
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Care-Experienced Children and Young Group says the extension of the duties will improve support for care-experienced young people.
Police and the Department for Work and Pensions would also have corporate parenting responsibility for those in care and care leavers under the proposal.
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MPs and peers are calling on the government to introduce legislation to extend corporate parenting. It is also recommending that “a suite of support measures” are introduced to help public bodies meet their new duties.
There should also be “strong accountability measures to ensure that these reforms deliver real positive changes for care-experienced young people”.
The call has been made after the group received evidence from more than 200 organisations and people, including 160 care-experienced young people
The APPG’s inquiry into corporate parenting is led by the charity Become, which hosts the group.
“Throughout this inquiry, we have heard how care-experienced children and young people have been let down by public services,” said Become chief executive Katharine Sacks-Jones.
“They’ve told us how they’ve faced stigma from professionals, such as police officers, teachers and health staff and the barriers in accessing support, with too many young people falling through the cracks between services.
“Extending corporate parenting duties across the public sector will increase understanding and ensure better support to ultimately help improve the life chances of care-experienced young people.”
The move is backed by care leaver Riley Kemp, who has faced “stigma” when accessing NHS services due to being care-experienced.
“If the NHS was a corporate parent, they would care more, as a parent would, rather than making an instant judgement about me because I’ve been in care,” said Riley.
APPG chair Steve McCabe, who is Labour MP for Birmingham Selly Oak, added: “We heard some really interesting examples of how some public bodies already adapt their policies and services to meet the needs and views of care-experienced young people.”
Surveying care-experienced young people for their views on services, ring-fencing training, as well as offering employment opportunities for care leavers are among measures being taken, the APPG found.