Vulnerable children in England will be better protected from harm as the government accelerates its children’s social care reforms, investing an additional £18 million to roll out early intervention programmes that prioritise prevention and family support.
The funding will expand initiatives such as Family Group Decision Making, which brings extended family members together to help keep children safely at home, and the recruitment of thousands of new family help workers to support families facing challenges like substance misuse and mental health issues.
This investment builds on a doubling of funding to £523 million last year, with a further £300 million committed over the next two years. It forms a key part of the government’s Plan for Change and the landmark Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill — the most significant safeguarding legislation in a generation.
The reforms also include a pilot between Wigan Council and NHS England to test the use of the NHS number as a unique child identifier, enabling better data sharing across health, education, and police services. This aims to detect safeguarding concerns earlier and provide a joined-up picture of risk before issues escalate.
Dame Rachel de Souza, Children’s Commissioner, said :
“Children in care told me in my Big Ambition survey they want the same things as other children: love, safety and stability in their family life. It’s absolutely right that we prioritise supporting families earlier on when challenges arise, with the goal of keeping them together safely.
“I welcome this investment in caring for children and families but also in strengthening leadership locally, because my research has shown that decisions about children in care are too often driven by local capacity and resources, instead of what’s right for those children’s needs.
“The introduction of a unique ID for every child will help identify problems early on and prevent any child becoming invisible to services, so robust and effective implementation will be essential, using evidence of what does and doesn’t work through this first pilot.”
Other key measures in the Bill include:
- A unique identifier for every child to prevent children falling through the cracks
- A new information sharing duty between agencies
- Mandatory multi-agency safeguarding panels in every council
- Nationwide rollout of Best Start Family Hubs, supporting 500,000 children with access to local services
The reforms are backed by over £2 billion in total investment, including £555 million for children’s social care and £560 million to refurbish and expand children’s homes.
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