JCHR @HumanRightsCtte Report on Children in Social Care Is Published Today:
Read Report here:
https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/54620/documents/303468/default
Easy To Read version:
https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/54621/documents/303438/default
Summary
Out of more than 12 million children living in England, around 400,000 are in
the social care system at any one time. Out of these, nearly 84,000 children
in England are in care, being looked after by local authorities. Although
these children are among the most vulnerable and in need of protection
in our society, we have found that their human rights are not always
respected. This inquiry looked into many aspects of the children’s social care
framework to investigate human rights issues affecting children and people
in care, care leavers, and those receiving support from the children’s social
care system.
In relation to the international framework applicable to children in social
care, we have found that the lack of incorporation of the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) creates inconsistency in the
application of human rights protections and potentially undermines the
realisation of children’s rights across the UK. We therefore recommend
the incorporation of the UNCRC into domestic law in England. The UNCRC
is a tool to enhance the rights of children in the UK, but its incorporation
must be accompanied by other practical measures, such as the ones we
recommend further down this report, with the goal of improving the lives of
children in the UK.
We have also found that the disabled children’s social care framework is
complex and difficult to navigate. In line with recommendations made by the
Law Commission, we recommend the creation of a single, comprehensive
piece of statutory guidance on disabled children’s social care law, clearly
setting out the rights and responsibilities of disabled children, families, and
local authorities. We also recommend the introduction of a single duty to
assess the social care needs of disabled children, as well as a change in the
definition of disability and the adoption of a national eligibility criteria for
assessments.
Kinship arrangements should continue to be prioritised, and the experiences
and expertise of kinship families must be given proper regard when
decisions are being made about changes to the system.
We agree with the government that the children’s social care market is
fundamentally broken. There is a serious crisis of availability across the
country, leading to children being placed far from home and from siblings,
sometimes in illegal accommodation or in supported accommodation
that is substandard and does not meet their needs, diverting money that
local councils would be able to otherwise spend on effectively supporting
children in care and their families. We make recommendations to tackle
these issues, including the introduction of a universal set of standards of
care to apply in all settings, in order to protect the human rights of children
wherever they are placed.
We also make recommendations in relation to the more than 400
unaccompanied asylum-seeking children who went missing from asylum
hotels in 2023, 40 of whom are still missing. This is an extremely concerning
situation that has been developing for years without resolution, and one
that we have vigorously pursued since 2023. We urge the government to
take further steps to publish data and to take action to locate all missing
children and to avoid missing episodes in the future.
Children in care and young people with care experience are
disproportionately at risk of criminalisation. The government must urgently
address the root causes and drivers of that.
We heard that children in need are four times more likely to die due to
deliberately inflicted injury, abuse or neglect than children without any
social care involvement. This is profoundly concerning. To combat this,
as well as the ill-treatment of children in care or receiving support from
the social care system, we recommend measures to increase access to
mental health services, as well as the removal of the defence of reasonable
chastisement for cases of physical assault against a child.
When young people leave care, many are left with difficulties to transition
into adulthood. Young people often face an abrupt “care cliff”, where
support ends and relationships are lost. We ask the government to consider
the merits of removing general age-based cut-off points, opting instead for
the holistic provision of support according to the needs of each individual
leaving care, to ensure a smooth transition into adulthood. We also ask
the government to explore concrete actions to address discrimination
against people with care experience, including the provision of human rights
training to those involved in providing public services and improvements
to mechanisms for holding public bodies to account when discrimination
against care leavers takes place.
When things go wrong with social care service provision, as we heard they
often do, there must be effective avenues for raising complaints. But we
heard that complaints mechanisms can be complex, slow, and ineffective.
To address this, we propose a no wrong door policy: if a complaint about
the provision of care and support is not within the scope of the body
receiving it, this body should either automatically direct the complaint to
the appropriate body or direct the complainant to the right channels in an
adequate timeframe. We also propose the strengthening of the right to
advocacy and of the role of the Independent Reviewing Officers.
