Children England News and Publications
Children England AGM and Annual Debate Next Week
Children England’s AGM takes place at Lift (a couple of minutes from Angel tube station) on
Wednesday 3 December 14.00 – 14.30, immediately before the Annual Debate. If you’re
attending the Annual Debate, please do come along to the AGM beforehand.
If you haven’t yet booked your ticket to the Annual Debate, which will focus on the role profitmaking in child protection, there’s just a few left. The debate will be chaired by Patrick Butler,
editor of society, health and education policy for the Guardian, and the following speakers are
confirmed:
 Lord Warner
 Cat Hobbs, Director of We Own It
 Laurie Gregory, Chairman of Foster Care Cooperative
 Carol Homden, Chair of the National Autistic Society
Attendance at the Children England Annual Debate is free for members and non-members, but
you will need to reserve a place here.
UK Conference on Child Poverty and Wellbeing
Investing in children and breaking the cycle of disadvantage
16th December 2014 9:15 am – 4:00 pm, Cardiff
At a time when more than 3.5 million children in the UK face poverty and social exclusion, the
UK Alliance for Investing in Children is pushing for full implementation of the European
Commission Recommendation “Investing in Children – Breaking the Cycle of Disadvantage”
within the UK.
This conference will highlight areas of good practice in tackling child poverty from across the
UK, and discuss how to take the child poverty agenda forward in the future, thereby improving
the quality of life and well-being of children and young people in the UK and Europe.
The UK Alliance is part of a wider Joint Action led by the EU Alliance for Investing in Children
coalition and is made up of partners from Children in Wales, Children in Scotland, Children
England and Children in Northern Ireland.
Confirmed speakers at the conference include:
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Baroness Gillian Shephard, Deputy Chair of the UK Social Mobility & Child Poverty
Commission
Lesley Griffiths, AM & Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty, Welsh
Government
Richard Thurston, Deputy Chief Social Research Officer, Welsh Government
Maurice Leeson, Professional Advisor to Children and Young People’s Strategic
Partnership, Northern Ireland
John Dickie, Head of Child Poverty Action Group, Scotland
Gwyther Rees, Honorary Research Fellow, Social Policy Research Unit, University of
York
Jana Hainsworth, Secretary General, Eurochild
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A Quesion & Answer session with the speakers will be included within the Programme,
and a set of short films will be shown following the work that Children in Wales has
undertaken with schools and organisations across the UK on different areas of poverty
and inequality – including health, education, housing and childcare
Target Audience: Policy, planning and strategy leads in the Public Sector, Voluntary &
Community organisations from Wales, Scotland, England and Northern Ireland
£60 for members of Children in Wales, Children in Scotland, Children England and Children in
Northern Ireland, £75 for non-members
Book a place online now
Government News and Publications
Study of Young People in England
The Department for Education has published a longitudinal study of young people of secondary
school age in England. Key points include:
 40% of young people reported they had been bullied in the previous 12 months, with 8%
experiencing daily bullying
 14% of young people received additional private tuition (increasing to 24% in London)
 9 out of 10 parents described their child’s school as good or very good
 Four out of five young people who did not plan to stay in full-time education stated they
intended to begin an apprenticeship (45%) or start work with some education and
training (35%)
 64% of young people reported no risky behaviours and 68% of parents reported no
indications of risky behaviours
 16% of young people had tried smoking and 80% of those no longer smoked
 76% of young people did not report any criminal behaviours
 Families are eating dinner together more often, with 52% saying that their family had
eaten a family meal at least six out of the previous seven evenings
 Young people were socialising less in person with their friends, with 42% saying that
they mainly sent their spare time going out with somewhere with friends and 13% saying
going round to a friend’s house
 47% of girls and 30% of boys said they used social networking and instant messenger
sites throughout the day
 Young people living in less deprived areas were more likely to participate in sport most
days
Apprenticeships and Job-Shops for 16-18s
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has announced that a comprehensive national database of
post-16 skills and employer-led courses and opportunities in England, similar to the UCAS
system, will be in place at the beginning of the next school year in September 2015. Official
statistics show that in the 4 years to 2009 to 2010, 928,800 people began an apprenticeship
compared to 1,984,900 over the past 4 years.
