Councils have been called on to help accommodate children with special educational needs after two boarding homes had their registrations suspended following critical inspections.

The MJ has learned that homes for Kisimul Woodstock House School in Surrey and Fullerton House School in Doncaster must rehouse scores of children affected by sudden Ofsted suspensions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During an emergency inspection of Woodstock House in February amid fears children were at risk, Ofsted inspectors uncovered poor record-keeping over alleged bullying, a lack of staff training and disruptive staff turnover, and warned ‘systems and procedures to safeguard the welfare, health and safety of pupils and staff' were ‘not strong enough'.

Concerns have also been identified at the Fullerton House School children's home, run by Hesley Group, which was the subject of a recent complaint.

An Ofsted spokesperson said: ‘We will continue to monitor these homes closely, working with all agencies involved.'