Councils forced to halve paying for early help services
Council paying for crucial services which help stop children reaching crisis point has almost halved over the last decade, with the poorest areas being worst hit.
A report authored by the UK’s leading children’s charities reveals that local authorities in England reduced spending on early intervention services from £3.6 billion to £1.8 billion between 2010 and 2021.
The group of charities, which includes Action for Children, Barnardo’s, The Children’s Society, National Children’s Bureau and NSPCC, estimates that government funding available to councils for children’s services fell by 24 per cent from £9.9 billion to £7.5 billion in tangible terms between 2010/11 and 2021/20.
The impact from the pandemic is likely to make it even harder for councils to provide early intervention services for families over the last 15 months as councils across the nation struggle to balance their budgets.
The charities warn that local authorities are trapped in a vicious circle. Confronted with deficiencies in funding, they're instructed to reduce spending on early support services which results in a greater reliance upon crisis interventions and care placements, that are both more expensive and more disruptive to children’s lives.
Overall paying for all children’s services between 2010 and 2021 fell by £325 million, despite there being a four percent rise in the number of young people across the nation (with a similar increase in the number of vulnerable children).
The most deprived local authorities in the united kingdom reduced early intervention spending by an average of 59 percent between 2010 and 2021, while in the least deprived local authorities the autumn was restricted to 38 percent.
Analysis of late intervention spending reveals it has surged between 2010 and 2021, from £5.7 billion to £7.6 billion, a 34 per cent increase. Part of the reason for this is actually the rising expenditure of supporting children in care, with average annual costs increasing from £53,000 to £64,000.
Mark Russell, chief executive in the Children’s Society, said: “It's the human costs of these funding cuts which are really worrying. Behind the figures showing increased numbers entering care and becoming susceptible to child protection measures are heart-breaking stories of kids facing sometimes horrific risks outside and inside the home, including neglect, abuse and exploitation.
“We've heard about families being refused support because their problems were not ‘bad enough’ or their kids weren't going missing at home often enough. There's a real risk the problem can get even worse following successive lockdowns which have increased vulnerability among many children and young people and exposed these to new dangers.”
