We need an INDEPENDENT scrutineer!

Kevin Crompton has been Herefordshire’s so-called “Independent Scrutineer” for a number of years. His role is supposed to be to scrutinise the action and inaction of Children’s and Adult Safeguarding in Herefordshire — with rigour, at arm’s length, and with genuine independence.

That matters in a local authority repeatedly criticised for failing to keep children and young people safe.

But what families see is not independent scrutiny. What we see is assurance-taking, not evidence-gathering. Comfort, not challenge.

And when you look at the reality of the role, perhaps that’s no surprise.

The post is contracted for around 40 days a year — roughly 0.75 days a week — and costs the taxpayer £35,098 annually to cover both children’s and adults’ safeguarding scrutiny.

Less than one day a week to provide “independent challenge” across two complex safeguarding systems.

That alone should make everyone stop and think.

Credentials, Confidence… and Complacency

In March 2025, Mr Crompton attended a meeting with the Families’ Alliance for Change (Herefordshire). He spent a considerable amount of time walking the meeting through his CV, establishing his senior credentials and long history deep within the system.

Then, early in the meeting, when parents raised concerns, he smiled complacently and said he was “not the kind of person to have the wool pulled over his eyes.”

Oh really, Mr Crompton?

Utterly Lacking in Self-Awareness

That’s quite a claim from a man who so spectacularly missed the point in relation to the tragic death of Natasha Ashby, aged just 21.

Tasha was a care leaver. Herefordshire Council was her corporate parent, with a duty to house her. Yet she died street homeless in a tent, surrounded by Class A drug users, despite having the mental capacity of an eight-year-old and despite multiple safeguarding referrals in the weeks and months before her death.

After a Rapid Review, Mr Crompton agreed there was no need for a serious case review.

Really, Mr Crompton?

A vulnerable care leaver dies homeless in a tent in the middle of Hereford and you don’t think that merits a serious case review — especially when, just six weeks earlier, the Coroner had already issued a Prevention of Future Deaths notice to the Council after another care leaver died homeless in a tent?

Fortunately, the Coroner has taken a very different view. He has allocated ten days for the inquest and has called Mr Crompton as a witness. One of the key questions will be whether the actions or inactions of the Council and/or the Children or Adult Safeguarding Board contributed to Tasha’s death.

So, with hindsight, Mr Crompton — was the wool pulled over your eyes? Or were you, like others, keen for this case to be buried?

Mr Crompton may claim that the Rapid Review didn’t tell him the full story. But this is a council repeatedly criticised for lacking candour under scrutiny. Independent scrutineers are paid to uncover risk, to unpick evidence, to cross-check the information officers provide, and to challenge.

Not to accept assurances.

The Broken Complaints System

In the interests of a civil dialogue, families at the meeting swallowed hard and did not raise Tasha’s name. Instead, parents spoke in numbers about the broken complaints system — the lack of candour, the lack of accountability, the harm caused to families.

Mr Crompton promised to raise this with the Children’s Commissioner and get back to us.

We heard nothing for over three months.

When his response finally came on 30 June 2025, it showed exactly the same lack of self-awareness on display at the meeting.

In essence, his response was this:

You told me there is a problem.
I didn’t ask you for any evidence.
I asked the people you are complaining about if there’s a problem.
They said no.
They showed me their shiny new policies.
So I conclude you’re mistaken.

These were his actual words:

Since the meeting I have had detailed conversations with the DfE Commissioner and we both met with Tilly Paige the Complaints and Children’s Rights Manager in the Herefordshire County Council’s Corporate services.  There was a detailed conversation regarding the updated approach that has been introduced to handle complaints better.  I have read the current policy under which HCC handles complaints about children’s services. I have also seen the revised process for the way Children’s services handles complaints and I have viewed one of the regular weekly updates that are considered by the CSC leadership team.   Based on this evidence I would conclude that HCC is now operating at the same standard as other Local Authorities in terms of complaints about children’s services.  More importantly the process instituted by the interim DCS is ensuring more complaints are dealt with at an earlier stage and that there is much better communication and contact with complainants.  This was confirmed in a report to the Improvement Board in March.  That Board noted that families report it to be a better process and noted that Complaints data is sent weekly to strategic leaders.

If this is Kevin Crompton’s idea of scrutiny then it’s hardly any wonder entrenched failure has gone unchallenged for so long.

Cases Brought to the Families’ Commission

Several families also told him they had given evidence to the Families’ Commission — sessions he sat in on — yet their cases were still unresolved.

Again, he promised to investigate.

His response can be paraphrased as:

You say your cases aren’t resolved.
But officers say they are.
So you must be wrong about your own lives.

And this is what he actually wrote:

I noted the level of dissatisfaction expressed at the meeting and made enquiries regarding what action was being taken.   I have been provided with detailed feedback and whilst most of the cases appear to be closed there is also evidence of a lot of work undertaken by the Cabinet Member for Children’s services, the Children’s Complaints and Children’s rights manager and the interim DCS to review individual cases and it appears that historic issues have been resolved as far as possible. 

No, Mr Crompton. Some of these cases are not resolved. Children are still at risk.

Why do you accept “assurances” without doing any independent scrutiny? How can you possibly assess the facts if you never gather evidence from those raising concerns?

Instead, you appear willing to write families off as stupid to avoid doing the real work of scrutiny.

A Foster Carer Charged With Child Sexual Abuse

Then there is the case of the foster carer charged with 15 counts of child sexual abuse, made public in July 2025.

Mr Crompton has known about this since August 2023, when he received a desperate email warning that children had been placed with a man previously taken to court for serious sexual offences — and that there had been no meaningful safeguarding response from Herefordshire Children’s Services, even after the police submitted a MASH referral.

True to form, his response has been to allow himself to be “assured” by officers, without ever engaging with those raising the alarm or examining the evidence they say shows serious error and malpractice.

Accepting Assurances Is Not Good Enough

What if the police worked the way Kevin Crompton does?

Imagine you report Burglar Bill for stealing your diamond ring.
The police take no evidence from you.
They just ask Bill if he did it.
He says no.
So the police tell you there’s no crime — and never look at your CCTV.

That’s the level of “scrutiny” families are seeing.

Herefordshire taxpayers pay £35,098 a year for this role to help keep children and families safe. But FAC has seen no evidence of meaningful independent scrutiny on the issues we raised.

And his reply to us?

On headed notepaper.

Yes.
Herefordshire Council headed notepaper.

So much for independence.