Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:28 pm on 4 March 2020.
Diolch. Thanks very much to everybody who's contributed. Janet Finch-Saunders, of course, opened the debate, saying the situation in Wales is currently slipping out of control with the number of looked-after children rising 34 per cent over 15 years, 6,845 children between nought and 18 currently looked after by local authorities, and the number of looked-after children in Wales per 10,000 now far higher than in England and Northern Ireland, and also higher than in Scotland on the latest published figures. She talked about the justice commission being sceptical about the effectiveness of expenditure in Wales to date on this agenda, the need to prioritise early intervention in practice to reduce the number of children going into care, and to improve life chances. She said children going into care are five times more likely to suffer mental health conditions than children not in care, and therefore we need to know not just how much is being targeted at looked-after children, but also how this is being monitored. With care leavers at an increased risk of homelessness and poverty, she said we need care leavers to be provided with an advocate, and for local authorities and the Welsh Government to identify and support looked-after children in Wales that are eligible to make applications to the EU settlement scheme, something many people mentioned, and the need to support adoptive parents to keep siblings together. She finished on a positive note about hope for the future and hope for these children.
Siân Gwenllian again referred to the Thomas report, the percentage of children receiving care in Wales higher than in England and Northern Ireland, and the Welsh Government needing to respond to the widening gap with England. She referred to emerging issues, such as county lines and online abuse, the need for a multi-agency approach in a number of areas, specifically schools and courts, and sustainable investment in preventative services to keep families together.
Neil McEvoy raised a number of concerns, including the need for contact—or concern about contact being restricted—between children who want to see parents and their parents; that parents themselves can be at risk of discrimination; that children alleging abuse should be taken seriously; and that complaint investigations need to be totally independent, and I fully agree with that.
Mohammad Asghar talked again about the Commission for Justice in Wales, stating that there has been a striking increase in the number of children in care in Wales and a wide variation between local authorities in Wales, and then he explored that further, and the need to break the cycle of deprivation, where the Welsh Government has launched a number of programmes and invested hugely in those, but none have stemmed so far the increase in looked-after children.
Rhianon Passmore referred to the strong cross-party consensus to ensure that care-experienced children are provided with the best support available, and the importance of early intervention and prevention services. Caroline Jones talked about children's interests being neglected in the family courts, the need to break the cycle of a poor start in life leading to poor life chances, and, again, like a number of people, subsequently referred to the great work of the Roots Foundation, emphasising the key role played by the voluntary sector, and again the vital importance of investing in the voluntary sector's key early intervention and prevention services in order to improve lives and use money better and prevent pressure on statutory services.
Finally—or almost finally, if I can find my final page, because there are so many bits of paper here—we had, penultimately, Suzy Davies saying that the system must respond to the needs of children, not vice versa; the importance of supporting foster carers, of positive parenting courses, and of access to training and education and gaining qualifications to give every young person a future. David Rowlands—he talked about the number of children subject to care proceedings increasing substantially, and about that the removal of children from the family home should always be a last resort. The removal of a child is devastating not only for the parents, but also grandparents, which we should never forget, and the wider family. And he expressed concern about the family courts sitting in secret.
The Deputy Minister, Julie Morgan, concluded by praising, rightly, the ministerial advisory group ably chaired by David Melding; the importance, however, of not being complacent; the importance of stable placements wherever possible. She said that this area of work is complex, multi-agency, and that, although the looked-after rate has slowed, the numbers are so far unvalidated. She said that we're on a journey of improvement and must sustain momentum, but there's a long way to go. Clearly, these figures and reports are evidence of that. As she agreed, children must be at the centre of this. Of course, we welcome the fact that she said that she will be supporting the motion. So, I'll conclude by calling on everybody to join the Deputy Minister in supporting our motion. Diolch yn fawr.