A House of Commons report has called for urgent government action after warning that youngsters in England face some of the worst child health outcomes in Europe including rising obesity, uneven...
Some of the most vulnerable children in society are being failed and put at risk, the Public Accounts Committee has warned, after it found children were being placed in inappropriate homes through a...
Substantial plans for reform of special educational needs (SEND) funding announced in the Budget have been welcomed as a substantial step forward in addressing the crisis facing local authorities as...
The volume and complexity of need among children under five is increasing across the UK, according to a new report commissioned by the Local Government Association (LGA).
The eligibility criteria for government-funded childcare puts disadvantaged children at risk of missing out on the same early education as their more affluent peers, according to a report.
The UK’s wealthiest households will be eight times as likely to benefit from the government’s expanded programme of funded childcare hours than their lowest-earning counterparts, according to the New...
Support hubs for young families are to be rolled out in every council in England, beginning next year, education secretary Bridget Phillipson has announced.
The financial benefits generated by the last Labour government’s Sure Start centres were more than double the amount of the programme’s costs, according to a leading think-tank.
The mayor of the North East has set out plans to help parents with the cost of childcare as part of a drive to tackle “unacceptable” levels of child poverty in the region.
An ambitious expansion in free childcare for working parents may not represent value for money, and could undermine wider socio-economic objectives, the national spending watchdog has warned.
Government spending cuts have restricted resources in local government and are a factor in the rising number of children in care, a senior judge has said.
England’s largest independent children’s care providers recorded profits of £310m in 2021-22, according to the Local Government Association, prompting renewed calls for greater government oversight.
The Scottish government has succeeded in expanding subsidised early learning and childcare places, but the sector faces risks from budget, workforce and market pressures, Audit Scotland has warned.
The failure to adopt radical and fully funded long term children’s care reforms represents a “missed opportunity”, a House of Lords Committee has said.
Conflicting regulations and insufficient funding mean local authorities are struggling to meet the needs of children in care, a senior officer has warned.
The lack of skills within local authorities to manage soaring children’s care costs is a “worry” and the government should intervene, a senior official has said.
Proposals to improve oversight and transparency in the children’s care market are unlikely to significantly reduce costs without action on profiteering, experts have warned.
Children’s care leaders are concerned next week’s Autumn Statement could bring further austerity, forcing them to cut preventative services in a “false economy” leading to higher costs and worse...
Councils have no room for cuts in children’s care budgets, and soaring demand means the sector will need three quarters of a billion pounds just to “stay still” this year, a senior officer has warned.
The children’s care sector needs a workforce strategy to improve services and conditions for staff, with the regulator labelling the situation “more urgent than ever”.
