New data from the NSPCC shows that concerns about child neglect is the top reason for the charity’s Helpline to make a referral to local agencies.
Between April 2024 and March 2025, the NSPCC Helpline made 830 referrals to local agencies in London, where neglect was believed to be the greatest risk factor for a child.
This accounted for 28% of the 2,996 referrals made in the region last year.
When concerns are raised through the Helpline, the NSPCC refers the matter to a local agency, such as police or children’s services if additional support is deemed necessary. Last year, referrals were made as a result of 41% of the 17,734 child welfare contacts across the UK concerning neglect. The Helpline received a total of almost 70,000 contacts about all child welfare issues over the past year.
Adults who got in touch with the Helpline concerned about neglect spoke about witnessing children not having access to food, safe shelter, clothing, shoes, being left home alone and not having their emotional and physical needs met.
Financial hardship, a lack of access to essential services, insecure housing and other challenges can create an environment where a child’s needs cannot be met.
When families do not receive the support they need to relieve that pressure and address emerging concerns, significant risks to children often follow.
In fact, previous research from the NSPCC found that across healthcare, the police, children’s social care and education in England, over half (54%) said they had seen an increase in neglect cases during their professional life with 90% saying they believed the rising cost of living and poverty rates was a driving factor.
The latest Helpline data reflects a continuing trend and deeply entrenched problem, rather than an isolated occurrence. For four consecutive years, child neglect has been the most frequently reported concern by adults to the Helpline, accumulating almost 60,000 child welfare contacts across the UK.
One neighbour who contacted the NSPCC Helpline said: “I don’t think this family are coping. The father works away a lot and the mother doesn’t have any community around her. I’d say the three children must all be between two and five-years-old. They’re always out in the garden or street and usually hardly dressed or naked. The garden itself is full of bin bags, dog poo and bottles, it’s not even a nice place for them to play. I don’t know if any support is in place for this family already, but it’s not enough if it is.”
Neglect can impact a child’s physical and mental health, hinder their development, and disrupt their ability to form secure relationships, which is why it’s so essential families get the support they need early to prevent this harm.
This new Helpline data has been published as a new amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill was debated this week by Baroness Tyler and Baroness Walmsley.
The amendment put forward by peers asked the Government to introduce a national neglect strategy and improved guidance for better tackling neglect.
The NSPCC is particularly concerned about the pervasive nature of neglect, as many children go without the support they need to tackle this form of child abuse.
In fact, neglect is the only form of child maltreatment which is defined by its persistence, meaning there is expectation that it must continue for a time before intervention.
When neglect is the primary form of maltreatment it may not necessarily present as an individual incident that meets the threshold for serious harm. Instead, it is often a patchwork of concerning lower-level reports built up over time to form a picture of cumulative harm.
Professionals have previously told the NSPCC* that it can be difficult to assess the point at which thresholds are met, meaning neglect is able to persist and cause further harm and risk to children.
The charity is calling on the Government to treat neglect as an urgent, national emergency and are supporting this new amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
They believe that a national strategy should include:
Information about how neglect manifests and the sharing of local and national best practice in dealing with it.
Further upskilling for professionals around neglect as a priority, including a national neglect awareness campaign.
A commitment to looking at the definition of neglect within the working together guidance to remove the word ‘persistent’.
How much money should be put towards dealing with this issue.
Chris Sherwood, CEO at the NSPCC, said: “It is profoundly concerning that, in 2025, so many children across the UK continue to suffer from neglect. Unless the Government takes urgent action to address this crisis, children’s opportunities to thrive will continue to be blighted by the devastating consequences of neglect.
“Our Helpline staff hear from thousands of adults every year with widely ranging concerns. The fact that a quarter of those have been about child neglect sadly confirms our view that this is a deeply entrenched problem.
“The Government must take this moment with the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to recognise this as a national emergency and commit to building a neglect strategy that ensures families in England get support before it causes irreversible harm.”
