Government-ordered review launched into ‘outdated’ disabled children’s social care law

By Aine Fox, Reporter8th October 2024News EnglandChildrens Services, Courts / Justice, Disabilities, Government / Politics, News England, Social Work, Vulnerable Children

Disabled children’s social care law has been described as out-of-date, inaccessible and potentially unfair, as part of a Government-ordered review.

The Children and Families minister said “outdated and offensive language and confusing and contradictory rules” must be changed to make the system fairer and easier for parents to navigate.

The Law Commission has launched a consultation seeking views from groups including young people, families, local authorities and social workers over modernising the decades-old law.

The commission said the foundations of disabled children’s social care law were laid in the 1970s and use a definition of disability from the 1940s which related to injured soldiers finding jobs after the war, including terms such as “handicapped”.

The commission said there is now much more knowledge about conditions such as autism and that many more children are now recognised as being neurodivergent.

It said: “The language used to describe disability at that time is offensive now and doesn’t capture the nuances of neurodiversity.”

Children’s social care law covers whether a disabled child can get help from social services to meet their needs, what kind of help and how they can get it.

It can range from personal care for a child provided in their own home, to short breaks to give respite to parents, and home adaptations for equipment such as wheelchairs.

But the commission said the current law is inaccessible, as it takes the form of a “complicated set of rules, instructions and advice” in various Acts of Parliament, regulations, court decisions, Government guidance and local authority policies, rather than being one law.

The body said it agreed with a description from a leading legal textbook on disabled children, which describes it as “a system of baffling complexity” the navigation of which amounts to “additional tiring and frustrating work” for busy and often exhausted parents and stretched social care workers.

The postcode lottery in provision also makes the current system potentially unfair, the commission added, saying that while local authorities are supposed to provide the necessary services to meet the needs of disabled children, whether that happens in practice depends on where in the country the child lives.

Professor Alison Young (pictured), commissioner for public law, said: “The children who need help from social services have changed over time as our awareness and understanding of particular conditions has developed.

“It is important for these children, their carers and those providing services that the law is fair, up to date and most importantly, simple to understand. We welcome views from everyone with experience in this area before we make our final recommendations.”

Children and Families minister Janet Daby said: “There is no clearer test of a society than how we support our most vulnerable children and families, and this Government is determined to break down barriers to opportunity, especially for children in the social care system who deserve the best life chances.

“I’ve spent over a decade as a social worker, so I know how important it is that we get the legal framework right for disabled children and their families.

“It’s high time that outdated and offensive language and confusing and contradictory rules are axed from our legal system for good – saving social workers’ hugely valuable time that can be better spent improving families’ experiences.”

The consultation is open until January 20, 2025.