Select committee: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee

Funding of local authorities’ children’s services inquiry

Closed Opened 10 Sep 2018 Closed 21 Oct 2019
Inquiry scope (the committee's words)
Funding of local authorities' children's services HTML version | PDF version Government Response Government response to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee Report on funding of local authorities’ children’s services The Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee has launched a new inquiry into funding of local authorities’ children’s services. The inquiry will investigate what impact public spending has had on the provision of care services, and the approaches local authorities have taken in addressing funding constraints. It will consider how financial support for children’s services can be made more sustainable in the short and long term, and examine the potential for innovative approaches to the design and delivery of services. The Committee is inviting submissions on: Is the funding for local authorities’ children’s services sufficient to enable local authorities to fulfil their statutory duties? What are the financial challenges for local authorities’ in providing non-statutory services? How can funding for children’s services be made more sustainable in the short and long term? How can innovative approaches to the design and delivery of children’s services support financial sustainability?

Where it stands

The inquiry is closed, opened 10 September 2018.

The committee has published 1 report, most recently 14th Report - Funding of local authorities' children's services on 1 May 2019.

The government's response

Published 3 July 2019.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government responds that future funding for children's services "will be considered at this year's Spending Review", and sets out work on evidence, commissioning and workforce, agreeing with some recommendations and declining others.

  • On funding levels, including the Committee's call for a £3.1 billion increase, the government says "All future funding decisions are for the Spending Review" and that it is working with the sector to understand the level of funding needed.
  • It agrees that cross-government working is important but does not believe a separate strategy is the most effective way of proceeding, and will update the Committee on progress by December 2019.
  • There are "no plans" for a specific funding stream for local authorities supporting families with no recourse to public funds.
  • On unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, the review has concluded and rates paid have been uplifted to £114 per child per night, applying to care provided from 1 April 2019.

Read the government's response ↗ Report an error

Reports

1 report

Oral evidence sessions

3 sessions

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Date Session and witnesses Source
11 Mar 2019
Oral evidence session
No witnesses recorded
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25 Feb 2019
Oral evidence session
No witnesses recorded
View ↗
11 Feb 2019
Oral evidence session
No witnesses recorded
View ↗

Correspondence

1 letter

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