So it is hardly surprising that the Government wants to make the most of this. Its vision for children's services involves children's trusts planning and delivering services in close co-operation with other agencies, voluntary as well as statutory, that work with children locally. Money, and the time and commitment of volunteers, are not the only benefits.
Voluntary and community organisations are often more innovative than large public sector ones, better able to identify unmet needs, and sometimes able to reach groups that only reluctantly engage with statutory agencies, such as drug users or asylum seekers.
But as our feature article on page 22 makes clear, achieving this is far from easy. Voluntary and community organisations vary greatly in size and capacity. And in any local area there are potentially scores of organisations that could be involved.
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