'State of emergency' as children needing foster care up by 44% - Tulip Siddiq responds

Tulip Siddiq MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Children and Early Years, responding to news that there has been a 44% rise in children needing foster care in the Covid-19 pandemic, said:

“This pandemic has taken a terrible toll on vulnerable children, who have been far more exposed to domestic abuse, online grooming, and other threats in recent months. The result is that many more children now need foster care and other support services, which have been cut to the bone in the last decade.

“Labour has been warning for months that there will be a huge rise in demand for children’s services. The scale of this crisis is now starting to come to light, and it’s not clear how the Government plans to deal with it. 

“The Government must come forward with a proper plan to ensure that vulnerable children and those moving into the care system can access the support they need. Ministers must also scrap the unnecessary and dangerous regulations that have weakened safeguards for children entering foster care placements.”

Ends

Notes to Editors:

·       Children needing foster care rises 44% during coronavirus pandemic – report released by Barnardo’s today (Tuesday). Meanwhile, the number of people looking to become foster carers has fallen by almost half over the same period.