Vulnerable children and public services - Peers launch new inquiry and call for evidence

Now peers will probe how well public services tackle underlying causes of child vulnerability in families, including domestic abuse, poor mental health and addiction. They will also investigate what more services can do to ensure that vulnerable children get vital support.

The House of Lords Public Services Committee - which published its first wide-ranging report ‘A critical juncture for public services: lessons from COVID-19’ late last year - has launched a new inquiry and Call for Evidence today (16 February) to look at whether reforming public services can address the growing child vulnerability crisis.

The inquiry will focus on public services for children and families in England. It will consider how mothers and families are helped during pregnancy, and the important support that public services bring to vulnerable children from their early years to the time they leave school.

Areas the committee will explore include:

• Do vulnerable children and their parents and guardians receive enough support from early intervention and preventative services?
• How should the Government coordinate public services to support vulnerable children to recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic?
• How should the Government work with providers to integrate public services to better meet the needs of vulnerable children and their parents and guardians?
• What can the Government and public service providers do to encourage different agencies – for example, the NHS, councils, schools and police – to share the data that helps keep vulnerable children safe?
• How could the Government’s ‘levelling-up’ agenda address regional and local disparities in children’s education, health and wellbeing outcomes?

Baroness Armstrong, chair of the committee, said:

“The number of vulnerable children invisible to public services has seen a significant and worrying increase since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our new inquiry will consider public services in the broadest sense: it will look at all those services that give vital support to vulnerable children. We’ll be exploring community-level initiatives and the role of the private, voluntary and charitable sectors in the delivery of services to children and families.

“We’re really keen to hear from anyone who works with vulnerable children and to amplify the voices of vulnerable children themselves.”

The committee hopes to receive evidence from a wide range of stakeholders, in particular from frontline service providers, those working with vulnerable children and from vulnerable children themselves. The committee would welcome information on any practical solutions to the problems that it has identified.