The government’s Implementation Plan sets out how the reforms introduced through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 will be rolled out across England, representing the biggest overhaul of children’s social care and child protection in a generation.

Every local authority will deliver a single-Family Help service, backed by new multi-agency child protection teams. Every council will also be required to publish a local kinship offer to ensure more children can be cared for by family members rather than entering care, and Regional Care Cooperatives will be expanded to increase foster care capacity.

Care leavers will receive a strengthened national Staying Close offer from 2029, providing support with accommodation, employment and healthcare up to the age of 25. The reforms are backed by £2.4 billion for the Families First Partnership Programme, £245 million to improve the care market, and £560 million in capital funding to expand and refurbish children’s homes.

Josh MacAlister, Children and Families Minister, said: “The Plan sets out how we will deliver change, intervening earlier to support families, strengthening protection for vulnerable children, and ensuring more children can grow up in stable, loving homes.”