Third of parents at risk of having babies taken into care have learning difficulties, research finds

The research looked at cases across four different local authority areas involving a child under the age of one and found 34% involved parents with a learning delay issue.

This trend varied among the council areas, with two in five involving a parent with learning challenges in one. While the proportion dipped to one in five in another.

Disabilities or difficulties in many cases are not being identified until cases reach court, warn researchers.

Professionals interviewed “thought this was far too late and that there were missed opportunities to identify learning disabilities or learning difficulties at an earlier stage”.

Late identification means appropriate support is not in place to meet their needs, such as “the chance to access and meaningfully engage in pre-birth services that might help them to develop or prove their parenting abilities”, add researchers.