Somerset Council has committed £7m through its transformation programme in a bid to turn around its children's services over the next five years.
Spending on vulnerable children - including those in care and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) - forms a significant section of the council's annual budget, with demand rising year after year.
In a bid to bring its finances under control as its next budget approaches, the council has launched the 'My World, My Tomorrow' programme, which aims to support children earlier and "reduce avoidable escalation into care".
Up to £7m will be invested in the programme's delivery, which aims to deliver more than £28m of savings by 2031/32.
Claire Winter, the council's executive director for children, families and education services, laid out the rationale for the programme when the council's executive committee met in Taunton on August 5.
Read more
She said: "The rate of children entering care has doubled since 2023. With 16 per cent of those children, that could have been avoided if we'd got involved earlier.
"We also have 23 per cent of our children in care being looked after in residential care, with the national average being ten per cent.
"There are poor outcomes for children in residential care - that's very well-researched in terms of their outcomes going into adulthood - and obviously the cost of residential care is absolutely huge compared to foster care.
"We have seen a net increase in foster carers over the last two years, which goes against the national trend of steep declines.
"We are bucking that trend, but not in sufficient numbers to actually be able to meet the needs of our children."
The programme - which was named by young people following a consultation - is designed not only to cut costs but to implement and build on recommendations following Ofsted's recent inspection of the service.
The programme has four main aims:
- Improving outcomes for children looked after, with a focus on children being transitioned from residential care to family-based care, increasing the stability of homes for children in care and enabling more children to return home
- Maximising fostering capacity by providing additional support for foster cares, increasing the use of foster homes, raising the average number of children for each carer and reducing the rate of foster carers 'de-registering
- Improving outcomes for children with their families, emphasising "pace of change" in child protection plans, with an aim to reduce the number of children coming into care and supporting children to be in family-based care whenever possible
- Getting value for money from the external market, ensuring taxpayers pay "fair and transparent prices" for residential homes
Of the £7m being committed as part of the transformation programme, £1m will be held in contingency - meaning it can only be used if and when the new chief financial officer deems it necessary.
The programme aims to deliver "target cash-able financial benefits" of more than £28.4m by 2031/32 - reducing the pressure on the council's wider finances.
Speaking after the meeting, council leader Bill Revans said: "We know our inspiring innovation transformation programme is absolutely critical to the council’s future.
"The recent best value notice and CIPFA review have both confirmed what we already knew – we must increase the pace of change.
"Approving the My World, My Tomorrow business case is significant as a great example of what we mean when we talk about transformation.
"We've seen demand and costs escalating in this area of children's services so we have to do something different, something better.
"This is an investment in prevention, bringing together several improvement plans to help us reduce costs, but more importantly, also providing better futures for our children and families."
Share