Although a proposed cut of 1.8 per cent across all councils does not seem that large, the reductions to early intervention and crisis support services are much deeper than that and mean some areas with the greatest need will be hit the hardest. It also hits councils at both ends of their work spectrum, stifling their ability to stem the growing tide of families and individuals in need, and then put help in place for those facing financial hardship.
The 8.9 per cent cut to the early intervention budget will almost certainly lead to further children's centre closures, parenting support programmes being scrapped and a narrowing of the eligibility criteria so that only "troubled" families qualify to access what services remain.
These cuts come on the back of significant reductions in council spending on early help services over the past few years.
Official figures also published last month showed the amount councils spent on children's centres and early years services in 2013/14 fell by £140m, with a further £108m drop earmarked for 2014/15.
The tough funding settlements of the coalition government's five-year public spending austerity drive has left most councils with little choice but to cut services in response (the Local Government Association says council funding has dropped 40 per cent in real terms since 2010). But this is creating a fool's economy, one in which reductions in spending on upfront support for vulnerable families and young children - those, who with a bit of help can avoid getting into crisis - is being sacrificed to pay for those children already in need.
The draft funding settlement also saw local welfare support scheme funding reduced by a quarter and have its ringfence removed. The £43m funding cut for welfare support schemes - emergency grants to support families on low incomes with one-off costs such as replacing a broken cooker or fleeing domestic violence - could be seen as less worse than expected considering the government had previously threatened to scrap it altogether.
However, the removal of the ringfence could render the scheme as good as gone anyway - during tough financial times, unprotected funds are vulnerable to be raided to offset shortfalls elsewhere.
Although helping out in a crisis, the welfare fund is, to a degree, a preventative service. Without it, families or vulnerable young people may end up homeless, committing crime to make ends meet or staying in an abusive relationship. Where will the support come without it?
As the next president of the Association of Directors of Children's Services Alison O'Sullivan points out in her contribution to our 2015 Report, councils' capacity to prevent the need for children to be taken into care "will soon be gone" unless there is "sustainable investment". Unfortunately, all the signs so far are the political discourse for the year ahead, regardless of who wins the next general election, is set to be about the pace of cuts - how deep and how fast - rather than whether they should happen at all.
