Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with Greater Manchester council leaders on future funding of children’s services.

As the Minister for Local Government, I regularly hear from councils across the country to discuss the delivery of services, including children’s social care.

The Department leads on the national Troubled Families Programme, which has been rolled-out across Greater Manchester. It aims to find better ways of working with complex families with multiple high-cost problems. I regularly visit participating authorities and hear from the families and children who are supported by the Programme, in which we have committed £920 million from 2015-2020.