And there are fears that although expectations on child welfare are much higher in the wake of the Victoria Climbie case, budgets have not increased sufficiently to support councils' work.
Annie Hudson, head of children's services in Bristol, said there was real concern that the funding her council received didn't reflect the needs of the children it had to look after.
"Expectations are rightly much higher now but budgets haven't increased to reflect that," she said.
In recent weeks several councils have reported major social services budget deficits. A key reason, they claim, is the rising cost of looked-after children.
"It's a very big headache that councils are having to support," said David Hawker, director of children's services in Brighton and co-chair of the Association of Directors of Education and Children's Services.
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