Dheeraj Chibber, Policy Network Chair for Health, Care & Commissioning at the Association of Directors of Children's Services, said:

"Personal advisers (PAs) play an important role in helping young people who are leaving care to build independent lives for themselves and to navigate the practicalities of their transition to adulthood. ADCS has previously called for more focus on, and investment in, the wider workforce for children’s services, including the PA role, via a higher-level apprenticeship route, for example. The knowledge and skills of this workforce was flagged as an area for attention in the recent review of early deaths of care leaver and ADCS would welcome discussions with the government about what follows. By both recognising and investing in this workforce as well as extra support for care leavers themselves, both experiences and outcomes can be improved going forward."

ENDS

The Association of Directors of Children's Services (ADCS) Ltd is the professional leadership association for Directors of Children's Services and their senior management teams in England.