Over 84,000 children across England are currently being looked after by councils, research has found.

The latest report by the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) reveals that roughly 400,000 children are in social care in England, with the committee identifying issues such as the system’s broken accommodation model, the complaint mechanisms, and the legacy of being in care.

In the report, titled ‘Human Rights of Children in the Social Care System in England’, the committee calls for increased support for kinship carers, arguing that the Government must do more to keep children in family networks.

It also highlights the barriers to care for disabled children, who face a ‘postcode lottery’ due to the lack of national criteria. It calls for a clear legal framework to combat the ‘inconsistent and variable’ nature of disabled children’s social care, as well as ensuring council’s deliver improved assessments of disabled children’s needs.

Commenting on the lifelong effects of the care system, the report warns that care leavers are on a ‘cliff edge’ due to a lack of support when approaching adulthood, resulting in poorer outcomes. It says that the Government must offer ‘beyond current rigid age cut offs’ to address this issue.

Additional key findings include problems such as the disproportionate risk of criminalisation for children in care, the disappearance of asylum-seeking children, and the increased likeliness of encountering violence, harm and death for children in care settings.

As part of its recommendations, the report urges that a ‘no wrong door’ complaints policy is rolled out to help improve the system’s outcomes. Furthermore, it reinforces the need for a crackdown on unregulated types of accommodation, which are described as ‘unlawful, unsafe, and represent a serious failure to protect children’.

It also calls for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) to be implemented in England, suggesting that a statutory requirement could be introduced to ensure that councils set up Corporate Parenting Boards which include people with care experience.

Chair of the Joint Committee on Human Rights, Lord David Alton said: ‘We have a moral duty as a society to uphold the human rights of children and young people. The children’s social care system is there to be a crucial safety net to support the most vulnerable in society.’

He added: ‘The continued difficulties for disabled children and their families navigating a complex system are profoundly troubling and wholly unacceptable. They need to be resolved. Clear guidelines need to be in place so that everyone knows what they are entitled to and what their responsibilities are. Consistent standards need to be in place to end the postcode lottery of support.’

The DHSC has been contacted for comment.