House of Lords Committee welcomes Children’s Social Care report
Tuesday 24 May 2022
The House of Lords Public Services Committee has welcomed the publication of a report entitled; The independent review of children’s social care by Josh MacAlister, founder and Chief Executive of Frontline and Chair of the review.
Commenting on the report, the Committee Chair, Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top said;
“I warmly welcome the publication of Josh McAlister’s report on his review into children’s social care. This report is timely, as we continue to learn of the challenges many families face in the aftermath of the pandemic, coupled with tackling the rising cost of living crisis. The House of Lords Public Services Committee published a report earlier this year on Vulnerable Children. This new report builds on some of our previous recommendations but of course, goes much further.
“I particularly welcome the work with Experts by Experience in reviewing the care system, whether parents, families, foster carers, and of course children and young people. The Public Services Committee believes that those with lived experience should be central to the planning of public services and their delivery, and this review demonstrates just how important that is in the care for some of our most vulnerable children.
“The report also emphasises just how important it is to work with the family in its widest sense in caring for vulnerable children. Providing appropriate and timely support should prevent the need for the level of crisis intervention that we currently see. However, that means there must be appropriate long-term investment at the earlier stages. As our committee noted, the cuts to local authority spending in the last ten or more years have resulted in major cutbacks in early intervention, with spending having to be concentrated on crises which is costly on the child and the public purse.
“There are clear pathways for how to intervene outlined in this report, and a demonstration that money, as well as life chances, can be saved. This report offers a real opportunity to change the system for the better, and to improve conditions for the most in need families in the country. This is an opportunity that we must seize, and I hope the government will work with all concerned to see it implemented.”
