Poverty and homelessness are driving demand for children's social care, directors have warned.
Lack of adequate housing, welfare reforms and families lacking access to public funds are adding to pressures on children's services, an Association of Directors of Children's Services (ADCS) survey has found.
The findings come from the ADCS's latest Safeguarding Pressures* research, its regular stocktake on the state of children's social care in England, and were shared in a submission to the government's child poverty taskforce.
The taskforce was set up last year to develop a cross-government strategy to alleviate child poverty, which is due this spring. It is examining how the government can increase household incomes, including through welfare reforms that raise employment levels and reduce poverty, help bring down the cost of essential goods and alleviate the negative impacts of poverty.
Rising levels of child poverty
As of 2022-23, 4.3m - or 30% of - children were in relative poverty in the UK, meaning they lived in a household whose income was below 60% of the average after taking account of housing costs. This is up from 27% of children in 2021-22 (source: Institute for Fiscal Studies).
In its submission, the ADCS cited past research that has identified a strong link between levels of deprivation in an area and children's social care involvement (Bywaters et al), and said the Safeguarding Pressures survey had found increasing demand driven by poverty.
Poverty driving demand for children's social care
Based on responses from 86 of the 153 authorities, the survey, carried out last year, found:
- Almost three-quarters had seen demand from families in poverty rise as a result of welfare reforms, particularly among larger families with three or more children. This is likely related to the introduction in 2017 of a two-child cap on household claims for child tax credit or universal credit.
- Nearly two-thirds said that poverty-driven demand has grown from families where one or more parents were in work.
- 59% said that increased demand on services was being driven by poor quality housing, while 61% reported increased safeguarding activity linked with homelessness and 54% said that demand on children’s social care was being driven by housing need amongst homeless young people.
- Almost half said service demand had risen in relation to families with no recourse to public funds (NRPF), who are unable to access benefits or help with housing due to their immigration status.
'Incalculable' impact of poverty on childhood
"The impact of poverty on childhood is incalculable, children arrive at school hungry and are unable to focus on learning, families are queuing up at food banks and schools are routinely buying coats, shoes and even washing clothes for pupils and their families," the ADCS said.
"ADCS members believe that failure to address child poverty risks undermining the success of a range of planned reforms right across government."
*The full results of the latest wave of the Safeguarding Pressures series will be published shortly.
