Bright Futures: one year on

It is now a year since we launched Bright Futures, our vision for the future of children’s social care. This update highlights what we have achieved over the past year but also, importantly, looks at where there is still more work to do.

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There are signs that the Government has started to listen, with our campaigning contributing to the inclusion of new money in October’s Budget. It is also encouraging that our call for greater investment in a sector-led approach to improvement has been heeded, helping to secure an additional £20 million for a range of sector-led initiatives including an enhanced LGA peer support offer.

However, while any additional investment is welcome, we are clear that this will do little to alleviate the immediate and future pressures on services for some of the most vulnerable children and families in the vast majority of council areas, and will continue to campaign for a long-term sustainable funding solution in next year’s spending review.