AS Ghandi once said, a nation's greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members.

In Notts, it is reported that there has been an increase of 91.6 per cent in the numbers of children in care over the last four years.

The salient question is this; is this due primarily to the Baby Peter phenomenon of less risk being taken by local authority social workers – or is there a more complex situation at play?

The well-recorded rise in child poverty and rising rates of alcohol and drug dependence, high levels of parental stress and escalating levels of domestic violence, both nationally and locally, are all factors to be taken into consideration.

Anthony Douglas, chief executive of the Child and Family Court Advisory Service, has said a number of factors could have affected the record numbers of referrals.

He said: "Agencies are working more quickly to ensure that children are removed from deeply damaging households and are showing a lower tolerance for poor parenting.

"What we are seeing is an elimination of drift in neglect cases and a greater recognition of the appalling impact that neglect can have on children."

Mr Douglas added: "All agencies need to factor these much larger increases into their planning systems, resource allocations, workforce development strategies and service contracts."

It is hard to see this happening in times of service cutbacks from mainstream activities for services involved in the child protection process.

A greater understanding of the impact of neglect on children's life chances and emotional and physical development have also impacted on the reduction in time this is allowed to persist before action is taken.

As Martin Narey, chief executive of Barnardo's, said: "We can and should try to fix families and we do often succeed. Parenting and family support can be very effective. However, we should not persist where experience tells us that the prospects of success are bleak."

In conclusion, therefore, the rises in children in care in Notts sit within a national picture of rises in children coming into the care system.

All those interested in children's welfare have, therefore, a concern relating to reduction in funding for not only social care but also education, health, housing and related services if this situation is to be resolved ie.what may be a secondary service for one may be a front-line service to another.