Gateshead Council pledges to reduce number of children in care after a 10% rise

Gateshead Council approved an updated strategy to reduce the number of children and young people in its care.

According to council figures, in January of this year there were 465 children and young people in need of care outside their family homes. This represents an increase of more than 10% from the same period of 2020.

A report delivered to Gateshead Council said: “We know that Covid 19 has impacted the accessibility to services and increased isolation for families and we have observed an increase of families requiring social care intervention with complex needs.”