A statement was issued by 14 national organisations responsible for, or involved in, the care and protection of children and their families. The Interagency Group said it would be `inappropriate for central government to dictate the future shape of children s services to local councils and other agencies. Local authorities should be placed under a statutory duty to establish overarching strategic partnership arrangements for children, including mechanisms for improving the involvement of families, children and young people. The Group was particularly concerned that the focus on structural arrangements in the Green Paper would not support and might seriously undermine arrangements to prevent child deaths: it warned that, above all, safeguarding children fully meant that resources needed to be 'seriously increased'.
Source: Statement by the Interagency Group, 4 December 2003, available from Association of Directors of Social Services (020 8348 5023)
Links: ADSS press release
Date: 2003-Dec
A report from a child protection charity presented the findings of a consultation with 735 young people, social and legal professionals and voluntary organisations regarding the Children Act 1989. It also set out key recommendations designed to enable the Act to fulfil its potential to protect the welfare and rights of all children and young people.
Source: The NSPCC Review of Legislation Relating to Children in Family Proceedings, National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (0207 825 2500)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Dec
Campaigners said that only half of England's local authorities had any policies to protect young runaways a year after the government had issued guidelines.
Source: Safe and Sound? - Survey of local authorities: Protocols for children missing from care and home, Children s Society (020 7841 4415)
Links: Link removed
Date: 2003-Dec
A review looked at good practice in foster care.
Source: Clive Sellick and Darren Howell, Innovative, Tried and Tested: A review of good practice in fostering, Social Care Institute for Excellence/Department of Health (020 7089 6840)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf)
Date: 2003-Dec
A review looked at what research had found out about the outcomes, or consequences, of foster care.
Source: Kate Wilson, Ian Sinclair, Claire Taylor, Andrew Pithouse and Clive Sellick, Fostering Success: An exploration of the research literature in foster care, Social Care Institute for Excellence/Department of Health (020 7089 6840)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf)
Date: 2003-Dec
The Disability Rights Commission responded to the government's consultation on children's services. It set out recommendations aimed at redressing the 'severe inequalities and social exclusion' faced by many disabled children and their families. It said the government should set explicit targets to bridge the attainment gap between disabled and non-disabled children
Source: Disability Rights Commission Response to the Government Consultation Every Child Matters , Disability Rights Commission (08457 622633)
Links: Response (Word file) | DRC press release
Date: 2003-Dec
A joint committee of MPs and peers welcomed the 'many positive aspects' of both the Green Paper on children's services and the government s response to a previous committee report on children's rights, and in particular the commitment to establish a children s commissioner for England. But it also noted some 'omissions and shortcomings' in the government s response concerning its obligations under the United Nations convention on children's rights; in particular, the use of the convention as a framework for policy; the treatment of children in the criminal justice system; and the defence of 'reasonable chastisement'.
Source: Government's Response to the Committee's Tenth Report of Session 2002-03 on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Eighteenth Report (Session 2002-03), HL 187 and HC 1279, Joint Committee on Human Rights (House of Lords and House of Commons), TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report (pdf) | Tenth report | Community Care report
Date: 2003-Nov
The government published its annual report for 2002 on action to promote the welfare of children, under the Children Act 1989. It referred to 'unprecedented activity to drive through the Government s determination to make things better for children, in particular the most vulnerable children'.
Source: The Children Act Report 2002, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Nov
The government announced plans for a Children's Bill. The Bill would create a children's commissioner for England, authorise the creation of an electronic file on every child in the country, and provide for education departments and children's social services to be amalgamated into children's trusts.
Source: House of Commons Hansard, 26 November 2003, columns 4-7 (Queen's Speech), TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Text of Queen's Speech | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Nov
An official briefing paper described current issues and work concerned with the integration of children's services. (Integration embraces a variety of agencies and programmes working with children and young people, including local social services departments, Sure Start, Youth Offending Teams, the Connexions service, and Children s Trusts.)
