Hood, Rick

Kingston University Research Repository

Drivers of demand in children’s social careDr Rick HoodAssociate Professor, Department of Social Work and Social CareKingston University and St Georges, University of London3 June 2020rick.hood@sgul.kingston.ac.uk1• Demand vs need• Role of professionals and institutions, statutory definitions and criteria• Overlapping functions: service provision and regulation• Tiered system – statutory thresholds + demand managementWhat do we mean by demand?2What’s happening to demand?32009-102010-112011-122012-132013-142014-152015-162016-172017-182018-19Referrals 537.5 545.2 533.6 519.6 571.7 548.3 532.2 548.2 552.5 544.5CIN at March 31st 334.7 339.0 325.7 331.4 345.5 337.3 337.7 330.4 341.0 334.20.0100.0200.0300.0400.0500.0600.0700.0Rates per 10,000Rates of referrals and CIN (2009-19)Referrals CIN at March 31stWhat’s happening to demand?42009-102010-112011-122012-132013-142014-152015-162016-172017-182018-19Section 47s 78.1 99.0 109.9 111.2 123.8 138.2 147.5 157.4 166.9 168.3CP Plans at March 31st 34.8 37.9 37.8 37.7 42.0 42.9 43.1 43.3 45.3 43.70.020.040.060.080.0100.0120.0140.0160.0180.0Rates per 10,000Rates of S47 inquiries and CP plans (2009-19)Section 47s CP Plans at March 31stWhat’s happening to demand?52009-102010-112011-122012-132013-142014-152015-162016-172017-182018-19Care Proceedings 8.0 8.3 9.0 9.7 9.2 9.7 11.0 12.5 12.2 11.7LAC Care Orders 37.8 39.6 41.7 43.3 42.8 42.6 44.0 47.4 51.3 53.50.010.020.030.040.050.060.0Rates per 10,000Rates of care proceedings and care orders (2009-19)Care Proceedings LAC Care Orders• Usual suspects Economic slowdown + austerity policies = more hardship for families -> higher levels of need Cuts to LA budgets (particularly affecting deprived areas) -> forces councils to shut down preventative services -> escalation of problems (NB this is a vicious circle) Risk management – societal risks (abuse and neglect) and institutional risks (accountability pressures) (Rothstein et al., • Other candidates ECM and safeguarding created broader mandate for statutory intervention (Devine and Parker, 2015) Inequality – social gradient of intervention is higher in more unequal LAs (Webb et al., 2020) Demand management and rationing not enough to counteract rise in demand and may be exacerbating problem (Hood et al., 2019) Ofsted inspections may encourage risk-averse behaviour (Hood et al., forthcoming) Services on offer are not geared towards what children and families want or need (Featherstone et al., 2018)• Contextual factors Leadership makes a difference (Ofsted, 2015) Short term drivers (Hood, et al., 2020), e.g. housing and demographics, practice innovation, emerging issues (e.g. UASC, CSE, county lines)Why the shift to late(r) intervention?6• Address inequities in the funding formula so that resources for the most deprived local authorities are commensurate with the needs and hardships of the child population.• Rebalance CSC from high-cost late intervention by investing in prevention, not just Early Help but rebuilding capacity and resources in communities.• Redesign services to focus on strategic problem areas, drawing on agencies’ knowledge of the local safeguarding contexthttp://www.healthcare.ac.uk/system-conditions-and-inequalities-in-childrens-social-care/ Concluding points7Devine, L., & Parker, S. (2015) Rethinking child protection strategy: Learning from trends,  Bristol, Centre for Legal Research, University of the West of England. Featherstone, B., Gupta, A., Morris, K. and White, S. (2018). Protecting children: A social model.Bristol, Policy Press.Hood, R., Goldacre, A., Gorin, S. and Bywaters, P. (2019) ‘Screen, Ration and Churn: Demand Management and the Crisis in Children’s Social Care', The British Journal of Social Work, 50(3), pp. 868-889.Hood, R., Grant, R., Jones, R., & Goldacre, A. (2016). A study of performance indicators and Ofsted ratings in English child protection services. Children and youth services review, 67, 50-56. Hood, R., Gorin, S., Goldacre, A., Muleya, W. and Bywaters, P. (2020) 'Exploring drivers of demand for child protection services in an English local authority', Child & Family Social Work, Advance Access, https://doi.org/10.1111/cfs.12740Webb, C., Bywaters, P., Scourfield, J., McCartan, C., Bunting, L., Davidson, G. and Morris, K. (2020) 'Untangling child welfare inequalities and the ‘Inverse Intervention Law’ in England', Children and Youth Services Review, 111, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.104849References8

The challenges facing children : what's driving the demand for children's services

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The challenges facing children : what's driving the demand for children's services

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