Next week, the Authority’s Cabinet will be presented with two annual reports showing that the County Council’s work to keep Hampshire’s most vulnerable children and adults safe, continues to make a meaningful and lasting difference. This is despite increasing demand for social care, with around 11,000 cases open to Children’s Services as of June 2025 and over 12,000 reports of adult safeguarding concerns predicted for 2025/26 based on latest forecasts.
Councillor Nick Adams-King, Leader of Hampshire County Council, said: “Protecting people from harm is at the heart of what we do. The needs of vulnerable children and adults are becoming more complex, but we never stop striving to improve, and a key focus is to take proactive steps to provide early, preventative help. By working closely with families, communities, and our safeguarding partners, we’re helping thousands of people live safer, better lives.”
Helping families stay together
In 2024/25, Children’s Services teams have focused on giving families the right help earlier on – before problems escalate. Highlights include:
- 36 new Family Help teams working across Hampshire to provide local support when and where it’s needed most.
- Ongoing roll out of Community Hubs to provide safe, welcoming spaces where residents of all ages can access advice and services. Two hubs are already operating in Gosport Discovery Centre and Farnborough Library.
These efforts are paying off, with child protection cases down by nearly 15 per cent since April 2024. The number of children in the Authority’s care has also fallen for the first time in five years. Keeping families together where it’s safe to do so remains a priority because children thrive best when they can stay with their families, supported by the right help.
This also follows an ‘outstanding’ judgement from Ofsted in June last year – the second time in a row since 2019 that Hampshire’s Children’s Services have achieved the top grade.
Protecting adults and promoting independence
In adults’ social care, the County Council is continuing to make sure that adults receive high-quality care that keeps them safe, meets their needs and enables people to live independently for longer. Key progress includes:
- Over 500 quality assurance checks of social care providers across the county to ensure high standards. For anyone with an elderly relative in care, these assessments provide assurance that they are being looked after with dignity and respect. Currently 83 per cent of CQC Regulated and inspected providers are rated Good or Outstanding in Hampshire.
- An Enhanced Support Project which is helping people at risk of self-neglect and other health problems such as mental health issues and substance misuse.
- Creating new specialist safeguarding roles and expert training to tackle safeguarding issues such as modern slavery.
- The Hampshire Safeguarding Adults Board has also delivered 42 multi-agency training events for partners, with more than 2,500 professionals and volunteers attending - strengthening local expertise and making Hampshire safer for vulnerable adults.
Safeguarding is everyone’s business
The County Council’s work to keep vulnerable residents safe wouldn’t be possible without the support of key partners and members of the public. If you have a safeguarding concern about someone – even if it’s just a feeling that something isn’t right – please speak up:
- Report concerns about an adult in confidence 24/7
- Report concerns about a child in confidence 24/7
- In an emergency, always call 999.