Source: Integrated Working and Children's Services: Structures, outcomes and reform, Integrated Care Network (01132 543804)
Links: Report (Word file)
Date: 2003-Nov
The children's minister, Margaret Hodge, issued an apology to a man who, as a child, had been a victim of abuse in a council home, and whom she had described as an 'extremely disturbed person'. The apology followed a threat of legal action by the man concerned, and calls for her resignation over the affair.
Source: The Guardian, 14 November 2003
Links: Guardian report
Date: 2003-Nov
The local authority settlement for 2004-05 included an 8.7 per cent overall funding increase for children's services. A new 100 million 'specific formula grant' was made available to support local authorities responding to the Laming report on Victoria Climbi (a child murdered by a carer relative). There were also large increases for fostering and placement (up from 20 million to 33 million); the adoption and special guardianship support grant (up from 12 million to 33 million); and the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service grant (up from 50 million to 66 million).
Source: Children's Social Services Funding: 2004-05, LASSL(2003)7, Department of Health (020 7972 4869) | Press release 19 November 2003, Department for Education and Skills (0870 000 2288)
Links: Circular (pdf) | DfES press release | Community Care report
Date: 2003-Nov
Researchers examined the role of schools and local education authorities in supporting the educational needs of children in public care. No LEA visited had a discrete strategy to counter the risk of bullying experienced by such children. Children in care were rarely prioritised within individual schools admissions policies except where local authorities stipulated that this be a criterion. But there was evidence of the strategic use of opportunities afforded by national initiatives to benefit children in care.
Source: Felicity Fletcher-Campbell, Tamsin Archer and Kathryn Tomlinson, The Role of the School in Supporting the Education of Children in Public Care, Research Report 498, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (pdf) | Brief (pdf)
Date: 2003-Nov
An interim evaluation of the Children s Fund found that it was raising the profile of prevention and preventative services in local areas. But there were tensions within partnerships over the role and purpose of prevention. Guidance saying that 25 per cent of the Children s Fund should focus on youth crime and crime reduction was seen as unhelpful. (The research was based on interviews with all 149 programme managers. The Fund aims to address the negative impact of social exclusion on children and young people aged 5-13: it was introduced in England between November 2000 and April 2003, and is administered by multi-agency partnerships.)
Source: Kate Morris and Neil Spicer, The National Evaluation of the Children s Fund: Early messages from developing practice, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (Word file)
Date: 2003-Nov
A report presented the preliminary results of a survey of activity and expenditure by local authorities in England on children in need, for a survey week in February 2003. There were approximately 384,200 children in need, compared to 376,000 at the previous survey point in September/October 2001 - an increase of 2.2 per cent.
Source: Children in Need in England: Preliminary results of a survey of activity and expenditure as reported by Local Authority Social Services Children and Families Teams for a survey week in February 2003, Statistical First Release 28/2003, Department for Education and Skills (0870 000 2288)
Links: SFR (pdf)
Date: 2003-Oct
A research briefing examined the issue of promoting the mental health of children in need. It said that the earlier in a child s life preventive work began, the more likely it was to be effective; that longer-term strategies were more likely to be helpful than short-lived initiatives; and that interventions which focused on systems or contexts within which children lived (such as school, family, and neighbourhood) as well as on the child were more likely to be successful than interventions which focused on the child alone.
Source: Heather Payne and Ian Butler, Promoting the Mental Health of Children in Need, Quality Protects Research Briefing 9, Making Research Count (01603 593557), Department for Education and Skills, and Research in Practice
Links: Briefing paper (pdf)
Date: 2003-Oct
A report summarised the findings of self-audits by National Health Service organisations, social services departments and police forces, on progress in implementing the recommendations of the Laming inquiry. (Lord Laming inquired into the violent death of Victoria Climbi , aged 8.) Some NHS organisations were found to have only limited access to the child protection register and to previous case notes; only a third of councils said they normally received written confirmation of referrals within 48 hours; and police forces had little way of knowing if concerns were reported immediately by social services where a criminal offence was suspected. The government said the report highlighted areas where improvements were needed, but also said that most organisations had made 'steady progress' in implementing the Laming recommendations.
