Kent County Council announces job cuts in children’s services
By News England

Kent County Council is to axe 260 jobs in its children, families and education department under plans to save £8 million.

The cuts are equivalent to seven per cent of the department’s workforce, but of the 260 jobs to go, 100 are already vacant posts that will now not be filled. 

The restructure will see children, families and education staff working in 12 local areas each run by an operational manager.

The council said the cuts will not effect frontline social care services, which has seen a 21 per cent increase in referrals following the Baby Peter case.

The council has pledged to increase its children’s social services budget by £5.3m to meet this demand.

The council’s lead member for children Sarah Hohler, said: “We are living in challenging economic times and it is essential we make economies and do things differently to make every penny count.

“Along with every local authority in England, we need to work more effectively with the available resources.”

A 90-day consultation period has now begun with the new structure set to be up and running from September this year.