Improving Outcomes Through Boarding Schools
The Department for Education has published a report which finds that boarding schools are an
opportunity to improve outcomes for vulnerable children. Key points include:
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As at September 2014 there are 40 state boarding schools, of which 27 are academies,
2 are free schools, 8 are maintained schools and 3 are FE colleges
Aprroximately 15% of boarding places are taken up by children whose parents serve in
the Armed Forces
Around 4% of boarders receive assistance with fees, with only a small number of these
receiving assistance from a local authority – the majority of assistance is provided by
charities or other sources
Local authorities that do place children in boarding provision believe it is the most
appropriate placement, improves outcomes and is cost effective
The children likely to benefit are those who are looked after by a local authority or those
at risk of entering care in the future, where living with their birth family is becoming
unsustainable
Early Years Attainment
The Department for Education has published statistics on attainment for the Early Years
Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP). Key points include:
 60% of pupils achieved a good level of development
 Girls continue to outperform boys with an attainment gap of 16%
 The pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) achieving good level of development has
increased from 35% in 2013 to 45% in 2014, however the FSM attainment gap remains
at 19%
 Autumn born children continue to outperform children born in either the spring or the
summer
 The gap between children with SEN and those with no SEN identified needs has
increased by 47%
NEET Statistics
The Department for Education has published information on young people not in education,
employment or training (NEET). Key points include:
 The 16-18 NEET rate fell to 10.6% in July to September 2014, 1.6% lower than July to
September 2013 and the lowest July to September figure since comparable data began
in 2000
 The 19-24 NEET rate fell by 2.4% (to 17.6%) in the same period and the overall 16-24
rate fell by 2.2% (to 15.4%)
 For 16-18 year olds, this change was driven by a fall in the proportion of those not in
education or training (NET) and a rise in the employment rate of the NET group
 For the 19-24 age group, the main driver was a rise in the employment rate to its
highest level since 2008
Government Responses
The Government has published its response to the second annual report of the Social Mobility
and Child Poverty Commission.
Sector News and Publications
Children’s Rights Threatened by Austerity
The Children’s Rights Alliance for England has published the 12th State of Children’s Rights in
England, which says that austerity policies in England mean mounting threats to children in
England. Key points include:
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Latest figures show that 31% of children in the UK are living in poverty, an increase of
3% since 2008, despite 63% of them living in a household where at least one person
works
Families with children make up 65% of homeless households, and there was a 400%
increase in families with children living in bed and breakfast accommodation between
2009 and 2014
Almost all (96%) of the households affected by the benefits cap are families with children
The cost of childcare has gone up steeply since 2009 (27%) – more than a third of lone
parents are having difficulty in funding childcare
A lack of financial and practical support for disabled children and their families mean that
disabled children are not being properly supported to go to mainstream schools, are
excluded from local services and recreational opportunities and, in some cases, their
families are at breaking point, with children even entering care because of their
disabilities
CRAE’s Freedom of Information request shows that twice as many children were strip
searched in 2013 than 2008
The fifteen police forces which responded to a Freedom of Information request had used
Tasers on 230 children in 2013, some as young as 13
Black and Asian children are disproportionately being stopped and searched by police
forces with 30% of all stops and searches are children in this group
Black children are over-represented in custody – making up 21% of the population in the
youth secure estate
Children in custody are those who have been let down earlier in life, meaning we are
punishing disadvantage – 33% of boys in Young Offender Institutions had been in care,
19% said they have mental health problems, between 23% and 32% have a learning
disability
Young People and the Economy
NCVYS have published the Youth Report 2014. The focus of this year’s snapshot is the
relationships between young people and the economy. Key points include:
 Government spending on services for young people in 2013 – 14 is £0.7billion
 Young people invested £8 billion in themselves through student loans this year
 Voluntary and community sector organisations spent £3.3 billion on 0 – 25 year olds in
2012
 210,000 young people 0 – 24 years old are employed on zero hours contracts
 The UK Youth unemployment rate is 20.5% of 15 – 24 year olds
 4% of 15 – 18 year olds consider themselves to have been in debt
 10% of Citizens Advice serious debt cases are aged 17 – 24
 Tax paid by under 24 year olds amounts to £3.5 billion
 45% of 16 – 25 year olds formally volunteer at least once a month
 60,000 young carers aged 10 – 14 provide 1 to 19 hours of unpaid care a week
 43% of young people aged 16 – 30 have made money from entrepreneurial activity
Survey of Charities and Voluntary Organisations
The biggest survey of charities and voluntary organisations of the year has been launched by a
coalition of charities to find out more about the help charities need. The survey’s findings will be
used to lobby key decision makers and funders about the support charities and voluntary
organisations need. By taking part you will be helping make sure that funders and decision
makers know more about your needs. The survey has 20 questions and can be completed in 15
minutes.
