During the pandemic, Ms Longfield met on a fortnightly basis with senior officials. She said she “was often one of a small number of voices making the case for children to be a priority”.
In her written evidence, she highlighted three areas where she believed the government failed to act in children’s best interests:
She said lockdowns removed most of the usual ways of identifying children at risk.
These included going to school, GP surgeries and children’s centres as well as contact with professionals such as health visitors, teachers and social workers, who were often only working through screens.
“Tragically, for some children who lost their life during the pandemic, not due to Covid, but due to violence, these decisions may have increased their vulnerability to harm,” she wrote.
She quoted government figures which show there were 223 child deaths involving abuse or neglect in 2020-21, up from 188 the previous year – a figure that also includes looked-after children.
