Julie has added her signature to a petition which calls on the Government to intervene early to prevent and tackle child neglect.

Julie attended the parliamentary launch of Action for Children’s landmark report into child neglect and gave her support along with the over 16,000 names already on their petition.

Action for Children is calling on the Government to do more to support professionals to better understand and tackle neglect, and make sure that families who need it get help – as early as possible

The launch of the leading children’s charity’s review into child neglect revealed that over half of social workers and a third of police officers feel ‘powerless’ to intervene in suspected cases of child neglect.

Action for Children is calling on the Government to:

• Help local areas improve data collection about the scale of neglect and the effectiveness of services
• Coordinate local services in order to encourage parents and the public to act early on concerns of neglect
• Increase children and families’ access to effective early support services
• Give professionals the space and time to carry out full and proper assessments to tackle child neglect

Julie said “I am pleased to give my support for Action for Children’s campaign. Too many children suffer neglect and abuse; early intervention is the key to tackling this issue. I am calling on Ministers to ensure that professionals are given the powers and resources that they need to improve the lives of vulnerable children”. 

Dame Clare Tickell, Chief Executive of Action for Children, said, “When it comes to child neglect the reality is, we are only tackling the tip of the iceberg, and there are many thousands out there in desperate need. We are currently missing critical opportunities to help, and putting valued professionals in an impossible position.”