Britain announces new task force to boost child protection

British Prime Minister David Cameron on Wednesday announced a new child protection task force to improve protection for the country's most vulnerable children.

The new task force, composed of senior ministers in the British government, will focus on transforming social work and children's services, improving inspection and tackling child sexual exploitation, Downing Street said.

The group, chaired by British Education Secretary Nicky Morgan, will join ten other task forces already established across government.

The new task force aims to build on the government's wide-ranging reforms to create a care system that puts children's needs first, according to Downing Street.

New reform measures include the appointment of a Chief Social Worker to lead the changes in the profession, new investment in social work training, and reduction of bureaucracy to help social workers work more efficiently.

"Through this work we will accelerate our current reforms to children's social work, and will overhaul the way that police, social services and other agencies work together locally," Cameron said in a statement.

"This approach -- dealing with the causes of stalled social mobility -- will give children the best start in life," the prime minister added. Endit