Vulnerable children who don't get access to support quickly are ending up struggling with far bigger problems later in life
The clock is ticking for vulnerable children in Scotland according to a leading charity.
Aberlour Children’s Charity has launched a new campaign to raise awareness of the impact of delaying support for children when problems arise.
It revealed that 93% of Scots believe that more should to be done to help vulnerable children as soon as problems arise rather than waiting for families to reach breaking point.
The charity currently helps over 7,500 children and families across the length and breadth of Scotland through residential and fostering services, helping families recovering from drug and alcohol problems, providing parenting support and working with families with disabled children.
However, it says many more children are not getting access to services like the ones it provides and as a result are developing bigger problems later in life.
As part of its survey, the charity asked the public if they knew of households in their local community which include vulnerable children. A total of 60% said yes, which the charity says suggests there are many more hidden children across Scotland urgently in need of support.
Also, 86% of people agreed the issue of vulnerable children is one that affects families from all types of backgrounds and in all parts of Scotland.
Aberlour chief executive SallyAnn Kelly said: “We know that we need to get in there early. The clock is ticking, and we need to act fast to prevent children across Scotland from suffering, before families reach crisis point, before it’s too late. That’s why we’ve launched our new campaign, because we know that taking action quickly significantly improves long-term outcomes for children and young people, and there are still so many out there whom we are yet to reach.
“Although 93% support our view that the emphasis should be on helping children before they reach crisis point, 63% agree that currently help only starts when a crisis happens, rather than when issues first appear. With the support of the public, Aberlour aims to close that gap.”
The Clock is Ticking campaign is calling on people across Scotland to fundraise for Aberlour to help raise the urgent funds required to support more families.
