Source · Select Committees · Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee
Recommendation 12
12
Accepted
Work urgently with local authorities to develop short-term support for children's social care.
Recommendation
The Government must work urgently with local authorities to better understand their short-term budgetary pressures in this area and work to develop a package of support and funding to enable continued service delivery while wider system reforms are implemented. (Paragraph 77) 44 Financial distress in local authorities
Government Response Summary
The government agrees on the urgency of children's social care reform and has announced £1.5 billion in additional grant funding for social care for 2024-25, including a recent £500 million uplift. It also committed £165 million over four years to expand children's home capacity and is exploring ways to combat profiteering.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
14. The Government agrees with the Committee and recognise the pressures that councils delivering children’s services are under, and the need to substantively reform the children’s social care system. In 2023 we published our implementation strategy and consultation ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’ which sets out a system-wide transformation of the system. This responds to the Competitions and Market’s Authority study, Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, and the independent care review published in 2022. 15. We have additionally taken action to provide further support to local government to enable continued system delivery while wider reforms are implemented. At the final local government finance settlement, published 5 February 2024, we announced that we are providing £1.5 billion in additional grant for social care through the settlement for 2024-25 compared to 2023-24. This includes the additional £500 million announced on 24 January 2024, having listened to the views of local government. While being mindful of the level of adult social care provision, where possible councils should use this uplift to invest in areas that help place children’s social care services on a sustainable financial footing. This includes investment in expanding family help and targeted early intervention, expanding kinship care, and boosting the number of foster carers. On the 6 March 2024, the Government announced its commitment to invest £165 million over the next 4 years to significantly expand the capacity of the children’s home estate in England. This will improve outcomes for looked after children and unlock productivity savings by reducing local government reliance on emergency provision. The government is also exploring further ways to combat profiteering and bring down costs in the children’s care market.