ArticleBMJ open2020
Trends in inequalities in Children Looked After in England between 2004 and 2019: a local area ecological analysis.
Article in BMJ open, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
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Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed, 33 citations in OpenAlex.
- School funding and educational attainment in adolescence: a longitudinal ecological study of English local authorities from 2015 to 2023.Journal of epidemiology and community health · 2026Article
- Outcomes for Early Years' Children in Contact with Social Services in Northern Ireland: A Data Linkage Study Protocol.International journal of population data science · 2026Article
- Mortality outcomes of children and young people who have spent time in care: evidence from Children's Health in Care in Scotland, a population-wide administrative data cohort study.Archives of disease in childhood · 2025Article
- Inequalities in uptake of childhood vaccination in England, 2019-23: longitudinal study.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2024Article
- What factors are associated with children being taken into care by the state after initial contact with services? A survival analysis of Children's Social Care data in Liverpool.BMJ public health · 2024Article
- Child poverty and children entering care in England, 2015-20: a longitudinal ecological study at the local area level.The Lancet. Public health · 2022Article
- Impact of cuts to local government spending on Sure Start children's centres on childhood obesity in England: a longitudinal ecological study.Journal of epidemiology and community health · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo assess trends in inequalities in Children Looked After (CLA) in England between 2004 and 2019, after controlling for unemployment, a marker of recession and risk factor for child maltreatment.
designLongitudinal local area ecological analysis.
setting150 English upper-tier local authorities.
participantsChildren under the age of 18 years. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE: The annual age-standardised rate of children starting to be looked after (CLA rate) across English local authorities, grouped into quintiles based on their level of income deprivation. Slope indices of inequality were estimated using longitudinal segmented mixed-effects models, controlling for unemployment.
resultsSince 2008, there has been a precipitous rise in CLA rates and a marked widening of inequalities. Unemployment was associated with rising CLA rates: for each percentage point increase in unemployment rate, an estimated additional 9 children per 100 000 per year (95% CI 6 to 11) became looked after the following year. However, inequalities increased independently of the effect of unemployment. Between 2007 and 2019, after controlling for unemployment, the gap between the most and least deprived areas increased by 15 children per 100 000 per year (95% CI 4 to 26) relative to the 2004-2006 trend.
conclusionsThe dramatic increase in the rate of children starting to be looked after has been greater in poorer areas and in areas more deeply affected by recession. But trends in unemployment do not explain the decade-long rise in inequalities, suggesting that other socioeconomic factors, including rising child poverty and reduced spending on children's services, may be fuelling inequalities. Policies to safely reduce the CLA rate should urgently address the social determinants of child health and well-being.
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