CHILDREN IN CARE – New Adoption Legislation

Sir.

As Chair of Somerset’s Corporate Parent Board, whilst I welcome David Cameron’s announcement over the weekend, ahead of the Queen’s Speech on Wednesday, of new legislation encouraging the adoption of children in care, I fear that he is missing the point.

In Somerset we have over 500 children in care, and whilst I would not deny that we have had to face some challenges in recent years, we are all too aware of our responsibilities. With the support of officers our elected members have worked together, putting aside our political differences, to ensure that those children in our care have the best possible opportunities to achieve their full potential in all areas of their lives.

Whilst David Cameron is correct in saying that children in care have been ‘let down for too long’, in promising ‘zero tolerance’ of state failure around social care, he and his minsters must bear some responsibility for this. Despite continued pleas there has been a continued failure to listen to under-funded local authorities. Stringent budget cuts over a period of time, despite efforts to protect the area of children’s social care, have meant that some very tough decisions have had to be made. Having children in the care of the local authority is a very expensive business. It is not just local authorities that have a part to play in the welfare of these children. In order to fulfil our obligation we must work hand in hand with other agencies and partners; including schools, the police, the NHS, which includes GPs and mental health services, as well as many others who may come into contact with those children and their families.

In calling for swifter adoption, the point he is missing is that what we must be doing is to strive to avoid these children coming into care in the first place through stringent early intervention and support services. Children come into care for many, many reasons and I would suggest that in many cases it is our failure as a society to recognise and act upon the early warning signs, to help these children stay with their families where possible, helping to create the stable environment they deserve, that is at the root of the problem.

Incidentally, if he really wants to listen to what these children have to say, and they do deserve to have their say, then he and his colleagues would do well to heed the voice of our children in care who prefer to be called Children Looked After, rather than Looked After Children which is a term that OFSTED continues to use, where the acronym LAC further reinforces their vulnerable position.