Keeping Children Safe, Helping Families Thrive – December 2024

 

Introduction

Children’s social care plays a transformative role in improving lives by supporting families, helping children thrive, and offering opportunities for the best life outcomes. It empowers extended families to participate in a child’s upbringing and provides safe, high-quality placements for children unable to stay at home, aiding recovery from trauma, abuse, and neglect. Additionally, it supports the wellbeing of disabled children and their families through early help, short breaks, and long-term care plans.

Overview

The government prioritises keeping children with their families whenever possible, using evidence-based approaches such as family group decision-making and multi-agency child protection teams to prevent unnecessary entry into the care system. Where care is necessary, kinship and foster placements are favoured over residential care, particularly for children in complex circumstances. Efforts aim to reform the care market by ending exploitative profit-making, increasing transparency in costs, and capping profits where necessary. To support these changes, the introduction of a single unique child identifier and improved data-sharing legislation will link systems across agencies and ensure seamless communication.

Strengthening Multi-Agency Safeguarding

Education is recognised as a critical partner in safeguarding due to educators’ close relationships with children and their role as significant referrers to children’s social care. Educators will have a mandated role in safeguarding processes, with statutory guidance revised to reflect this collaboration. Multi-agency child protection units will be legislated for in every local authority area, comprising experienced professionals from social care, police, health, and education sectors. These integrated teams will lead on child protection investigations, decision-making, and support planning, ensuring a coordinated and efficient response.

Home Education and Child Protection

While the right to home educate is respected, concerns about safeguarding children at risk within these environments are addressed. Under new measures, parents of children subject to Section 47 investigations must obtain local authority consent for home education, and local authorities will have the power to mandate school attendance where necessary. Registers for children not in school will be maintained, with provisions for supporting families who seek assistance.

Corporate Parenting Responsibilities

Corporate parenting responsibilities are extended to include government departments and public bodies to ensure policies and services meet the specific needs of children in care and care leavers. This includes reducing stigma, offering additional support akin to that provided by a family, and addressing discrimination. Government departments will produce detailed three-year plans outlining how they support children in care, fostering a holistic, coordinated approach to their welfare.

Educational Outcomes

The role of Virtual School Heads, already effective in improving attendance and academic outcomes for children in care, will be expanded to support broader groups, including those in kinship care. Local authorities will be statutorily required to promote educational achievement for all children in need, ensuring consistency. Proposals include further extending support to children leaving custody, providing equal opportunities for their development.

Staying Close Support

The Staying Close initiative will be made mandatory for all local authorities, providing tailored support packages for care leavers up to the age of 25. This support includes finding suitable accommodation, emotional backing, and practical assistance to help young people transition into independent living. Evaluations of pilot programs revealed significant improvements in mental health, a reduction in anti-social behaviour, and increased educational and employment outcomes. The rollout will be supported with funding and staffing resources over a three-year preparation period.

Reforming the Care System

Efforts to reform the care system focus on creating high-quality care homes in locations where they are most needed. Barriers such as planning permission challenges will be addressed, and the government will diversify the provider market to reduce reliance on private companies. Ofsted will receive expanded powers to tackle unregistered and unlawful care settings, ensuring all homes meet required standards and are subject to accountability.

Market Oversight

With the rise of private providers, the care market has faced challenges, including excessive fees. Financial oversight mechanisms will ensure providers are financially stable and operate ethically. These measures include contingency planning for provider exits and an early warning system for local authorities. Additionally, the government will introduce stricter transparency requirements to expose profiteering and unethical practices.

Community-Based Approaches

New community-based accommodation will be developed to support children who may need to be deprived of liberty, offering therapeutic care and tailored interventions. These facilities will be less restrictive than current secure homes and designed to provide a pathway to recovery and rehabilitation. Mandatory review points will ensure that children are not deprived of liberty for longer than necessary, emphasising their safety and wellbeing.

Improving Placement Quality

To improve placement quality, Ofsted will be empowered to hold organisations with multiple care homes accountable for systemic issues. This will address widespread weaknesses and ensure all children receive high standards of care. Expectations for residential care will be clarified, with input from stakeholders and those with lived experience, ensuring that diverse needs are met.

Regulating Placement Markets

Children’s social care budgets face significant strain due to rising placement costs and profit-driven providers. The government plans to cap profits and implement a financial oversight scheme to tackle these challenges. Providers will also be required to give adequate notice before exiting the market, allowing for smoother transitions and continued care for children. Legislative measures will enhance transparency, ensuring local authorities can negotiate better placement terms and costs.

Resources

Keeping Children Safe, Helping Families Thrive - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67375fe5ed0fc07b53499a42/Keeping_Children_Safe__Helping_Families_Thrive_.pdf

Supporting Families programme - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-families-programme-guidance-2022-to-2025

Independent review of social care - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-review-of-childrens-social-care-final-report