CYP Now - Local authority cuts could lead to loss of early intervention support, DCSs warn

Local authorities will be forced to slash early intervention services for children and families in the face of an almost £3bn deficit during the next financial year, the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) has warned.

Some social workers said they felt high workloads meant they were unable to take part in the Care Review. Picture: Adobe Stock

Analysis of local authority data, provided by Freedom of Information (FOI) requests and local authorities’ medium-term budgets, by public services union Unison predicts cuts as high as £2.9bn in 2022/23.

Hampshire County Council is among local authorities with large deficits as it faces making more than £65.9m savings next year while Cheshire West and Chester Council has an almost £26m financial black hole.

Hackney Council faces an £11m deficit despite 48 per cent of the London borough’s children already living in poverty.

ADCS vice-president Steve Crocker said: “Councils have worked hard to manage demand and protect the most vulnerable, but they have been left with no other option but to perversely cut the very services that enable us to intervene early before crisis hits.

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