Children in care are unable to reunite with their families due to the financial pressures local authorities are currently facing, a new survey of councils in England has revealed.
Responding to a poll by Action for Children and the NSPCC, 69% of local authorities cited funding constraints as a barrier to increasing support to help children in care rejoin their families.
The survey of 75 English councils also found 65% said struggles with recruitment and retention of staff were preventing them providing more support to reunifying families.
Just under 80% of the respondents said they would like to provide more support.
The Government-commissioned Independent Review of Children’s Social Care has warned that without urgent action the number of children in care in England will rise from 80,000 to 100,000 in a decade, with the costs rising from £10bn a year to £15bn.
Abigail Gill, Associate Head of Policy and Public Affairs at the NSPCC, said: ‘We urgently need to invest in an effective, joined-up system which has the tools to accurately assess what a family needs and the capacity to prioritise solutions that work in the best interest of the child.
‘This would encourage earlier family-based support that would help remove the pressure and costs local authorities tell us they are feeling. More importantly, it would mean that more families are able to be reunited and fewer children will remain in the care system.’
