New analysis by the Local Government Association reveals that in 2015/16 councils surpassed their children's social care budgets by a total of £605 million due to an unprecedented surge in demand for children's social care support over recent years that is showing little sign of slowing.  The LGA have warned there will be a £2 billion funding gap expected by 2020.

More than 170,000 children were subject to child protection enquiries in 2015/16, compared to 71,800 in 2005/06.  The number of children on child protection plans increased by almost 24,000 over the same period, while ongoing cuts to local authority budgets are forcing many areas to make extremely difficult decisions about how to allocate increasingly scarce resources.

The struggle faced by councils attempting to balance increased demand alongside reduced funding is illustrated by the closure of 365 children's centres and 603 youth centres since 2012, as local authorities are forced to make difficult decisions about the way in which they deliver these services.