Written question WQ85903

The Welsh Government is continuing to prioritise the provision of early intervention services for families who are facing adversity and/or have children who may be on the edge of care. We are working with our partners including the third sector and local authorities to help ensure this support is provided to these families.

Edge of Care Services

Since 2017-18, the Welsh Government has provided £5m recurrent funding to local authorities to establish or enhance existing edge of care services and all 22 local authorities now have services in place.

Information received from local authorities indicated that in the first year of implementation these edge of care services supported over 3,600 children to remain within the family unit.

Our current Programme for Government also has a commitment to ‘Provide additional specialist support for children with complex needs who may be on the edge of care’.

Regional Partnership Boards, using the Regional Integration Fund, are now initiating 13 projects where ‘Supporting families to stay together safely and therapeutic support for care experienced children’ is the primary model of care. The total investment put forward to fund these projects is currently around £14,600,000, which is circa. 12% of the total Regional Integration Fund allocation for 2022/23. Regional Partnership Boards have also referenced a further 31 projects that will contribute to the successful development and implementation of that model of care.

Families First and Flying Start

Funding for Families First and Flying Start is part of the Children and Communities Grant (CCG). As such, local authorities have flexibility to determine the level of investment in the programme but must deliver the expected outcomes set out by the CCG. The total amount spent by local authorities since the start of the CCG are set out below.

Families First Spend

Flying Start Spend

2019/20

£34,580,999

£77,533,040

2020/21

£46,675,881

£66,470,005

2021/22

£50,801,326

£68,437,598

Total

£132,058,206

£212,440,644

Families First is a service for the whole family, therefore, data is collected about family engagement rather than children. Latest verified data shows that during 2017-18, almost 13,000 families were referred through Families First for a strengths-based assessment of families’ needs. Of these, almost 6,500 families completed the assessment, with nearly 4,500 families going on to receive intensive support through a ‘Team Around the Family’. Those families whose level of need did not require a full assessment will have been signposted to alternative sources of help. Data from 2019 onwards will be published in the coming months.