Millions of pounds invested in keeping children out of care

Staffordshire County Council is allocating an extra £8.1m for more frontline staff and more preventative work to keep children with their families rather than being taken into care.

The ambition is that by 2026 there will be more than 400 fewer looked after children than the current record level of 1,248.

Mark Sutton, Staffordshire County Council’s cabinet member for young people said: “Our top priority remains protecting vulnerable children and supporting them to become happy, confident, independent adults and we want to achieve that by keeping them out of care where it is safe to do so.

“Families tell us that they do not want to be caught up in ‘the system’ and evidence shows it is better for everyone if we can intervene early and find solutions in the family group or the community.”

In the last 10 years the number of children in Staffordshire who are receiving the most intensive support from social services has risen from 1138 to 1,984, with the cost of caring for the most vulnerable, including looked after children, increasing from £59.1m to £116.5m.

Councillor Sutton added: “We have a dedicated team doing outstanding work in often difficult circumstances.

“This significant additional investment sustains our work supporting vulnerable children at a time when Government support isn’t keeping pace.”

Funding includes provision for an extra 34 family support workers across Staffordshire and two new court teams, as well as training for existing staff.

The strategy also helps the county council’s policy to support children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) by increasing the focus on educating pupils in their own communities and seeking local and district level solutions wherever possible.

A report to be considered by the county council says that the move towards having strengthened district teams and a more localised approach should be established by April 2021.