A Labour-run council has accused the UK Government of “arrogance, indifference and moral bankruptcy” in a bitter dispute over social care funding for vulnerable children.
Leaders at Hartlepool Borough Council launched an unusually direct attack on Steve Reed, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, following a meeting last week in which they requested £3 million in additional support to address rising social care costs.
Hartlepool, one of the most deprived areas in England, has the third highest number of children in care per capita in the country.
Pamela Hargreaves, Labour leader of the council, told the Guardian that Reed said the Government would not “reward councils for having high numbers of children in care” before dismissing the discussion with the words: “That’s life.”
“That comment tells you everything,” Hargreaves said. “Shrugging at abused and exploited children is not policy, it is moral bankruptcy.
“Calling proper funding for children in care a ‘reward’ is obscene and offensive. Protecting vulnerable children is a basic moral and legal duty of the state.”
She added: “Our children and our families deserve far better than arrogance, indifference and a shrug of ‘that’s life’.”
A source at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) accused Hargreaves of “shockingly misrepresenting” the meeting.
The source said Reed had been referring to his time as leader of Lambeth Council in London when discussing the reality of managing budget pressures, and insisted: “He absolutely did not say ‘that’s life’ in response to being asked about funding for children in social care as is suggested, and never would.”
The department also argued that Hartlepool had received one of the largest funding increases in the country, amounting to a record £40 million in extra funding, and was now asking for “special treatment that no other council gets despite many local authorities dealing with equivalent pressures”.
“To be blunt, if Hartlepool’s leader can’t manage her budget and deliver vital services for the people that elected her after getting a record £40m extra funding that’s not the government’s fault,” the source added.
Reed has previously said ministers are “realigning” funding to ensure poorer areas receive a fairer share. However, local government leaders across England have warned that a substantial injection of cash is needed to prevent more councils from effectively going bankrupt after years of cuts and rising costs.
Hargreaves said the current system “punishes deprivation”.
According to the council’s Labour group, Hartlepool receives £6,674 per looked-after child through the Government’s children in social care prevention grant – well below the national average.
They say a shortage of foster carers nationwide is forcing councils to rely on expensive private and unregulated placements, costing between £13,000 and £20,000 per child each week.
Jonathan Brash, Labour MP for Hartlepool, said the Government’s offer of £3 million amounted to “the equivalent of funding around six children in care”, arguing that an additional £3 million was needed to stabilise finances.
Hargreaves also claimed that southern councils had relocated vulnerable families to Hartlepool, effectively “dumping millions of pounds of additional need into one of the poorest boroughs in the country”.
She criticised what she described as the Government’s “high handed and dismissive attitude”, saying vulnerable children were being reduced to “a line on a spreadsheet”.
“They are children with a legal right to protection. Refusing to fix a rigged funding system and telling deprived communities to tax themselves harder is not leadership, it is abdication.”
The dispute has intensified political tensions locally. The council’s 21 Labour councillors said in February they were considering quitting the party after feeling “betrayed” by ministers. Hargreaves said a mass resignation remains possible.
Hartlepool returned to Labour control two years ago after being run by a Conservative-independent coalition. With a third of council seats up for election in May, Nigel Farage’s Reform UK is aiming to make significant gains.