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Following a series of evidence sessions, including a round table with young people who have experienced the care system, and first-hand visits to York and Leeds, the Joint Committee on Human Rights has today published its report on children in social care
The Joint Committee on Human Rights has called for widespread reforms to the children’s social care system to improve the quality of support and life-long outcomes for people in care and care leavers.
The wide-ranging report calls for more to be done to make the system easy to navigate for those in need of support, improved complaint mechanisms and greater focus on the wider legacy of being in the care system.
Around 400,000 children in England are in the social care system, with nearly 84,000 being looked after by local authorities.
The Joint Committee calls on the Government to fully incorporate the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into English law to provide a clear overarching framework to safeguard the human rights of children in care.
This would not only increase protections for children but enhance the accountability of public authorities tasked with supporting them.
Beyond concerns around the quality of immediate support provided to children, the report highlights the lifelong consequences for children who have engaged with the social care system.
Care leavers have spoken of a ‘cliff edge’ as they reach adulthood and support networks disappear. The Government should explore how it can provide support beyond current rigid age cut offs to ensure better outcomes for care leavers in areas including housing, health, education and employment.
The report highlights the value of kinship care and calls on the government to provide greater support to keep children in family networks. The Kinship Allowance Pilot scheme is a welcome step in the right direction but many families will remain unsupported while the programme is rolled out and tested.
The Government should examine interim measures including financial allowance and access to parental leave while a long-term solution is developed.
Care for disabled children is inconsistent and difficult to navigate. The Joint Committee calls for a single, comprehensive statutory guidance on children’s social care law to clarify the rights and responsibilities for disabled children, families and local authorities.
The lack of national criteria for disabled children’s care has created a postcode lottery and should be rectified to ensure equality of access across the country.
The accommodation model in children’s social care is broken. A lack of capacity has resulted in children being placed in expensive and wholly inadequate accommodation, often far from support networks. The Government must end the use of unregulated spaces as a matter of urgency.
Measures that should be explored include increasing efforts to drive up local authority supply of placements through adequate funding, carrying out tougher inspections, and tackling delays in the registration process for homes.
The inquiry looked into many aspects of the children’s social care framework to investigate human rights issues affecting children and people in care, care leavers, and those receiving support of the children’s social care system.
The problems with the children’s social care system identified by the Committee stand in the way of children and young people fully enjoying their rights to private and family life, to a safe home, to be free from discrimination and to have their voices heard.
—— Comment from the Chair of the Joint Committee on Human Rights, Lord David Alton:
“We have a moral duty as a society to uphold the human rights of children and young people. The children’s social care system is there to be a crucial safety net to support the most vulnerable in society.
“The evidence we have heard from children in care, care leavers and experts in the field is that too often it is failing to prevent people falling through the gaps. “The challenges for those in need of care do not stop when childhood ends – from the ‘cliff edge’ of support ending at the age of 18, to the increased likelihood of entering the criminal justice system to facing discrimination once they leave care.
“These are issues that Government needs to do more to understand and take steps to address them. “The continued difficulties for disabled children and their families navigating a complex system are profoundly troubling and wholly unacceptable. They need to be resolved. Clear guidelines need to be in place so that everyone knows what they are entitled to and what their responsibilities are. Consistent standards need to be in place to end the postcode lottery of support.
“The crisis in accommodation must also be dealt with once and for all. Local authorities with an urgent need to house vulnerable children should not be cash cows for accommodation providers. “Unlicensed and illegal homes are a licence to print money – costing the tax payer £353 million a year. The Government must work with local authorities to ensure the capacity is there for safe, secure and cost-effective spaces that meet local need.”
- GB News – Migrant crisis: One in ten children who went missing from asylum hotels still not found
- The Guardian – Forty children reported missing from UK asylum hotels still not found
- The Independent – Children missing after disappearing from UK asylum hotels spark concern
- Sky News – Dozens of children who went missing from asylum hotels still unaccounted for years later
