Research by the UK’s “big five” children charities has found that England’s child protection and support services are in financial crisis, with the heaviest cuts falling on the north of the country and in the most underprivileged areas.
Councils overall suffered a 29% cut in government funding for children’s department between 2010 and 2017-18 which is equivalent to £3 billion. Ongoing cuts put children at risk of being placed in care the charities say. Pressures continue to grow on vulnerable families from the rising child poverty and mental illness.
Julie Bentley, the chief executive at one of the five charities, Action for Children, said: “Children’s services are at breaking point and these alarming figures reveal the true scale of the devastating and dangerous funding cuts made year after year by successive governments.”
The charities said the cuts were unstainable and called for extra investment in children'[s services through the spending review due autumn 2019. Also they would like a funding overhaul to ensure that children’s services in the poorest areas, where both demand and cuts were highest, were properly resourced.
The research which reflects growing concern over cuts to children’s services was published by Children’s Services Funding Alliance which comprises Action for Children, National Children’s Bureau, Barnardo’s, The Children’s Society and the NSPCC.
The top five children’s services s “funding cuts’ hotspots” identified by the research were all in London: Westminster, Tower Hamlets, Camden, Newham, and Hackney. They all of which saw per-child funding reductions of between 45% and 52%. Funding on this basis fell by 37% overall in greater London. Nationally funding per child fell by 32% although there were regional variations. The north-east, Yorkshire and the north-west experienced per-head funding cuts of 33%, with cuts as high as 45% in Manchester, 43% in Nottingham and 42% in Birmingham.
The councils spending on early intervention services for children including sure start centers and youth clubs fell by 49% to £1.9 billion since 2012. More than 1,000 children’s centres and 600 youth clubs have closed plus spending on disabled children fell 11%. There was a 12% increase in spending on late intervention, fuelled by a 17% increase in the number of children in care since 2010.
The minister for children and families, Nadhim Zahawi, said: “We want every child to have the best start in life, with the opportunities and the stability to fulfil their potential, which is why we have made £200bn available to councils up to 2020 for local services, including those for children and young people.”
Emma Lewell-Buck, Labour’s minister for children and families, said: “This report should be a wake-up call to the government. With cuts set to continue while demand rises, more children will lose out on these vital services, and the devastating impact of austerity will be felt in the most vulnerable communities for years to come.”
Barnardo’s chief executive, Javed Khan, said: “In every community children face growing challenges … and in many areas the services they once relied on just aren’t there any more. As a result, far too often families are reaching crisis point – with rising numbers of children being taken into local authority care.”
The research has concerns for long waits for youth mental health services, school budget cuts and growing demand for services for younger children with special educational needs and disabilities.
