Over August 2026 the new Early Years, Children, Young People and Education Committee in Wales launched a consultation to seek views on what the main priorities should be for the Committee over the Seventh Senedd term.
We responded and highlighted seven key areas the Committee could focus on to improve outcomes for babies, children and young people with care experience in Wales.
1. Legislation for children's social care
We are calling for the Committee to prioritise pushing Welsh Government to fully incorporate the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into Welsh law and policy. As well as prioritising a statutory corporate parenting framework for Wales as has been done in England and Scotland.
2. Prevention and early intervention
The number of children and young people entering care in Wales remains high, and sustained investment in early intervention and family support services is crucial to ensure support is available before needs escalate.
3. Improved data collection
There are significant gaps in fostering data in Wales compared with other UK nations. In our response, we highlighted that whilst there have been improvements in the data that is published in recent years, there is still insufficient data on children placed outside their local authority, as well as the experience of siblings in care. Improved data would help the sector better understand and respond to the experiences of children, families and foster carers.
4. Improved mental health support and trauma informed approaches
There is a growing mental health crisis among children and young people in Wales, and children and young people in care should have a right to access specialist therapeutic mental health support. Currently, support access varies considerably across areas and foster carers report challenges of not being listened to and having to advocate for the children in their care to be given appropriate support.
5. When I Am Ready evaluation
We know from our members that there are currently lots of barriers to young people benefiting from When I Am Ready arrangements, including financial impacts and risks to foster carers approval status which means that all the young people who want to benefit from it are not able to. Turning 18 is a critical point for young people for education, entering employment or preparing for university. However, for too many young people in foster care, this coincides with significant changes to their legal and financial relationship with their foster carers. We are pleased to be working with CASCADE to support their evaluation of the scheme and urge the Committee to prioritise the findings and ensure the recommendations can be implemented meaningfully and consistently across Wales.
6. National register for foster carers
Foster carers are the only person in the team around the child who provide formal care for children who do not have to be registered with a central body. We highlighted that a national register would help greatly improve the collection of national data about the number of available foster carers in each local authority, to help improve matching and information sharing which could help reduce placement breakdown, improve stability and ensure more children remain closer to their families, communities, schools and support networks. It could also strengthen the status of foster carers, helping them to be listened to and advocate for children in their care.
7. Virtual schools and personal education plans
Following the review of the Virtual School Model pilot in Wales, there remains no clear implementation plan across Wales. In England, there is a duty for all local authorities to have a Virtual School Head, and we would like Wales to commit to the same. This will help with consistency in support for care experienced learners across Wales, including PEP formats and planning processes. Particularly, as the attainment gap for care experienced children widens as they progress through education.