Source: The Victoria Climbi Inquiry Report: Key Findings from the Self Audits of NHS Organisations, Social Services Departments and Police Forces, Commission for Health Improvement (020 7448 9200) | Press release 1 October 2003, Department for Education and Skills (0870 000 2288)
Links: Summary report (pdf) | NHS report (pdf) | CHI press release | DfES press release | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Oct
A report made a series of recommendations for improving the treatment of young people in care. It said that young people should be given more information about placements prior to moving, and that more choice of placement should made available; that a national review of the complaints procedures should be carried out; that all young people should be fully informed about their leaving care entitlements prior to their 15th birthday; that a national minimum amount of 1,400 should be set for the leaving care grant; and that there should be better housing options for care leavers. ('A National Voice' is an organisation run by young people with personal experience of care.)
Source: The AMPLIFY Report, A National Voice (0161 237 5577)
Links: Summary of recommendations | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Oct
A paper examined the implications of the Green Paper on children's services. It described how local organisations could use two frameworks to systematically relate existing and proposed developments in children s services to their local circumstances, to see how likely they were to achieve the Green Paper s goals.
Source: Clive Miller, The Organisational Implications of the Children s Services Green Paper, Office of Public Management (020 7239 7800)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Oct
A survey found that 63 per cent of local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales gave foster carers less than the recommended minimum allowances for spending on the care of fostered children. The results suggested that thousands of carers were being left out of pocket as a result of fostering, while the children were experiencing different standards of living depending on where they were fostered. For 2003-04, recommended minimum allowances started at 105.74 per week for a baby, and vary according to the age of the child: the survey found that actual allowances started at around 50 per week for the youngest children.
Source: Press release 15 September 2003, Fostering Network (020 7620 6400)
Links: Fostering Network press release
Date: 2003-Sep
The Welsh Assembly Government published its detailed response to the report on Victoria Climbi (a girl, aged 8, tortured and murdered in 2000 by her great aunt and great aunt's boyfriend). It accepted all the recommendations made relating to the Assembly's areas of responsibility.
Source: Welsh Assembly Government Response to the Victoria Climbi Inquiry, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Response (pdf) | Climbi report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Sep
The government published a detailed response to the official report on the Victoria Climbi case. It said that 83 of the 108 recommendations in the report had already been fully or partly addressed. It also referred to a Green Paper, published simultaneously, setting out a wider strategy for reforming children's services in England. (Victoria Climbi , aged 8, was tortured and murdered in 2000 by her great aunt and great aunt's boyfriend.)
Source: Keeping Children Safe: The government s response to the Victoria Climbi inquiry report and Joint Chief Inspectors report 'Safeguarding Children', Cm 5861, Department of Health, Home Office, and Department for Education and Skills, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report (pdf) | DfES press release | Climbi report (pdf) | Green Paper (pdf) | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Sep
A new book reported research which examined interprofessional work with families in which the mother had a mental health problem, and where there were also concerns about child protection.
Source: Nicky Stanley, Bridget Penhale, Denise Riordan, Rosaline Barbour and Sue Holden, Child Protection and Mental Health Services: Interprofessional responses to the needs of mothers, Policy Press, available from Marston Book Services (01235 465500)
Links: Summary
Date: 2003-Sep
The government published a Green Paper on reforming children s services in England, designed to 'protect children from neglect and harm and ensure that each child is able to fulfil their potential'. Proposals included: integrated teams of social workers and health and education professionals, based in schools and the new children s centres; removal of barriers to information sharing, to improve communication between those responsible for children; appointment of a 'children s director' in every local authority, responsible for bringing all children s services together as children s trusts; new duties on the police, health service and other agencies to work together to safeguard children; and the appointment of an independent 'children s commissioner' to champion children s views. Local authorities welcomed the Green Paper but warned against enforced structural change.
