ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the very considerable policy agenda introduced by the New Labour government in Britain since 1997, with a particular focus on prevention. Drawing on research and debate in the fields of prevention and early intervention prior to 1997, the chapter summarises the main policy areas in which the UK government is seeking to improve the lives of children and families, and examines the role that an understanding of risk and protective factors, of vulnerability and resilience, have played in promoting children and young people's overall well-being. The Green Paper Every Child Matters, and the subsequent 2004 Children Act and the Every Child Matters: Change for Children programme focuses on five key outcomes which aim to narrow the gap between those who do well and those who do not. The chapter considers the ambitious change agenda within this, which includes a bringing together of services around the needs of children and families, a stronger emphasis on consulting with children and young people, improvement and integration of universal services, more specialist help to promote opportunity and prevent problems, shared responsibility for safeguarding children, and a remodelling of the workforce.
