£15m saved in Cabinet Office bonuses & ‘Edging away from Care’ report published

£15m saved in Cabinet Office bonuses rnFigures from the Cabinet Office show that cuts to the number of civil servants receiving bonuses has saved £15m in six months, as only the top 24% performers in the service are now rewarded. A further £45m is reported to have been saved after reducing spending on Whitehall charge cards by enforcing more stringent controls, including on first class travel. There has also been a significant reduction in the number of consultants hired. Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude said: “We inherited an unprecedented deficit and are doing all we can to address waste and increase scrutiny on government expenditure. “We need to be able to show taxpayers that every penny we spend is being used efficiently and we must open up our books so people can see for themselves where their money is going. “Transparent government is absolutely essential to restoring people's trust in the political system.” A Labour spokesman said: “It's right to make savings in the civil service and Labour set out plans to do so in government. “But if this Tory-led government wants to take on the bonus culture, why won't they adopt Labour's plan for a £2bn tax on bankers' bonuses to fund 100,000 jobs for young people?” ‘Edging away from Care’ report published rnA new Ofsted report, ‘Edging away from Care’, shows how services can successfully support young people at risk of entering care to stay with their families. The report was based on information from interviews with young people, their families and the managers and professionals who were delivering support in 11 local authority areas to determine the main factors that contributed to effective help. It showed that “services which successfully supported young people and their families were able to work flexibly and responsively to address the range of identified needs of the young person and family”. The most successful services incorporated clear and explicitly stated models of intervention, consistent referral pathways to services, and a prompt, flexible approach. This also involved listening to the views of the family and the young person to develop mutually agreed goals, with a regular review of progress. As a result of the support provided, the young people reported improved behaviour and relationships, increased school attendance and levels of confidence. None of the young people who contributed to this survey had entered care. Significant savings were also made by avoiding a child entering care, ranging from multi-agency savings of £93,000 for one family alone, to £688,000 in total for a children’s services budget. One of the local authorities involved was the London Borough of Hillingdon, whose Cabinet Member for Education and Children’s Services, Cllr David Simmonds, said: “By using a team of people with a variety of expertise we can actually engage with children and young people according to what they specifically need. Ultimately this support enables more families to stay together – something that benefits the whole community.”