Children’s services reform needs brave leaders

Over the coming months, a number of important pieces of work will draw to conclusion: implementation of the Health and Care Bill, designed to build greater cross-system collaboration; the review of special educational needs and disabilities, addressing the implementation of reforms stumbling because of lack of investment and the capacity to implement them; and the Education White Paper, consolidating yet further reform in the education system. A National Safeguarding Review into the tragic death of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes will, no doubt, shine a light on the need to further improve partnership arrangements to safeguard children; implementation of Andrea Leadsom’s Best Start in Life Vision which focuses attention on babies and may bring the partial revival of decimated integrated local support through family hubs. Finally, there is the concluding report of the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care, long heralded as bringing bold thinking to complex support for the most vulnerable children under the oversight of statutory agencies and in care.

I can’t remember a better opportunity to strengthen the links across various parts of the wide-ranging support system for babies, children, young people and families. But I’m filled with foreboding about the ability of government to make the most of this opportunity.

The impact of the pandemic is about to be seriously amplified by the looming cost of living crisis. Yet the cavalier clawing back of the temporary universal credit uplift shows not only a lack of compassion for the impact on those individuals, but a blindness to the importance of maintaining a basic secure income for families to survive adversity. It’s callous and stupid.

I’d like to think there will be oversight of all the strands of important policy work, and that vision and leadership will ensure that ministers and senior civil servants in the Department for Education fight the corner for reform and investment. But I see no sign of the influence and courage needed.

I fear we’ll end up fiddling at the margins with piecemeal improvements masquerading as reform and a perpetuation of grants for favoured organisations rather than the wholesale investment needed. The disintegration of the national assessment and accreditation system for social workers shows the failure of this approach.

We need a children’s ministerial team who have a grip on all the strands, can join them up and recognise the importance of collaboration. Political and professional leaders must demonstrate what is needed across the wider system through working together at national policy level.

The ongoing distraction of the crisis in political leadership must not diminish the passion we need from our political leaders and the bravery of senior civil servants to make the most of this rare opportunity.

• Alison O’Sullivan is chair of the National Children’s Bureau and former ADCS president