70,000 troubled families have had their lives turned around, report says

The government has issued a report detailing the progress it has made since it published 'Social Justice: transforming lives' in 2012.

Social Justice aims to break the illusion that family breakdown, debt, educational failure, addiction and worklessness are intractable problems. The goal is to instil basic concepts such as love, compassion and trust. Above all, it is underpinned by the belief that no one is beyond reach and that no one should be written off.

Through a series of programmes, intervention and policies, Social Justice has had a positive impact on thousands of families:

• 70,000 troubled families have had their lives turned around;
• 250,000 more children are living with both their birth parents;
• 387,000 fewer children are living in workless households;
• 53,000 parents are working together in their children’s best interests, through the Help and Support for Separated Families Innovation Fund;
• over 48,000 couples have participated in relationship counselling; nearly 160,000 people have accessed preventative relationship support; and
• over 12,000 practitioners have been trained to help support families experiencing relationship difficulties.

The report also sets out plans for further action:

• the relationship support policy will be brought under one department, the Department for Work and Pensions;
• through the Troubled Families Programme, an additional 400,000 families will receive support, with Jobcentre Plus doubling its force of specialist jobs advisors;
• the new Family Test will create an explicit focus on families: improving family stability, relationships and well-being;
• a recognition of marriage and civil partnerships in the tax system through transferable tax allowances; and
• Family Nurse Partnerships will be expanded to 16,000 places.

Click here to download Social Justice: transforming lives. Progress report.