In Northern Ireland, social care services are currently waiting to assess and assist more than 4,000 children.
According to a significant independent review, Northern Ireland refers children to services at a much higher rate than the rest of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
Children only have one childhood, and time is running out, according to review leader Prof. Ray Jones.
The longest wait is over two years for many people who have been on waiting lists for more than a year.
Prof. Jones also pointed out that a record number of children are in foster care, a higher percentage of Northern Ireland's children are considered to be in need of assistance, and child protection plans are in place. .
53 recommendations were made in the report.
The report's findings included the need for a "major fix" in children's social care services and the imperative to "address the challenges with pace.". .
The Department of Health stated that it was "fully aware of the challenges within children's social care services" and that "change is required.".
In order to conduct the review, Prof. Jones was chosen by former Health Minister Robin Swann in 2022. This decision was made in response to worries about the high number of staff vacancies and the fact that many children and families were not receiving the necessary assistance.
His main suggestion was to establish a regional organization that would provide children's social care services and serve as a platform for addressing the pressing problems that need to be resolved.
The 22-year-old Josephine Dowell was raised by foster parents. The system could be "difficult and unnatural," she claimed.
Currently, she is pursuing a degree in social care. .
Prof. Jones conducted an interview with her as part of Voices of Young People in Care, and her responses shaped many of the recommendations.
The service might have "positive support systems like a positive family that can help get you through it," Josephine said in a statement to BBC News NI.
But she claimed that it is unfair that stigmatized and frequently have more to prove when they are in foster care.
When a new foster family and social care team had to be found for her when she was 16, she went through a challenging transition.
Josephine claimed she was on the "road to success" after that new package was implemented.
She said, "I started to get back into school and build friendships and that got me through to where I am today.
Ms. Dowell claimed that the absence of consistent professional staff in her life had led to a number of issues.
To new staff teams, she claimed she had to "retell" her story on a regular basis.
Children's services are reportedly operating within five "pressurized" local health trusts that have "big issues to tackle, including hospitals," according to the report.
It was further stated that it was not feasible to devote the time necessary to address the issues and offer children and families the support they required.
Prof. Jones suggested that the regional organization would include all of the existing health trusts, statutory children's social services, and other related services and professions.
Families, according to the report, were under a lot of stress, and for many, it was getting worse.
According to the report, "more families are struggling as poverty deepens and rises, and the lack of an executive and assembly means that pressing issues, like the cost-of-living crisis, are not being addressed.".
According to the review, "skilled and dedicated workers" provide a variety of impressive services.
The report also noted that there was a "high turnover of social workers," and that "children and families are concerned that they have not received the help they needed when they needed it and that the help that is available is not consistent across all areas.".
Services at all trusts, according to Prof. Jones, are under a lot of stress.
It is always important to pay attention to reports that address the happiness and welfare of children, and Prof. Jones is spot on.
It is written with authority to try and make a difference and with passion for the care and wellbeing of children.
When he states: "There is a fear that this review will be just another review with little or no impact, he is speaking directly to Northern Ireland. " .
Time wasted by politicians and medical professionals is not an option, and neither is the £750,000 used to produce this report.
There are a ton of recommendations in it, but the need for a single body to ensure greater efficiency stands out. .
Change will be like "turning the Titanic," the professor admits, but he's being realistic when he says that.
Peter May, the permanent secretary of the Department of Health, expressed his satisfaction that Prof. Jones had "highlighted many examples of the impressive services delivered by our skilled and committed teams.".
In March 2022, he claimed, the department had finished a review of the social work workforce, with the "stabilization of the children's services workforce" being a top priority.
Other decisions would need to be approved by the minister, Mr. May continued, but in the interim the department would "undertake a public consultation on the recommended organizational and service changes, and make the necessary preparations for an incoming minister."
