Briefings and responses

This briefing sets out the LGA’s key messages on the subject and our analysis of council revenue account budgets.

Making sure all children and young people have the bright future they deserve is a key ambition of every council. Councils want all young people to be able to enjoy their lives, reach their full potential and make a good transition to adulthood with good health and wellbeing.

The latest annual data on NHS spending in 2016/17 reveals there were 42,911 extractions of multiple teeth in under 18s in England at a cost of £36.2 million.

Finding loving homes for children is one of the most important jobs that councils do.

Key summary points and briefings for local government on the Child and Social Work Bill.

An introduction to the Act and its consequences for local government.

Local government has a huge, central role to play in tackling this problem.

Local government plays an important role in providing support to children in their early years.

Every resident has the right to a good quality of life, and to aspire to improve their circumstances regardless of their background or where they live.

Whilst councils welcomed the support for children on free school meals and the £20 per week uplift in Universal Credit (UC), which helped to protect many families most at risk, the best way to support families long-term is with an integrated approach to addressing poverty and disadvantage. While we agree that Free School Meals (FSM) have a vital part to play, it is important that ‘food’ is not seen as the solution to ‘poverty’.