Children’s social care services provide vital support and care to hundreds of thousands of children and families each year. But these services, and the councils that fund and provide them, are increasingly under strain. This series of Children’s services spending reports, produced by Pro Bono Economics for the Children’s Charities Coalition, show a concerning picture. Key Findings show:

• in England council spending on early intervention services fell by more than £2billion since 2010/11, an overall drop of 42%
• funding for children in residential care rose to an all-time high of £3billion
• the most deprived parts of the country were the hardest hit by cuts, with spending per child falling by more than 50% compared to less than 30% in the least deprived areas
• as many as 1,000 children’s centres and 750 youth centres across England have closed since 2010/11
• more than 160,000 children were living in temporary accommodation in 2024, an all-time high and more than double (139%) the number in 2011
• despite a slight fall in 2024, the number of children in care remains almost 40% higher (more than 83,000) than it was 20 years ago.