A “runaway train” of child protection investigations is making children less safe and damaging families, the head of the government’s review of children’s social care believes.
In his first interview since his appointment, Josh MacAlister said: “A big theme that we’ve identified in the review so far is that we’re doing too much. We’re investigating first when we should be helping.
“If we have an increasingly adversarial system, it is not safe for children.”
The review’s first big report, The Case for Change, is due to be published this week. It is expected to be critical of many aspects of the system, particularly a culture of investigating families instead of supporting them.
The Sunday Times has been investigating the rising number of parents separated
