Joyce welcomes £200 child trust fund top up for looked after children

Labour Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales JOYCE WATSON AM has welcomed the improved Child Trust Fund Reimbursement scheme to benefit children under the care of local authorities in Wales through additional funding from the Welsh Assembly Government.

The Welsh Assembly Government has agreed to increase top up payments to local authorities from £50 per year per child to £100 per year per child, with the purpose of encouraging local authorities to contribute to the Child Trust Funds (CTF) of children that they are responsible for. The UK Government is topping up the CTF accounts of all children looked after in the UK for a year or more since 1 April 2007 by £100 per year per child.

The Welsh and UK schemes will be combined, so local authorities in Wales will now be reimbursed to provide children looked after for a year or more since 1 April 2007 with an annual top up of £200 – compared to £100 in the rest of the UK.

JOYCE WATSON AM, who is Vice-Chair of the Assembly cross-party Looked After Children committee, said:

"£200 a year is a positive investment in some of our most vulnerable children. Child Trust Funds are just one of the ways in which we are tackling child poverty in Wales. We are targeting the money where it can really make a lasting and important impact – by giving looked after children a financial nest egg as they embark upon adult life.

"Looked after children have huge potential, and I hope this move will help them on the path to achieving it."

It is estimated that under the revised eligibility criteria 500 children will benefit from the scheme in 2008/09, rising to 640 in 2009/10 and 770 in 2010/11 at a cost to the Welsh Assembly Government of £50,000, £64,000 and £77,000 respectively. The UK Government's contribution will mirror the Welsh Assembly Government’s contribution.

20th May 2008

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