Cost of Dudley children in care to hit £2m

Bosses have revealed an extensive plan to reduce the number of youngsters it has to take into care in an effort to save cash.

The council will set up a new commission to work with other agencies and undertake a 'robust review' to see how numbers can be decreased.

But a report ahead of a cabinet meeting on Wednesday warns the new body may not be able to deliver financial savings until 2016.

They have soared in recent years placing huge financial strains on the authority which is battling cuts in government funding.

Council bosses have revealed they have been unable to reduce the numbers in its care as quickly as it predicted.

There are 754 'looked after children', which has fallen from 772 in September last year.

But the total remains much higher than before the recession took hold. In 2010, the figure was 480.

Councillor Tim Crumpton, cabinet member for children's services, said: "Our ambition is to ensure as many children as possible live with their families and our work around early support services continues to reduce the numbers in care.

"By establishing a commission to address issues around looked after children we will be ensuring the council uses a whole system approach, working with partners such as health and schools to help create the right conditions to support families."

In October last year the council warned it was looking at a £1 million shortfall in its children's services budget due to the rising numbers.

But the latest report to cabinet states net spend is now expected to be within budget for the current financial year, partly as a result of using earmarked reserves no longer required for their original use.

It is believed families put under pressure due to money worries in the recession have had an impact on the number of youngsters being taken into care.