Page 11 - Who is losing learning IPPR Briefing & Podcast March 2025

5. Addressing Fragmentation of Services:

•The report highlights the fragmentation of services for children and families, with different
goals, incentives, and funding structures hindering effectiveness.

•Quote:

•"Too often, children’s services are working to different goals, incentives and funding
structures, which hinder their effectiveness and mean services work in silos (Children’s
Commissioner 2022a; CSPRP 2021; Hoddinott et al 2024). Families want support to be – and
to feel – joined up.“

•It recommends the development of a Shared Outcomes Framework across health, local
government, and education, overseen by an inter-ministerial group.

•As a first step, the government should publish a plan to radically improve access to
children’s mental health and speech and language support.

6. Improving Oversight of Pupil Movements:

•The report expresses concern about the lack of national oversight of pupil movements off-
site and off-roll, including managed moves, off-site direction, and unlawful off-rolling.

•Quote: "'It is absolutely not good enough that we don’t already have oversight of pupil
movements across the sector. We all know that students are bounced around schools, and
sometimes within trusts, and then eventually just stop coming to school. We urgently need a
mechanism in place so we can monitor this.’”

(Elroy Aidouni-Cahill, Head of Portfolio and Partnerships, Lift Schools)

•It argues that the current system creates perverse incentives for schools to move children
who might negatively impact their performance measures.

•The report recommends legislation to provide oversight of all pupil movements off-site and
off-roll.