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A new analysis on the numbers of disabled children with complex needs estimates that there are now 73,000 affected children and young people in England. This number has risen significantly, increasing by 50 per cent since 2004.
The report by Anne Pinney, which is the first in over a decade, has been commissioned by the Council for Disabled Children and the True Colours Trust, and questions whether the Government, local authorities and commissioners are aware of the disabled children they should be providing services for.
The report found that the proportion of children from birth to 17 with a disability who are supported by children’s services is steadily falling. This now stands at 0.4 per cent of all children assessed as ‘children in need’, and suggests that ‘qualifying for local authority help may be increasingly difficult for disabled children and their families.’
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