The leader of Solihull Council has said the authority has made “significant strides” in improving children’s services in the five years since the death of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes.
Council Leader Karen Grinsell (Conservative) reflected on the progress made since the tragic case, which exposed serious failings in the way local agencies worked together to safeguard vulnerable children.
Speaking on the anniversary of Arthur’s death, Cllr Grinsell said the council had strengthened its collaboration with partner organisations such as the police and health services, while also improving internal leadership and easing social workers’ workloads.
“These changes are making a real difference to how we respond to children in need of help,” she said. “We’ve worked hard to improve our services, and I’m pleased that our most recent Ofsted monitoring visit recognised the significant strides we’ve made. But we know there is still work to do — and we will not rest on our laurels.”
Solihull Council faced intense criticism following Arthur’s death in June 2020. The schoolboy was tortured by his father, Thomas Hughes, and his partner, Emma Tustin, and died of a head injury at their home. Tustin was convicted of murder and sentenced to a minimum of 29 years in prison. Hughes was found guilty of manslaughter and initially jailed for 21 years, with his sentence later increased to 24 years.
In 2022, Ofsted rated the council’s children’s services as “inadequate,” citing widespread failings. Since then, the authority has been subject to a series of monitoring visits to track progress.
The most recent and final visit, which took place in April, found improvements in key areas, including how safeguarding referrals are handled and how staff workloads are managed. A full reinspection by Ofsted is expected later this year.
Opposition councillors welcomed the progress but stressed that further improvements are still needed to ensure long-term change.
“Our thoughts are with Arthur’s family and friends on this difficult anniversary,” Cllr Grinsell added. “Everything we’re doing is about making sure children in Solihull are better protected and properly supported.”