Lords urge for more support for vulnerable children

The House of Lords Public Services Committee has urged ministers to get joined-up to support family services and tackle a lack of coordination of children’s policy nationally and locally.

The committee has called on Education Secretary Gavin Williamson, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick, Health Secretary Sajid Javid and Chief Secretary to the Treasury Steve Barclay, to work together on a joint bid for funding in the next Government Spending Review to address the causes of child vulnerability – with the focus on a strategy for the national roll-out of Family Hubs.

Family Hubs are considered the best way to better integrate agencies dealing with vulnerable children and to support early intervention services, the committee believes.

Investing in early support by schools, the voluntary sector, NHS mental health and addiction services, police and council-funded family services could cut the cost to the public purse of late intervention – estimated at more than £16 billion in 2018–19.

The committee says that expanding the Family Hubs scheme will be effective only if delivered jointly by the Government’s health, education and communities departments with Treasury support.

Baroness Armstrong, chair of the Committee, said: “The lack of a joined-up national strategy for vulnerable children and their families undermines various departments’ policies and affects the ability of services and agencies to address people’s overlapping needs.

“For vulnerable children this means poorer outcomes in education, health and employment and greater risk of contact with the criminal justice system. The next government Spending Review is a unique opportunity to put forward a convincing case for a joint approach to early intervention across education, the NHS, children’s social care, police and the voluntary sector, with Family Hubs at its heart.”