Janet Daby

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Gateshead Central and Whickham (Mark Ferguson) on securing this debate. He is absolutely right that early intervention is best. In this significant Adjournment debate, I have heard other hon. Friends talk about kinship care, mental health, breakfast clubs, early help and care leavers, and of course I will be responding to my hon. Friend himself. I was thrilled to hear that Gateshead council achieved a “good” rating across all areas of its children’s services in the Ofsted report published last week. The report highlights the strength of Gateshead’s early help service, its robust multi-agency collaboration, its strong leadership and its effective support for care leavers in their transition to independence, including a focus on education, employment and training alongside their wellbeing and aspirations. The report was published only a few weeks after another north-east council, North Tyneside, secured an “outstanding” rating across all areas of its children’s services, which is a phenomenal achievement. Two thirds of council children’s services in the north-east were rated either “good” or “outstanding” at their last Ofsted inspection. Although this aligns with the national average, it is impressive given the north-east’s economic backdrop. Two thirds of local authorities in the north-east are classified as highly deprived, making it the most deprived region in England. The link between high deprivation and high demand clear, so it is no surprise that demand for children’s social care services is high in the north-east. Roughly a third more children per 10,000 are subject to a child in need plan or a child protection plan, or are looked after, compared with the national average. That is the highest of any region in England. The number of children in care has also grown faster in the north-east than in any other region. That said, it is worth noting that the whole country has seen the number of children in care rise significantly under the previous Government, with more than 80,000 children and young people in care across England on any given day.