Source: Every Child Matters, Green Paper Cm 5860, HM Treasury, TSO (0870 600 5522) | House of Commons Hansard, Debate 8 September 2003, columns 21-35, TSO | Press release 9 September 2003, Local Government Association (020 7664 3000)
Links: Green Paper (pdf) | Summary (pdf) | Hansard | DfES press release | PM speech | LGA press release | LGA briefing (pdf) | GSCC/NCSC/Topss/SCIE joint press release | NCB press release | NCH press release | UNISON press release | ADSS press release | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Sep
A report said that at least 17 per cent of children in public care in Northern Ireland were from cross-community families (families where the parents came from different religious communities), whereas only 6 per cent of children as a whole came from such families. Despite this, there were very few neutral or integrated support services for children and families. As a result, the needs of the growing number of cross-community families were being neglected.
Source: Berni Kelly and Ruth Sinclair, Children from Cross-community Families in Public Care in Northern Ireland, National Children s Bureau (020 7843 6029)
Links: NCB press release
Date: 2003-Sep
The government published plans to improve education among children in care. They included proposals to enhance personal education plans; to provide more toys, books and computer equipment; to introduce faster school admissions to prevent children in care falling behind; to reduce changes of care placements, and therefore changes of school; to encourage children in care to stay on at school after 16; and measures to help employers understand their needs.
Source: A Better Education for Children in Care, Social Exclusion Unit/Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (020 7944 8133)
Links: Report (pdf) | Report | Summary (pdf) | SEU press release (Word file)
Date: 2003-Sep
The government announced the creation of 35 children s trust pathfinders, bringing together children s social services, education and health services into a single local structure.
Source: Press release 10.7.03, Department for Education and Skills (0870 000 2288)
Links: DfES press release
Date: 2003-Jul
A report said that more than 4 million people in England worked with children, or supported those working with children, out of a civilian workforce of 25 million. This included around 2.4 million paid staff and 1.8 million unpaid staff and volunteers. The report covered education, social care, early years and sports and recreation, but excluded those working in the health sector.
Source: People Working with Children, Employers Organisation for Local Government (020 7296 6600)
Links: Report (Word file) | EOLG press release
Date: 2003-Jul
The Court of Appeal ruled that children wrongly diagnosed as abused, or mistakenly taken into care, at any time since 1982 could sue the doctors or social workers responsible.
Source: (1) JD, (2) MAK and RK (3) RK and Anor v. (1) East Berkshire Community Health (2) Dewsbury Health Care NHS Trust and Kirklees Metropolitan Council (3) Oldham NHS Trust and Dr Blumenthal, in the Court of Appeal
Links: Text of Judgment | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Jul
A guide examined different approaches to cross-sector integration of children's services.
Source: Clive Miller and Ann McNicholl, Integrating Children's Services, Office of Public Management (020 7239 7800)
Links: OPM homepage
Date: 2003-Jun
A think-tank report argued that social workers were encouraged by the child protection system to act in ways that protected the system itself rather than in the best interests of children at risk.
Source: Andrew Cooper, Rachael Hetherington and Ilan Katz, The Risk Factor: Making the child protection system work for children, Demos and Tedworth Charitable Trust, available from Central Books (020 8986 5488)
Links: Paper (pdf) | Demos press release
Date: 2003-Jun
A report examined the reasons for the relatively poor key stage 4 achievement of a cohort of pupils in care in summer 2001. Two thirds of the sample had had only one or two educational placements during their secondary phase schooling while in care, and it was not clear that all placements were to the benefit of the young people rather than to the benefit of adults seeking solutions for them. Misunderstanding of special educational needs exacerbated educational difficulties, increased failure and resulted in damaging labelling of children. Hardly any data were available for the cohort s performance at key stages 1 and 2, and key stage 3 data were available for only half the sample.
