Nine councils awarded £900k to embed evidence-based practice in children’s services

Nine English councils will receive funding to embed evidence-based practice in children’s services, under a new partnership with the What Works Centre for Children and Families.

Announced this week, the funding will support the creation of nine new Partner Places—each receiving £100,000 to appoint a Local Evidence Lead who will work to embed evidence-informed practice across children’s services until March 2027.

The selected Partner Places are: Leicester City Council (East Midlands), Southend-on-Sea City Council (East of England), Northumberland County Council (North East), Stockport Council (North West), Wokingham Borough Council (South East), Wiltshire Council (South West), Bradford Children & Families Trust (Yorkshire and the Humber), London Borough of Enfield (Greater London), and Telford & Wrekin Council (West Midlands).

The initiative forms part of Evidence into Practice, Foundations’ national programme to bridge the gap between research and frontline delivery. It aligns closely with the Children’s Social Care National Framework and Keeping Children Safe, Helping Families Thrive reforms, which emphasise the role of evidence in driving effective family help, protection, and care services.

Partner Places will work alongside Foundations to implement proven interventions in areas such as parenting support, kinship care, and mentoring for care-experienced young people. They will also share learning regionally, supported by the Department for Education, the Local Government Association, and Principal Social Worker networks, helping to build long-term regional capacity for evidence use.

Nimal Jude, Head of Practice Development at Foundations, said: “We know that evidence-based approaches are the most reliable way to improve outcomes for children and families. Yet the reality is that interventions with the strongest evidence base often aren't used as widely and some popular approaches
haven't been robustly evaluated for impact.

"As the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill progresses and new duties around Family Help come into effect, demand for effective, evidence-based services is growing. We will work with our Partner Places to show that rigorous evidence use, and responsive local delivery aren't competing priorities – they are two sides of the same coin."

Audrey Kingham, Executive Director of Children, Young People and Education, and Director of Children’s Services at Northumberland County Council, said:

“We are thrilled to become a Partner Place, working alongside Foundations to improve outcomes for children, young people and families through evidence-based practice and shared learning. This partnership will help us embed what works into our Children’s Social Care transformation journey, strengthening family support, and building a culture of continuous learning and collaboration across our local area and regionally.”

The programme comes as the latest government figures show rising social care referrals, with parental mental health and domestic abuse among the main drivers. By embedding evidence at the heart of practice, Foundations and its Partner Places aim to ensure children’s services are better equipped to deliver lasting, measurable impact.