By Charlotte Webster-
Child protection services in England are too focused on investigating families in crisis, and do not provide enough early support, according to a report.
An independent review of a council-run children’s social care concluded that services to protect vulnerable children were in urgent need of investment and reform.
In many cases, children were split from their siblings for too long and moved too far from where they grew up, adding an undetected layer of mental health issues for them.
It concluded that the current system was unsustainable and failing young people, and there is an increased demand for help.
The rep0rt surveyed over 1,000 young people, families and staff working in children’s services and discovered a system under significant strain, with an increasing number of families being investigated, more children in care, and costs spiraling.
The report said deprivation was a key factor among families needing help. Many of those who asked for support found assessments and investigations added to their stress.
A few social workers on the advisory board of this publication said there is a lack of fresh ideas in the field when it comes to providing adequate support to a number of children and families under child protection.
Negligence and incompetence continue to be a serious problem among many social workers.
The number of inquiries into whether a child is at risk of significant harm – known as section 47 inquiries – has more than doubled since 2010, rising to 201,000 investigations in a year.
The report said 135,000 of those led to no child protection plan, adding that concerns about risk have been most dominant amongst the worries raised.
Official figures also show that in 2019/20 there were more than 80,000 children in the care of local authorities in England, up 24% in a decade.
The review team looked at the availability and costs of foster care places and children’s homes. It concluded this “placement market” was broken and that too often young people ended up being moved a long way from home.
“Too often children are moved far from where they have grown up, are separated from their brothers or sisters, are forced to move schools, and have a revolving door of social workers,” the report said.
“We are failing to build lifelong loving relationships around these children.”
With council budgets squeezed over the last 10 years, spending has increasingly focused on expensive crisis services that local authorities are legally required to provide. That has meant cuts to early help for families.
Josh MacAlister, who chaired the independent review, said: “If we carry on like this, children’s social care will both become more expensive and continue to be inadequate in the support it gives to children and families, so we need to change.”
Image: whittingtonhealthnhstrust.