Latest figures reveal there were 482 children in care in Cumberland in the final year of Conservative Government as Labour announces the biggest reform to children’s social care in a generation.
The reforms deliver many of the recommendations made by Whitehaven and Workington MP Josh MacAlister in his Independent Review of Children’s Social Care in 2022.
Josh, who was commended by the Secretary of State for his work in this area during her announcement of the reforms, said:
“Looked after children in West Cumbria deserve loving homes, their families should get timely, intensive help and taxpayers must be given value for money. That’s what these reforms are all about and they implement many of the recommendations I made in my review which were overlooked by the previous government.
“Labour is fixing the foundations of a broken children’s social care system after years of neglect and ballooning costs under the Conservatives. Today, we are spending far too much money on crisis-level intervention, and some of the most vulnerable children are being failed. That has to change and the work of change has begun.”
Bridget Phillipson, Secretary of State for Education, praised Josh’s work during her statement announcing the reforms in the House of Commons:
“I pay tribute to my honourable friend for his tremendous work in this area. I am delighted that we have been able to act in many of the areas that he identified as part of his review.
“He is right to draw our attention to the thousands of people, including those with lived experience, who contributed to his vital work. It is testament to his work and their contributions that the Government are able to take forward work in so many areas that will make a significant difference to the lives and experiences of vulnerable children across our country, from today and over many years to come.”
Across the country, the number of children in care has risen 5% over the last 5 years to 83,632 across England in the year to March 2024. According to analysis by the Local Government Association, there are now over 1,500 children in residential care each costing the equivalent of over £500,000 every year, while the largest 15 private providers make an average of 23% profit.
New rules will require companies providing foster and residential care to share their finances with the government, allowing profiteering to be challenged. Increasing financial transparency will ensure the providers that have the biggest impact on the market don’t unexpectedly go under and leave children without a home.
There will also be a “backstop” law to put a limit on the profit providers can make, that the government will introduce if providers do not voluntarily put an end to profiteering.
More widely, the government is beginning the process of rebalancing the whole children’s social care system in favour of early intervention, giving every family the legal right to be involved in decisions made about children entering the care system. There will also be new laws to make a range of public bodies, like universities and hospitals, behave as corporate parents for children in care and care leavers.
Josh MacAlister MP 