New analysis indicates that metropolitan borough councils are receiving an average of £1,011 per child for children's services, while inner London boroughs are allocated £912 per child. In contrast, central government grants for county and rural unitary authorities average only £339 per child.
The disparity is highlighted by the fact that Tower Hamlets in east London receives £1,806 per child, which is 25 times more than Surrey's £73 per child allocation, according to analysis by Pixel Financial Management for the County Councils Network.
These significant differences are attributed to reforms initiated by Communities Secretary Angela Rayner, aimed at altering the distribution of government grants to local authorities across England. The Fair Funding Review, intended to end a postcode lottery in local government funding, has prioritized directing more financial resources to deprived areas.
However, leaders of county councils argue that they face increasing demands for children's services, with nearly 31,000 children currently in care in county and rural areas. They contend that the government's decision to exclude 'remoteness' as a factor in funding calculations is problematic, given the higher costs associated with delivering services to dispersed towns and villages.
Cllr Steven Broadbent, Finance Spokesperson for the County Councils Network, stated, "A child in need in a rural and county area is no less deserving than a child in a metropolitan city area." He added that rising costs and the number of children in care in rural areas over the past decade have forced these councils to shift funds from preventative measures to crisis intervention. "That task has been made much harder after the government redistributed money away from counties to urban areas, leaving many county and rural councils with less government funding at a time of major reform to the system," Broadbent said.
This situation follows previous accusations that the Labour government was engaging in a "class war" by reducing grants to councils led by Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties while increasing funding for Labour-controlled town halls.
Shadow Communities Secretary Katie Lam criticized the Labour government's Fair Funding Review, calling it "spiteful and politically motivated" and suggesting it aims to channel funds towards Labour councils at the expense of vulnerable children in rural areas. "This Labour Government knows it costs more to deliver services in rural areas. Social workers travel further, placements are scarcer and sadly, far too often, children are sent miles from home because there is nowhere closer," Lam commented.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government responded that the figures do not account for additional funding available to local authorities through council tax revenue. The ministry stated that it recognizes the pressures on rural councils and is targeting funding towards deprived rural areas, while also investing nearly £3 billion over four years in the Families First Partnership program to transform children's social care.