The Government is introducing the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to Parliament.
The new legislation is part of the Government’s mission to help ensure all children get the best start in life. It begins to deliver on the plans published by the Government last month to reform children’s social care. That includes action to fix the broken children’s home market and a focus on keeping children safely in their family.
Children’s social care measures in the Bill include:
- A mandate for all local authorities to offer family group decision making before children are removed to the care system – an umbrella term for approaches that bring extended family members together to come up with solutions for their child’s welfare.
- A requirement on councils to publish a local kinship offer, so that family members and friends stepping in to care for children know what support is available to them and the children.
Welcoming the Bill, Cathy Ashley, Chief Executive of Family Rights Group, said:
“The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill is a landmark opportunity for reforming the child welfare system. We congratulate the Government on taking these foundational steps to ensure child and families get the support they need to stay together.
Family Rights Group has long campaigned for families to have the opportunity to come up with solutions for their children’s welfare before the state removes them. The Government’s bold intention to mandate local authorities to offer this could be a step change in how the state works with, rather than doing to, children and their families.
To give families fair and equal opportunity across the country, this offer must be for a family-led, robustly evaluated approach that has been tried and tested. Family group conferences achieve that. They operate to clear standards and reduce the likelihood of a child entering or remaining in care. Most local authorities also have a family group conference service, albeit often small, so there is a strong existing base to build from.
We are also delighted to see our proposals adopted for kinship care to be defined in primary legislation, with a new legal duty on councils to publish a local kinship offer for families. Too often children being raised by relatives and friends, including those outside of the care system in informal arrangements, are not recognised by the state and public services. Families struggle to get the recognition and support they need for their children to thrive. These are important foundational measures towards ensuring that when children cannot remain at home, kinship care is the next explored option.
This legislation arrives at a critical moment. The child welfare system is in crisis. Local authorities are overstretched and overwhelmed and too often, children and families do not get the direct help they need early enough to prevent difficulties escalating. There are record numbers of children in the care system, many isolated living far away from family and friends and not having their needs met. It underscores the importance for the Government to move effectively and at pace, to deliver on the ambition that all children can live safely in their family and thrive.”
