MacAlister: Government care review plans ‘welcome’ but ‘too timid’

Last week the government announced the next steps to be taken on implementing reforms outlined in its Stable Homes, Built on Love strategy, which was released earlier this year in response to MacAlister’s review.

Latest plans include increasing allowances for some kinship carers and developing a national framework “to set out the purpose, principles and outcomes that should be achieved in children’s social care”.

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Also planned is a strategy to improve data collection and an £8.5m investment in fostering.

MacAlister says the moves show the government is “genuinely responding” to the need to improve children’s social care but warned “some changes are too timid”, particularly around ensuring there is joint leadership across councils, health, police and education.

He also wants to see action on “pushing for more intensive, locally-based family help services”. The government’s children’s social care reform statement only says it wants families to “get the help they need when they need it”.

MacAlister does however welcome the national framework’s focus on “clear objectives for children’s social care”, as its wide remit “can often seem confusing”.

These are to help children stay with their families, receive help, gain support from family networks, are safe and live in “loving homes”.

A lot of policies for children's social care were announced by government on Friday. My thoughts on kinships changes are in the quoted thread 👇

The other big policy changes were 1) new outcomes doc for the children's social care & 2) updated guidance on multi-agency working... https://t.co/D1VPW4RKIY

— Josh MacAlister (@JoshMacAlister) December 18, 2023

Also announced by the government are updates to the government’s Working together to safeguard children guidance on how councils, police, health professionals and schools can better work together to safeguard and protect children.

Changes includes ensuring those subject to a child in need plan are helped by a skilled practitioner, who may not be a social worker.

“Applied well, it could make a big difference,” said MacAlister.

“It allows services to build skilled multi-disciplinary teams to provide direct intensive help to families, halting the assess-refer-repeat merry-go-round that's so wasteful and damaging.”

In terms of bolstering data collection, the government is committed over the next two years to improve information sharing. Ministers have also reiterated their commitment to publishing a children’s social care data dashboard next year. Work on this includes improving the indicators used to measure children’s outcomes.

A commitment to probe the “limitations of current national data” on harm facing children outside of their home, is also made.

Meanwhile, Ofsted has said it is “rebalancing” its inspection framework to take into account the government’s plans around social care reform.

“This will be about language and emphasis rather than wholescale change,” said the inspectorate.