Vulnerable children and social care in England: a review of evidence
Crenna-Jennings, W. 2018

According to the latest official statistics there are 389,430 children in need (CIN) in England. These are children deemed unlikely to achieve reasonable health and development without the provision of services, including those with a disability. Since 2010 at least, there has been a rise in the numbers of children in need issued with Child Protection Plans and council care orders. This has been partially attributed to a deliberate response by social care authorities to high-profile serious case reviews into child deaths resulting from abuse. Other factors, including cuts to early intervention (EI) services and deprivation, may also be contributing to a rise in acute need.The increase in these more acute forms of monitoring and intervention is occurring in spite of staff-reported increases in thresholds for access to services.Over half of LAs in all regions except London were rated Requires Improvement or Inadequate by Ofsted, according to the latest data.