Children: Immigrants

(asked on 23rd June 2015) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to revise the statutory guidance <i>Working together to Safeguard Children </i>to make specific reference to the considerations that arise in the cases of destitute families with no recourse to public funds seeking accommodation and financial support from local authorities under section 17 of the Children Act 1989, in the light of the recent report by the Centre on Migration, Policy and Society<i> Safeguarding children from destitution</i>.


Answered by
 Portrait
Lord Nash
This question was answered on 1st July 2015

The statutory guidance, Working Together to Safeguard Children, is already clear that professionals should put the needs of children first, and take the right action to promote the welfare of children and keep them safe. We continue to keep this guidance under review.

As the report notes, under section 17 of the Children Act 1989, local authorities have a general duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children within their area who are in need, by providing a range and level of services appropriate to those children’s needs. One instance where a child, including a destitute child, is taken to be ‘in need’ for these purposes, is if they are unlikely to achieve or maintain a reasonable standard of health or development or to have the opportunity of doing so, without the provision of services for the child by a local authority. This may include providing accommodation and subsistence.

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