Josh MacAlister MP, Minister for Children and Families, visited the Liverpool City Region last week and praised how local partners are working together to transform social care and give children and young people the best start in life.

The Minister spent the day meeting local leaders to learn more about how the region is putting lived experience at the heart of public services and redesigning care around the lives of the children and young people.

During the visit, he met with Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, Steve Rotheram, Leader of Sefton Council and Liverpool City Region Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, Cllr Marion Atkinson, along with a group of senior leaders working across children’s and family services.

They explored how the region is moving away from traditional, fragmented models of care for children and young people and the role of organisations like We are Juno – a network of not-for-profit residential care homes for children that’s providing a sustainable alternative to the profit-driven children’s residential landscape.

The project was launched in 2022 with a £2.2m investment: £1m from Wirral Council, £800,000 from the Combined Authority’s Strategic Investment Fund and £400,000 from local social investors.

There are currently three homes, in Oxton, Wallasey and New Brighton, all given the Good Provider rating by Ofsted. Two more, in Runcorn and Widnes, are in the process of being delivered with a further two homes planned in Halton.

Josh MacAlister, Minister for Children and Families, said:

“Initiatives like We Are Juno demonstrate some of the innovations we want to see in children’s social care – local focus, a not-for-profit funding model and delivering loving homes to help give children the best possible start in life.

“It was inspiring to see how people and organisations across Liverpool and beyond are working together to put direct experience at the heart of the system to deliver opportunity and better life chances for children in care.”

Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said:

“Every child deserves the chance to grow up in a safe, secure home where they feel loved and supported. Too often, for children in care, that stability is disrupted at the very moment they need it most.

“As Mayor, I’m determined to change that by making sure young people can stay close to their communities, their schools and their friends, rather than being moved miles away from everything familiar.

“By working with Juno and our local authority partners, we’ve built a new kind of children’s residential care – one that puts children first, not profit, and is designed around what they need to thrive.

“With the backing of government, regions like ours can invest in innovative, life-changing projects that give our most vulnerable children the stability, care and opportunity they deserve.”

Sophie Clarke, Managing Director at We Are Juno, said:

“It was great to share the Juno story with the Minister. At Juno, our work is grounded in the reality of how tough life can be for some children and young people in the region.

“Juno was an idea created with care-experienced young people. It’s grown into a network of safe, loving and local homes for children that’s focussed on the lives of the children we care for, not profit. The Minister was really interested in our plans for Juno and transforming opportunities for even more children who are growing up in care.”

Chris Catterall, Chief Executive at Capacity, said:

“We were pleased to host the Minister’s visit and highlight the transformational work taking place in Liverpool City Region and Cheshire. The Minister and his team saw what we see every day – partnerships and collaboration between local government, health, the combined authority, the voluntary sector that are deeper and better aligned than ever.

“The Minister challenged us to be bold and build on the work already happening to rethink public services so they work better for children, young people and families for the long term.”

For more information on the work Capacity and We are Juno are doing to transform how public services are designed and delivered in Liverpool City Region and Cheshire, contact Peter Smith, Head of Marketing & Insight [email protected], 07515 999 405

The Minister is pictured above at the Museum of Liverpool: (l-r) Jenny Glennard, Director of Children Services, Liverpool City Council, Cllr Marion Atkinson, LCR Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, Chris Catterall, Chief Executive, Capacity, Josh MacAlister MP, Minister for Children and Families, Phil Porter, Chief Executive, Sefton Council, Anna Murphy, Non-Executive Director, Juno, Mark Palethorpe, Chief Executive, St. Helens Council, Sophie Clarke, Managing Director, Juno, Emma Lord, Design & Doing Director, Capacity.