Written statements on 1) Children's Social Care Update and 2) Safeguarding Update - Dec 18

Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing (David Johnston): The Prime Minister has been clear about the importance of family in ensuring children can thrive and this government is determined to put families at the heart of society. I am therefore pleased to update the House on our progress to reform children’s social care to ensure children and families get the support they need at the right time.

Earlier this year we set out bold and ambitious plans to reform children’s social care through ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’(opens in a new tab). Our strategy, backed by £200 million investment, responded to reviews that provided a vision of how to do things differently – including the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care and the National review into the murders of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Star Hobson. These reviews were clear that we must reform services to improve the outcomes of children and families. Our strategy set a vision for a transformed children’s social care system that makes sure families get the help they need, when they need it.

We have moved a step closer to realising this vision, and honour commitments to publish:

• The first ever national kinship strategy, ‘Championing Kinship Care’ which sets out support for family networks providing loving and stable homes to children.
• A new Children’s Social Care National Framework which sets out the purpose, principles and outcomes that should be achieved in children’s social care.
• Updated statutory guidance, ‘Working Together’, which sets out how to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
• A data strategy which sets out the long-term plan for transforming data in children’s social care.

Through this statement I update the House on each publication, copies of which have been laid in the libraries of each House. I am also informing members that we will also increase our budget to deliver fostering reforms by up to £8.5 million, taking the total investment to £36 million. This is the largest ever investment in fostering in England and will support us to roll out recruitment and retention programmes to over 60% of all local authorities in England.

We want children who cannot live with their parents to be supported to live with people who are known to them and love them. Kinship carers need our support and backing to offer this care and love so they can in turn help us achieve our aim of keeping more families together. Our kinship strategy, ‘Championing Kinship Care’, sets out the practical and financial support we will provide to kinship families, and is backed by £20 million investment. It details how we will provide further support for kinship carers, including launching a financial allowance pathfinder which will provide more financial stability for children growing up in kinship care and sets out our plans to champion the outcomes of children in kinship care in schools. Prioritising Kinship care requires us all to champion, support and empower kinship families.

We must also deliver excellent standards of practice to improve outcomes for children, raise aspirations and ensure partnership working across all agencies, including police, health and education. We have published the Children’s Social Care National Framework as statutory guidance. It brings together the purpose, principles, enablers, and outcomes that children’s social care should achieve so children, young people and families can thrive. We want all local authorities to consider how their local offer of support makes a real difference to the lives of children, young people and their families.

Our plans for reform have always recognised the central importance of children’s welfare. Children must be kept safe, and this means we must take swift and decisive action to protect them when they are not. Our multi-agency statutory guidance, ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’, has been updated and replaces a version from 2018. We want all parts of the system to embed new child protection standards for practitioners, and to use and deploy a multi-disciplinary workforce to provide coordinated help, support and protection.

Lastly, the data we collect about children and families and the information recorded about their lives and interactions with children’s social care is sensitive and personal. This data is held in many places, which makes bringing it together challenging. Our digital and data strategy sets out the foundations needed to embark on ambitious transformation, and the actions we will take between 2023-2025. We will also publish a Children’s Social Care Dashboard next year to understand progress towards the outcomes in the National Framework.

The reviews from last year called for an urgent, fundamental and system-wide transformation of children’s social care. Today we reaffirm our commitment to reform. Transforming how we operate depends on the support and commitment of local Government leadership, leaders across children’s social care, safeguarding partners, relevant agencies and all practitioners. That is why we have also published a reform statement for local authorities and partners in the system.

Today is a time to reflect on the thousands of people who have shared their views since we embarked on reform, including children and families, kinship carers, social workers, dedicated professionals and practitioners and charities. I give my personal thanks to every individual in helping us reach this milestone in our reform journey.

Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing (David Johnston): Today, the Government has published our response to the recommendations made by the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel (the Panel) review into safeguarding of children with disabilities and complex health needs in residential settings (published in April 2023). I would like to thank the Panel for their vital work and their continued focus on improving learning, practice, and outcomes for children. I am grateful to everyone who contributed to the review for their commitment, professionalism, and expertise. A copy of the response has been deposited in the Libraries of both Houses.

The abuse and neglect of disabled children in three dual-registered children’s homes and residential special schools was appalling. The settings have closed; as criminal investigations are ongoing; I am unable to comment further on the specifics of the case.

No system, however robust, can fully eliminate all risk of harm and abuse. Those committing abuse were deliberately concealing their actions. Nevertheless, the Panel’s report highlights system-wide issues which allowed abuse to be concealed for too long. The owners of the three dual registered settings and providers of care permitted inadequate leadership and management, poor quality training, poor support and supervision of the workforce and inadequate compliance with statutory requirements. Statutory and partner agencies demonstrated a lack of oversight, limited professional curiosity, poorly exercised accountability, failures in information sharing and lack of rigour in regulation and inspection practice.

The Panel’s recommendations reinforce our determination that every child and their family should get the right support at the right time. Disabled children should not be placed far from home. Local agencies need to work together so that children can be supported as close to home as possible, however complex their needs. The failures identified by the panel demonstrate the urgent need for the transformation of children’s social care and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) that we are driving forward the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan. Our strategy for children’s social care, Stable Homes, Built on Love, and NHS England’s long-term plan aim to improve the lives of disabled children and will deliver fundamental change. These reforms will ensure that disabled children receive the best support, safeguarding and protection, and care from all those who are looking after them.

Our response recognises the three key principles for disabled children to thrive and fulfil their potential:

• All relevant agencies need to assure themselves that they are meeting their duties and promoting good practice to keep disabled children with complex health needs in residential care safe and are cared for.
• We need to reform the care system so that all disabled children in residential settings have a stable, loving home that is safe and close to their friends and family.
• We must provide the right support, in the right place and at the right time to disabled children and their families, so families are better supported to meet children’s needs at home and in the community - and we must reduce the institutionalisation of disabled children.

I have today also written to providers of residential settings, Local Authority Chief Executives, Directors of Children’s Services, lead Integrated Care Board members, Police Chief Constables, Ofsted, and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) asking them to review their current working practices. Copies of these letters have been deposited in the Libraries of both Houses.

The response we have published today sets out the steps that we are taking to address the failings identified by the Panel. These actions include:

• Asking Ofsted and the CQC to work with us to consider further what we could do better and differently now to safeguard disabled children living in regulated children’s homes. We are asking Ofsted and CQC to review the recommendation for joint inspections including any regulatory changes required and cost implications.
• Setting a new standard on the provision of non-instructed advocacy for children with complex communication needs. We are strengthening the independence of advocacy services and improving the way these services are promoted so that advocacy support is more widely available to children and young people.
• Exploring proposals for introducing professional registration of the children’s homes workforce as well as considering the development of a new Knowledge and Skills Statement and a national leadership programme to support recruitment of new managers.
• Considering how information sharing, multi-agency leadership, safeguarding partnerships and cross-government working can be improved to support safeguarding.
• Committing to work with local authorities and Ofsted to review what changes need to be made to the responsibilities of Local Authority Designated Officers (LADO).
• Asking the Law Commission to carry out a review of the legislation for disabled children, to inform future changes to legislation and/or guidance.
• Consulting on updated statutory guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children to set out clear roles and responsibilities for safeguarding partners (police, health, and local authorities) to ensure they work more effectively together.

Many people work hard to care for our most vulnerable children and young people. However, I share the Panel’s concern that – too often – agencies act in isolation when the children with the most complex needs require a holistic response. I am committed to working with my colleagues across Government to improve multi-agency and multi-disciplinary working to help, support and protect children.

Ensuring the safety and well-being of disabled children with complex health needs is one of the Government’s most fundamental priorities. We are committed to working with our partners and across Government to ensure all children are kept safe, have their needs met and receive the best support to fulfil their potential.