England needs in-depth and speedy care review

That there needs to be a care review in England is undeniable – outcomes for looked-after children and care leavers still lag well behind peers. The key question is how comprehensive should such a review be? This depends on the scale of the government’s ambitions. When deciding this, new children’s minister Vicky Ford should look to Scotland’s recently published Independent Care Review for pointers (See Analysis).

The independent chair of the Scottish review Fiona Duncan has deep knowledge of disadvantaged children and public services, but no strong affiliation to a particular sector or lobby. Ford and officials at the Department for Education would do well to consider these attributes a prerequisite when searching for an independent chair for the English review. Another key strength of the Scottish approach has been its collegiate nature. Experts from across the sector sat on the review’s advisory groups, ensuring no single world view could dominate.