The Rt Hon Gillian Keegan MP
Department for Education
20 Great Smith St
London
SW1P 3BT

Dear Secretary of State,

We are writing to you about the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care which was published on 23 May 2022. At the time of publication the then Secretary of State for Education, Nadhim Zahawi, said that ‘the report will be central in taking forward our ambition to ensure every child has a loving and stable home and we will continue working with experts and people who have experienced care to deliver change on the ground.’

Speaking in the House of Commons, Will Quince MP, the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Education, said that he would ‘look forward to working with the sector, those with first hand experience and colleagues in all parts of the House to inform an ambitious and detailed Government response and implementation strategy, to be published by the end of 2022.’

As councillors who are very concerned about the future of children’s social care we share this desire for action and for the Independent Review to lead to real change in our communities.

We are particularly keen to see the Government progress plans for Regional Care Co-operatives and would like to know how and when the Government will be bringing forward plans to implement this recommendation.

We are sure that you will agree with us that the turmoil at the heart of the Government over these past few months should not be used as an excuse to delay progress on reform of children’s social care.

Therefore we are calling on you to recommit to publishing a full response and implementation strategy before the end of 2022.

We look forward to hearing from you and hearing more about the changes that the Government will make to children’s social care before the end of the year.