Four in five of England’s largest councils overspent on their children’s services budget last year, research by the County Councils Network (CCN) has revealed.
According to the CCN’s analysis, 83% of county local authorities overspent on their children’s services budgets in 2021/22 by a combined £316m. A collective overspend of £946.5m among the 151 councils with the responsibility was also reported.
The CCN stated that the overspends have been driven by a surge in children requiring care, with referrals increasing in county areas by 8.8% post pandemic.
The organisation also found that the number of children in local authority care in county areas increased by 10.1% post pandemic.
15th Annual LATIF & FDs’ Summit – 19 September 2023
250+ Delegates from Local Government & Investment
Keith Glazier, children’s services spokesperson for the CCN, said: “Faced with this spike in demand, most councils in county areas have had little choice but to overspend on their children’s services budgets to protect young people.
“But four in five county authorities overspending is unsustainable.”
In light of the research, the CCN highlighted that they welcomed the government’s Children’s Social Care Implementation Plan, which was announced in February. The strategy was backed by £200m of government funding over the next two years and aims to keep families together where possible.
“Council leaders know we are in a vicious circle where scarce funds are prioritised towards young people in crisis, which is why we welcomed the government’s emphasis on prevention. But £200m committed to reforming services does not go far enough, and we are calling on the next government to prioritise greater investment into early help and family services,” Glazier added.
—————
FREE weekly newsletters
Subscribe to Room151 Newsletters
Follow us on LinkedIn
Follow us here
Monthly Online Treasury Briefing
Sign up here with a .gov.uk email address
Room151 Webinars
Visit the Room151 channel
