Law Commission’s recommendations on social care law for disabled children
BASW England and our Social Work with Disabled Children Sub-Group warmly welcome the Law Commission’s final recommendations on reforming social care law for disabled children.
We congratulate the Commission on the way it has engaged with a breadth and diversity of stakeholders, listening carefully to a wide range of views and reflecting these in a balanced and constructive set of proposals.
We strongly support the recommendations that:
- disabled children remain within the protections of the Children Act
- a single comprehensive statutory guidance should set out rights and responsibilities,
- a national eligibility framework should be established to end the current “postcode lottery” of provision.
Along with the full range of other recommendations, these are vital steps towards ensuring clarity, fairness and consistency for disabled children and their families.
If the Department for Education accepts these recommendations, we urge them to follow the Law Commission’s example by engaging fully and meaningfully with stakeholders across the sector in the development of comprehensive practice guidance. BASW England stands ready to play a full and constructive role in this process, bringing the expertise of frontline Social Workers and the lived experience of families to shape effective and workable guidance.
However, we remain deeply concerned that the reforms and improvements promised and enabled by these legal changes will not be delivered without significant and sustained investment. We echo the call of the new Minister when he chaired the recent review of children’s social care under the previous government: reform must be accompanied by the funding required to strengthen social work with children and families, build the workforce, and provide the support that disabled children and their families need and deserve.
BASW England will continue to campaign with and for disabled children, their families, and the social workers who support them to ensure that these recommendations are not only accepted but also implemented in full with the necessary resources to make lasting change.
