or appar-
ent forethought.
Parents were handed theirnow at home while his parents struggle
to fi nd an alternative place. “St Chris-
topher’s was quite unique in that it
took so many children with so many
complexities because they had such
good services there. It’s hard to fi nd
that replicated elsewhere.”
Cole said it took months of care-
ful investigations for parents with
children like Jacob to fi nd suitable
placements, which can cost around
£300,000 a year. Yet the suddenthey’ve made these children very
vulnerable.” Her son is now at home,
which will have an enormous impact
on family life. “He is very stressed. He
is going to miss all the really good car-
ers who looked after him. He had an
amazing team around him. We will
not let our son go anywhere else now.”
Other parents are having to con-
template travelling huge distances
to fi nd a suitable placement. “We
live in Bath and we’ve been off ered a
place in Northumberland or Shrews-
bury,” said Kevin Maxwell, whose
16-year-old son, Jonah, is one of the
27 pupils moved out of St Christopher’s
last week.
An Ofsted spokesperson said St
Christopher’s was inspected in June
and judged to be inadequate.
The inspection related to the res-
idential part of the provision, rather
than the school. “On Monday 29
July, we issued St Christopher’s with
a suspension of registration notice
because of serious concerns about
safeguarding.”
Avon and Somerset police con-
firmed: “We’re investigating
allegations of child cruelty off ences
relating to a special education school
in the north Bristol area. We’re work-
ing with our multi-agency partners to
ensure that safeguarding measures
are being put in place and Ofsted has
been notifi ed. Parents have been con-
tacted. Some members of staff have
been suspended while our investi-
gation continues.”
In 2016 St Christopher’s was threat-
ened with closure because it had
become economically unviable and
was taken over by the Aurora Group,
a private company specialising in
special education care.
An Aurora spokeswoman said:
“We are deeply concerned about the
serious allegations against a small
number of staff who were immedi-
ately suspended.
“They were reported to the author-
ities straight away in line with our
safeguarding procedures. We are
now focus ed on doing all that we can
to support the children, young people,
their families and carers, and the many
caring and dedicated staff who are
aff ected during this diffi cult time.”
Dr Jacqui Jensen , executive director
of people services at Bristol city coun-
cil, which is one of the local authorities
responsible for pupils at the schools,
said: “We are working with the fami-
lies, other local authorities and a range
of partners to review everyone’s indi-
vidual care plans and make alternative
arrangements for the provision of care
and education.”children’s belongings in black bin bags,
while some children were bussed to
emergency placements around the
country. Other parents, who have
not lived with their children for years
because of their extreme, challenging
behaviour, had no choice but to take
them home.
One parent described witnessing
an “auction”, as alternative provid-
ers selected pupils they were willing
to take on while rejecting others. Some
parents said they were having to give
up work to look after their children;
others said their children had been
traumatised by the experience and
had regressed.
“I feel they have left the children
in a more vulnerable position than if
they would have stayed there,” said
James Cole, whose 13-year-old son,
Jacob, has lived at St Christopher’s for
a year and a half.
“To just pull the plug without any
due care to the lives of those children
is unbelievable.”
Jacob, who has autism and epilepsy
and displays challenging behaviour, is▲ James Cole with his son Jacob, 13,
who has lived at St Christopher’s, in
Bristol, for a year and a half
PHOTOGRAPH: ADRIAN SHERRATT/THE GUARDIANclosure of St Christopher’s meant
some children were moved elsewhere
in hours. “It was absolutely dreadful,”
he said.
One mother, who asked to remain
anonymous, described seeing her
15-year-old son lying on the grass
sobbing, his carers lying alongside,
cuddling him and crying too. “These
poor children. It’s had a massive
impact on them,” she said.
“It’s heartbreaking, absolutely
heartbreaking. Parents were stand-
ing with their children’s belongings
in black bin bags, crying, while their
children were being loaded into vans
and being sent to other areas of the
country. I understand they had their
reasons [for closing the school] –
they are protecting our children – but Judged to be
inadequate
by Ofsted: St
Christopher’s
in Bristol
PHOTOGRAPH:
SIMON CHAPMAN/LNPview
ur
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