DfE: 'No link' between spending on children's social care and quality

Despite concerns among local authorities that ongoing funding cuts are placing increasing pressure on frontline services, the DfE has told the education select committee that it has found no evidence that spending more money improves effectiveness.

The claim comes after the education select committee requested that the DfE answer a series of questions on its approach to children’s social work reform.

Among these the committee asked the DfE for its view on the impact on children's social care of reductions in funding to local authorities and other employers of social workers.

"It is too early to predict, with any accuracy, the impact of the Spending Review on individual local authorities," the DfE said in its response.

"We know that in the last parliament child protection was prioritised in spending terms by local authorities and that there was no significant correlation between spend and effectiveness."

The response adds, however, that the current "fiscal position" does present "some significant challenges".

Government figures show that in the last three years local authority spending on children's social work and child protection services has dropped by 18 per cent from £2.58bn in 2011/12 to £2.12bn in 2014/15.

During the same period, official Ofsted ratings for local authority children's services departments have got worse. Under the watchdog's new inspection framework, as of November last year, 77 per cent of the 69 authorities inspected had been rated "requires improvement" (52 per cent), or "inadequate" (25 per cent).

The DfE's memo to the select committee states that its social work reform programme aims to support efficiency as well as effectiveness.

"The improved decision making and leadership which will result from the package of reforms... will lead to sharper, more effective interventions which will both improve children's lives and be less costly overall," it states.

The DfE highlights the example of Leeds, which it says has made "very significant savings" in the cost of looked-after children's services through improved leadership and a reform of the way social work is done.

Andy Elvin, chief executive of The Adolescent and Children's Trust (Tact), said spending on children's social care does not always mean better outcomes for children, but raised concerns that cuts to early intervention budgets will result in increased demand on services.

"Tact welcomes moves to innovate in terms of structures and practice to improve outcomes," he said.

"We also warmly welcome the developments in social worker recruitment and training.

"However, cuts to early intervention services will mean more children become classified as 'in need', so pressure on children’s social care will increase and either resources will need to increase or thresholds for service will need to be raised."

"The latter would present significant risk to children’s wellbeing."