The crisis in children’s services with Louise Gittins, Josh MacAlister, and Andy Smith

Children’s services are frequently cited as the biggest current pressure on council budgets, with costs having spiralled in recent years. But despite huge increases in spending there is concern children are often not getting the care and support they need, with shortages of placements meaning young people can often find themselves placed many miles away from the people and places they know. Furthermore placements are increasingly being provided in facilities run by private equity backed firms, sparking concerns of excessive profit making.

In this episode of The Local Authority, the podcast from Local Government Chronicle, we explore what has gone wrong and what needs to happen to fix a broken system.

LGC editor Sarah Calkin is joined by:

• Louise Gittins (Lab), chair of the LGA children and young people’s board and leader of Cheshire West & Chester Council
• Josh MacAlister, chair of the 2022 Independent Review of Children’s Social Care and now executive chair of Foundations, the what works centre for children and families
• Andy Smith, vice president of Association of Directors of Children’s Services and strategic director for children’s and adults’ social services at Derby City Council