Ofsted inspection of Children's Services 2026

Ofsted is the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills. They inspect and regulate services that care for children and young people.

In May 2026 Ofsted inspected Lancashire County Council's Children's Services.

The inspection looked at Children's Social Care; specifically social workers' direct practice with families.

Ofsted judged:

• Outstanding for the impact of leaders on social work practice with children and families.

• Outstanding for the experiences and progress of care leavers.

• Good for the experiences and progress of children who need help and protection.

• Good for the experiences and progress of children in care.

Ofsted has written a report of the inspection that tells us what we are good at and what we need to do differently.

The full report is available on the Ofsted website.