Become respond to Autumn Budget 2017
Natasha Finlayson, Chief Executive of Become, said in response to the Autumn Budget 2017: “The silence in the budget about children’s social care is deeply disappointing and concerning. Years of funding cuts have left councils struggling to provide the support that children in care, and on the edge of care, need.
“The £2 billion funding gap for children’s social care predicted by 2020 is only likely to grow unless the Government starts to restore funding to services that have already been slashed by councils desperate to make cost savings.
“With the Revenue Support Grant from central government set to end by 2020, children in the most deprived areas will inevitably fall through the safety net if councils are only able to raise income to pay for children’s social care from local business rate retention and council tax.
“There is an increasing gap between the huge numbers of children coming into the care system and the support that local authorities need to provide if these children are to have any chance of thriving and fulfilling their potential. This needs to be addressed urgently.”