Source: Felicity Fletcher-Campbell and Tamsin Archer, Achievement at Key Stage 4 of Young People in Public Care, Research Report 434, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (pdf) | Brief (pdf)
Date: 2003-Jun
Among young people aged between 5 and 17 who were looked after by local authorities (England: 2001-02), 37 per cent had clinically significant conduct disorders; 12 per cent were assessed as having emotional disorders (anxiety and depression); and 7 per cent were rated as hyperactive. The new Minister for Children called for higher priority to be given to the needs of children in care.
Source: Howard Meltzer, Rebecca Gatward, Tania Corbin, Robert Goodman and Tamsin Ford, The Mental Health of Young People Looked After by Local Authorities in England, Office for National Statistics, TSO (0870 600 5522) | Press release 27.6.03, Department for Education and Skills (0870 000 2288)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf) | ONS press release (pdf) | DfES press release
Date: 2003-Jun
The government announced a doubling of the fee from 1 July 2003 for making criminal record checks on people working with children and vulnerable adults. Care home owners predicted that some homes would be forced out of business as a result.
Source: Press release 5.6.03, Home Office (0870 000 1585) | Letter 6.6.03 from National Care Homes Association (020 7831 7090)
Links: Home Office press release | NCHA letter (pdf) | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Jun
Margaret Hodge was appointed to the new post of Minister for Children, reporting to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills. One children's charity welcomed the appointment as a fresh start in the drive towards creating childcare for all children and families . But there were calls for her resignation because of alleged failings in her handling of child abuse cases in council care homes when leader of Islington Borough Council in London in the 1980s. At the same time as her appointment, overall responsibility for policy for children was brought together under one department (the DfES).
Source: Press release 13.6.03, Department for Education and Skills (0870 000 2288) | Press release 13.6.03, Daycare Trust (020 7840 3350) | BBC news report 30.6.03
Links: DfES press release | Guardian report (1) | Guardian report (2) | Guardian report (3) | BBC news report | Daycare Trust press release
Date: 2003-Jun
Local authority organisations proposed that elected local authorities should be given statutory recognition as the body accountable for all child protection services in each locality; that local authorities should publicly identify a lead member and senior officer for child protection; that other agencies involved in children s services, such as the police, health and voluntary bodies should also have a legal duty to have a named individual with ultimate responsibility for child protection within the organisation; and that partnership working between different agencies should be put on a formal, legal footing.
Source: Press release 4.6.03, Local Government Association (020 7664 3000) with NHS Confederation, Association of Directors of Social Services, Association of Chief Education Officers, and Confederation of Education Service Managers
Links: LGA press release | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Jun
Detailed figures were published on the educational qualifications, employment at age 16, health, and cautions and convictions of looked-after children in England, for the year to 30 September 2002.
Source: Outcome Indicators for Looked-After Children: Twelve months to 30 September 2002 - England, Department of Health (08701 555455)
Links: Report (pdf) | DH press release
Date: 2003-Jun
The estimated number of children looked after by local authorities in England on 31 March 2002 was 59,700, 1 per cent higher than a year earlier (58,900) and 22 per cent higher than in 1993-94. 64 per cent were under care orders, and 32 per cent under single voluntary agreements.
Source: Children Looked after by Local Authorities: Year ending 31 March 2002, England, Department of Health (08701 555455)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-May
Social services directors said that a disproportionate number of black children had been the subject of official reviews due to abuse, suggesting insufficient safeguards in the system for young black people. Processes should be developed to integrate and utilise community networks in the prevention and safeguarding of children from black and other ethnic minority groups.
Source: Victoria Climbie - Response to the Laming Report: A Community and Multi-faith Perspective, Association of Directors of Social Services (020 8741 8147)
Links: Response
Date: 2003-May
Twelve organisations concerned with vulnerable children, including social services directors, children's charities and the police, published a joint position statement. They said the Children Act 1989 provided a sound legislative base in this area; that the most effective way to protect vulnerable children was through strong universal services for all children; that there would always be a need to provide specific services to the most vulnerable; and that it was crucial to develop a 'whole system approach' to service delivery, focussed on the child and their family, and on the 'journey' of a child at any point in time.
