Councils forced to halve spending on early help services

Council spending on crucial services that help stop children reaching crisis point has almost halved over the last decade, with the poorest parts of the country being worst hit.

A report published by the UK’s leading children’s charities reveals that local authorities in England reduced spending on early intervention services from £3.6 billion to £1.8 billion between 2010 and 2020.

The group of charities, which includes Action for Children, Barnardo’s, The Children’s Society, National Children’s Bureau and NSPCC, estimates that government funding available to councils for children’s services fell by 24 per cent from £9.9 billion to £7.5 billion in real terms between 2010/11 and 2019/20.

The impact of the pandemic is likely to have made it even harder for councils to offer early intervention services for families over the last 15 months as councils across the country struggle to balance their budgets.  

The charities warn that local authorities are trapped in a vicious circle. Faced with a lack of funding, they are forced to reduce spending on early support services which leads to a greater reliance on crisis interventions and care placements, which are both more expensive and more disruptive to children’s lives.

Overall spending on all children’s services between 2010 and 2020 fell by £325 million, despite there being a four per cent increase in the number of young people across the country (with a similar rise in the number of vulnerable children).

The most deprived local authorities in the UK reduced early intervention spending by an average of 59 per cent between 2010 and 2020, while in the least deprived local authorities the fall was limited to 38 per cent.

Analysis of late intervention spending reveals it has surged between 2010 and 2020, from £5.7 billion to £7.6 billion, a 34 per cent increase. Part of the reason for this is the rising expenditure of supporting children in care, with average annual costs increasing from £53,000 to £64,000.

Mark Russell, chief executive at The Children’s Society, said: “It is the human costs of these funding cuts that are really worrying. Behind the figures showing increased numbers going into care and becoming subject to child protection measures are heart-breaking stories of children facing sometimes horrific risks inside and outside the home, including neglect, abuse and exploitation.

“We have heard of families being refused support because their problems were not ‘bad enough’ or their children were not going missing from home often enough. There is a real risk the situation will get even worse following successive lockdowns which have increased vulnerability among many children and young people and exposed them to new dangers.”