Collaborating for Better Outcomes for Children
The Children’s Services Development Group and Local Government Information Unit have
published a final report from the children’s services taskforce on collaborating for better
outcomes. Key points include:
 Stronger provider and commissioner relationships are a significant first step to achieving
more flexible services, tailored care pathways and effecting mapping of demand to
ensure sufficient capacity in the system
 Clearer guidance to aid decision-making should be given to all commissioners through
National Commissioning Guidance and they should be further supported through better
training and a Commissioning Support Programme to ensure higher standards and best
practice across the commissioning process
 In order to enhance the use of any National Outcomes Framework and to encourage
effective benchmarking, commissioners should also be empowered to reward providers
for offering continuity of high-quality services, for example through block contract
arrangements or council tax reductions
 In order to transform care and reduce the likelihood of poor outcomes for these young
people it is important that spending happens now to generate savings in the long-term,
instead of focusing on short-term savings measures – council leaders need to think
strategically about how to deliver services and look at partnership working with the wider
sector to give children a choice of appropriate provision
Social Workers Working with CSE
NSPCC has published a report on social workers’ knowledge and confidence when working with
cases of child sexual abuse. Key points include:
 Social workers’ confidence in working with sexually abused children is influenced by a
number of important variables including access to training, peer and managerial support
and supervision, experience of managing cases of child sexual abuse and previous
experience of direct work with sexually abused children
 Social workers’ confidence was more evident when working with individual familial based
cases of sexual abuse than to forms of abuse where grooming, trafficking, internet
abuse and other types of exploitative behaviour were identified and where multi-agency
responses were required
 Social workers spoke of case load pressures, the expectations of partner agencies and
insufficient support and preventative services limiting the responses that they were able
to provide to children
 Social workers identified concerns that cases of child sexual abuse might go undetected
when more evident indicators of neglect or physical abuse are prevented
 There was a general belief that training did not always keep abreast of the increasing
challenges of keeping children safe
 Social workers suggested that there needed to be more of a focus on non-procedural
elements of the work, including more emphasis on direct work with children, multiagency working and supporting children and their families post-disclosure
Other News and Publications
Poverty and Social Exclusion
Joseph Rowntree Foundation have published their annual assessment Monitoring Poverty and
Social Exclusion. Key points include:
 A 6% rise in youth poverty in the past decade has left 34% of young people aged 16-19
and 29% aged 20-24 living in poverty
 A low minimum wage and high rates of unemployment are the main contributing factors
to the rise
 Household incomes fell in real terms for the third year in a row, with the bottom tenth of
households falling the furthest
 In some English local authorities, three quarters of children eligible for free school meals
do not get five good GCSEs
Risks in Adolescence
Research in Practice have published a report on developing a more effective response to risks
in adolescence. Key points include:
 The risks adolescents face are distinct and differ from those facing younger children and
older groups
 Rather than recognising the unique risks, strengths and opportunities of adolescence,
the current child protection system instead applies traditional definitions of risk and
approaches to protection which do not necessarily fit with young people’s lived
experience or research
 Excellent practice and effective services are evident at local level, although much of it
seems to have arisen in spite of the currents system
 Research and practice knowledge should be used to redesign the system in a way that
works with the grain of adolescent development, taking a more nuanced approach to risk
identification, with relationships at its heart and focused on building resilience; although
this will be both effective and cost effective it will require some risk-taking and innovation
on the part of sector leaders
Young People and Social Action
A study by Ipsos Mori has found that 40 per cent of 10- to 20-year-olds are taking part in
projects designed to benefit their local communities. On behalf of the Cabinet Office, Ipsos
MORI surveyed 2,038 10-20 year olds in summer 2014 to determine the proportion of young
people involved in social action in the UK. It found that young people are taking part in three
types of activities – fundraising (40 per cent), volunteering for charity (35 per cent) and helping
someone who needs support in their community (25 per cent).
Consultations and Inquiries
(new consultations and inquiries are marked in bold):
Closing 27 November 2014
Ministry of Justice: Secure College Rules
Closing 28 November 2014
Ofsted: Publication of Statistics on Early Years Providers and Places and Inspection Outcomes
Closing 28 November 2014
Cabinet Office: Social Value Act Review
Closing 28 November 2014
Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in the Family Environment
Closing 5 December 2014
Ofsted: Better Inspection for All
Closing 10 December 2014
Department for Education: Call for Evidence: Review of Mandatory Qualifications for specialist
teachers of children and young people with sensory impairment
Closing 18 December 2014
Department for Education: Performance Descriptors: Key Stages 1 and 2
*Closing 29 December 2014*
Department for Education: Reformed GCSE and A Level Subject Content Consultation for
Religious Studies
Closing 29 December 2014
Department for Work and Pensions: Child Maintenance: Correction of Accidental Errors
Closing 5 January 2014
Department for Education: Developing new GCSEs, A Levels and AS Qualifications for first
teaching in 2016 – Part 3
Closing 27 February 2015
Department for Education: Funding for children and Young People with SEND