Source: Inter Agency Position Statement On Vulnerable Children, Association of Directors of Social Services (020 8741 8147) and eleven other organisations
Links: Statement (pdf)
Date: 2003-May
The government published its response to a report by a committee of MPs into the conduct of investigations into past cases of abuse in children s homes. It said that it did not share the committee's belief in the existence of large numbers of miscarriages of justice.
Source: The Government Reply to the Fourth Report from the Home Affairs Committee, Session 2001-2002 HC 836: The Conduct of Investigations into Past Cases of Abuse in Children s Homes, Cm 5799, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Response (pdf) | HO press release | Hansard | Committee report
Date: 2003-Apr
A report said that fostered children in Scotland were experiencing too many moves between homes, leading to disruption and instability.
Source: Voices from Care, Fostering Network (info@fostering.net)
Links: Press release | BBC report
Date: 2003-Apr
The government announced that, from April 2003, 'home responsibilities protection' will be extended to foster carers. This protects the basic state pension rights of people with long-term home responsibilities (lasting at least one year). Campaigners said this was only a small step in the right direction, pointing out that the extension was not retrospective, and that protection is for a limited number of years.
Source: Press release 18.3.03, Department for Work and Pensions (020 7712 2171) | Press release 17.3.03, Fostering Network (020 7620 6437)
Links: DWP press release | Fostering Network press release
Date: 2003-Mar
The government issued revised educational targets for children in public care in England and Wales. It said that, by 2006, outcomes in English and maths for children aged 11 should be at least 60 per cent as good as those of their peers; and the proportion of those aged 16 who get qualifications equivalent to GCSEs graded A*-C should have risen on average by 4 percentage points each year since 2002. Campaigners criticised the targets, saying that they set 'low and insulting' expectations for the children concerned, and would allow local authorities to avoid improving standards. (GCSE = General Certificate of Secondary Education)
Source: House of Commons Hansard, Written Ministerial Statement 31.3.03, column 39WS (corrected in House of Commons Hansard, Written Ministerial Statement 4.4.03, columns 75-76WS) TSO (0870 600 5522) | Press release 31.3.03, Fostering Network (020 7620 6437)
Links: Hansard 31.3.03 | Hansard 4.4.03 | Fostering network press release
Date: 2003-Mar
Paediatricians argued that the police should take the lead on protecting children from criminal abuse. They said that most perpetrators, knowing they are committing crimes, deceive and intimidate social and health workers.
Source: David Southall, Martin Samuels and John Bridson, 'The police should take the lead on protecting children from criminal abuse', British Medical Journal 8.2.03
Links: Article
Date: 2003-Feb
Following a 2002 review report, the Scottish Executive said that if the existing child protection system continues to fail children, it will be replaced. An action plan was launched including a three-year reform programme for child protection services, an expert team to oversee reform and tackle poor performance, a new inspection system to ensure reform is delivered, a 'children s charter' setting out the support that every child has the right to expect, and increased investment in helplines.
Source: Press release 18.2.03, Scottish Executive (0131 556 8400)
Links: Press release | Review report
Date: 2003-Feb
A report examined the involvement of children and young people in children's services in Northern Ireland. It described the present limited involvement of children in planning processes as non-strategic and informal . It noted that, in particular, the voice of children and young people with disabilities is often absent when services are planned to meet their specific needs.
Source: George Kernohan, Methods of Involving Children and Young People in Children s Services, University of Ulster (028 9036 6178)
Links: News report | UU press release
Date: 2003-Feb
The first report of the new Children s Commissioner for Wales dealt with arrangements for children s advocacy and procedures for dealing with complaints and whistleblowing in each of the 22 local authorities. It found that local authorities do not appreciate the importance of whistleblowing policies to safeguard children in any of the services they are responsible for whether delivered in-house or commissioned.
