Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to introduce a requirement for all councillors to complete corporate parenting training covering (a) safeguarding, (b) duties under the Children and Social Work Act 2017 and (c) the responsibilities of being a corporate parent as part of induction and ongoing development.

Guidance on the implementation of corporate parenting duties was published in February 2018 and can be accessed at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a93eb3ae5274a5b87c2fde4/Applying_corporate_parenting_principles_to_looked-after_children_and_care_leavers.pdf.

The guidance recognises the important role that elected members play in promoting and supporting the implementation of corporate parenting within their local authority but does not mandate formal training.

There are a wide range of corporate parenting training and resources readily available for elected members on the Local Government Association website and, as such, we have no plans to introduce a mandatory requirement. These resources can be found at: https://www.local.gov.uk/childrens-improvement-support-members.