Following the recent Munro Review, the group Every Child In Need has voiced its concerns that the proposed rules are too vague and may risk harming vulnerable children. The group believes that local authorities may fall short of protecting vulnerable children when rules are relaxed at a time when cash-strapped local authorities won’t be tied down to dealing with cases within certain timeframes, specifically referring to the removal of the requirement for local authorities to prepare an initial assessment of a child’s needs within 7 working days of a referral.

Another group voicing it’s concerns is the National Deaf Children’s Society which believes that it would be much harder for deaf children in England to get the social care which they need.

They believe that the new rules are focussed too heavily on child protection and will not have enough focus on the much larger area of children who do have significant needs but are not at an immediate risk of abuse.