Source: Telling Concerns, Children s Commissioner for Wales (01792 765600)
Links: Report (pdf) | News report | Community Care article
Date: 2003-Feb
The National Care Standards Commission said that it had decided that the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child will be used by all NCSC staff in making decisions that affect any child in a service or establishment regulated by the Commission. (The NCSC is the independent regulator for social care and private and voluntary healthcare services.)
Source: Press release 4.2.03, National Care Standards Commission (0191 233 3600)
Links: Press release
Date: 2003-Feb
The Scottish Parliament passed a Bill to create a list of adults who are regarded as 'unsuitable' to work with children. The Bill places a duty upon employers and the courts to refer people for inclusion on the list if they have harmed children or put children at risk of harm.
Source: Protection of Children (Scotland) Act 2003, Scottish Executive, TSO (0870 606 5566)
Links: Text of Act | Press release
Date: 2003-Feb
A report said that almost a quarter of local education authorities believe the current system for protecting school-age children from child abuse is not working effectively: they say failures in multi-agency working between education and social services departments are to blame.
Source: Mary Baginsky, Responsibility Without Power, National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (0207 825 2500)
Links: Press release
Date: 2003-Feb
Campaigners called for systems of national allowances for fostered children, and for local authorities to be properly resourced to pay those allowances.
Source: Press release 3.2.03, Fostering Network (020 7620 6400)
Links: Press release
Date: 2003-Feb
The government was reportedly considering a plan to send some children in care to boarding schools to improve their education and chances in life.
Source: Community Care, 24.1.03
Links: Article
Date: 2003-Jan
The report was published of an inquiry into the torture and brutal murder of Victoria Climbie (aged eight) in 2000 by her great aunt and great aunt's boyfriend. The report recommended the creation of a children and families board to be chaired by a cabinet minister, as well as a national agency for children and families (which would hold the function of children s commissioner). The Secretary of State for Health, commenting on criticism of social workers in the report, said: 'While public servants should enjoy our support, they should not expect our excuses'. Children's rights campaigners welcomed the report but expressed disappointment that it did not call for either the creation of a fully independent children's commissioner or for a statutory ban on smacking.
Source: The Victoria Climbie Inquiry: Report of an inquiry by Lord Laming, Cm 5730, TSO (0870 600 5522) | House of Commons Hansard, Debate 28.1.03, columns 737-756, TSO | Press release 28.1.03, Children's Rights Alliance for England (020 7278 8222)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf) | Hansard | CRAE press release | Barnardo's press release | GSCC press release | Community Care article
Date: 2003-Jan
At 31 March 2002, 415 children were accommodated in secure units in England and Wales maintained by councils with social services responsibilities - an increase of 5 per cent compared with the previous year, continuing the general upward trend seen since 1995. 46 per cent of the children were aged 14 years or under, compared to 22 per cent in 1992. (Secure units are primarily intended for children and young people under 18 years of age who are likely to cause serious injury to themselves or others if placed in other forms of accommodation.)
Source: Children Accommodated in Secure Units, Year ending 31 March 2002: England and Wales, Statistical Bulletin 2003/01, Department of Health (020 7972 5581)
Links: Bulletin (pdf) | Summary
See also: Journal of Social Policy Volume 31/1, Digest 121, paragraph 6.4
Date: 2003-Jan
There were 25,700 children on child protection registers at 31 March 2002, just over 4 per cent less than a year earlier. This figure represented 23 children per 10,000 of the population aged under 18. 4,600 (18 per cent) of the children on the register were also looked after by local authorities. 39 per cent of registrations during 2001-02 related to children considered to be at risk of neglect.
Source: Referrals, Assessments and Children and Young People on Child Protection Registers: Year ending 31 March 2002, Department of Health (08701 555455)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary
Date: 2003-Jan