THE number of vulnerable children on the child protection register has soared over the past 15 years following a series of high-profile child abuse cases.

Last year some 2,882 were on the list in Scotland – a 41 per cent rise since 2000 when the figure stood at 2,050.

The register is a confidential list of all children who have been identified by specialist social workers as being at significant risk of harm.

A total of 487 children in Glasgow were on the register last year, while 313 children were on the register in Edinburgh.

The child social work figures were published by the Scottish Government yesterday and overall showed a decrease from the previous year in the number of children being taken into care by councils across the country.

They also revealed a decline in the number of children remaining in the family home while under social work supervision with just 4,144 “looked after” boys and girls living with their parents compared to 6,193 in 2010.

The figures also highlighted that while fewer vulnerable children were in residential care, secure units or with prospective adopters, the number living with foster carers and with friends and relatives, known as in kinship care, had soared from 1,345 in 2010 to 5,533 last year.

Local authorities have a responsibility to provide support to certain vulnerable young people, known as ‘looked after children’. A young person may become looked after for a number of reasons, including neglect, abuse, complex disabilities which require specialist care, or involvement in the youth justice system.

The Scottish Government said at the end of July 2014, there were 15,580 looked after children in Scotland – a decrease of 452 (or three per cent) from 2013 and it was the second consecutive year the numbers have decreased following a peak of 16,248 in 2012.

It added that the decrease in numbers of looked after children was due to a reduction in numbers of children starting to be looked after, which had also seen a decrease for the second year in a row.

There are several types of placements that looked after children or young people can be placed in, including at home (where a child is subject to a supervision requirement and continues to live in their normal place of residence), foster care, residential unit or school, a secure unit or a kinship placement.

A series of high-profile cases of child abuse has shocked the public in recent years. They include Baby P, later named as Peter Connelly, who was 17 months old when he died in August 2007 in Haringey, North London.

Alison Todd, chief executive of Children 1st, said: “An increase in the number of children on the child protection register is concerning. It is hard to tell if more children need protection or if we have just become better at identifying those at risk.

“Whatever is behind the figures we must all make it a priority to safeguard children and give them the best possible start in life. With the figures showing children are placed on the register and then leaving the register at younger ages there is hope that being identified in this way means they are getting the help they need early enough to make a difference. We must encourage families to come forward if they are struggling so they can receive timely support.”

She added that the decline in the number of vulnerable children living with their parents reflected the concern that their homes were not safe places.

“These figures tell a sad story. They say that for thousands of children it isn’t safe for them to stay at home. Children 1st believes that children thrive best when they get to stay with their families and that’s why every day in communities across Scotland our services support families to stay together wherever possible.”