A CHARITY has welcomed a council's move to radically change its child protection service in a drive to help vulnerable youngsters at an earlier stage.

Barnardo's said North Yorkshire County Council's decision to withdraw from most universal open access services and instead focus on cutting the number of children requiring more intensive and costly intervention through social care and other services would help those most in need.

The authority said its scheme, which is set to secure savings of more than £3m annually, was a "ground-breaking approach to prevention", which will help to protect the safety, health and wellbeing of children and young people across the county.

Formed out of existing, but currently separate children and youth services, the council says its new service will support families in a more joined-up way, with workers able to stay alongside anyone aged up to 19.

The approach will see prevention workers operating in local teams alongside a new Healthy Child Programme team, set up as part of the authority’s new public health responsibility, in 12 areas across the county.

These prevention teams will aim to provide highly targeted, consistent and effective support on the ground at times when families are most in need, be it early mornings, evening or weekends, to stop problems escalating.

Councillor Tony Hall, the council's children and young people’s service boss, said this move focused on providing help at the earliest opportunity in a large, rural county where isolation can be an issue for families.

He added: “If that means working in different ways and in different places, that’s what we will do.

“Other authorities are showing an interest in these ground-breaking proposals because like us they need to find new and radical ways of delivering effective services with utmost efficiency.”

The approach forms part of the authority’s 2020 North Yorkshire programme to create a smaller, more flexible authority, providing strong leadership and support to communities to deliver for themselves.

The council intends to work in partnership with communities and the voluntary sector to provide the universal services.

For example, it will continue to contract with North Yorkshire Youth and will provide an additional £200,000 for the organisation to enhance investment in the voluntary sector.

A spokeswoman for Banardo's said it was supportive of services that are targeted to support the most vulnerable.

She added: "Early intervention services lay a foundation that is vital in helping to improve the lives of children and their families. ”