The number of youngsters being placed on child protection registers has increased by almost a third, while public concern about children’s welfare is growing, according to new figures from the Scottish government.

Adam Ingram, the Children’s Minister, welcomed the rise in people reporting their concerns as part of a “general upward trend” in recent years.

The total number of youngsters placed on child protection registers in 2008/09 was 3,628 — a rise of 29 per cent on the previous year’s figure of 2,814.

Children do not stay on the register permanently and the number of de-registrations from the register over 2008/09 was 3,499 — up 9per cent.

At the end of March this year, there were 2,682 children on registers across Scotland, a rise of 10 per cent on the previous year. Child protection referrals, where concern that a child is at risk of significant harm has been reported by any individual to social services, numbered 12,713.

Mr Ingram said: “Every child in Scotland deserves to be safe and secure as they grow up and ensuring fast and effective protection is available to every young person at risk of neglect or abuse is a key priority for this government.

“Everybody has their part to play and these figures suggest more people are reporting their concerns and support is being put in place more quickly, more effectively and more collaboratively.”

Not all referrals led to a child being placed on the register, but just over a third last year led to an inter-agency case conference to consider a specific child’s circumstances and any allegations of abuse or neglect — and the best way to provide support.

More than three-quarters (77 per cent) of case conferences last year resulted in a child being placed on the local register.

Mr Ingram added that Scotland has the most “robust” child protection inspection regime in the UK.

He added: “We are building on that through the review of child protection guidance currently under way which, together with the recently-announced national child protection co-ordinator, the new child protection hub in Stirling, our record number of social workers in children’s services and the new round of more targeted inspections will help minimise the risk to vulnerable children.”

Labour leader Iain Gray said the figures underlined the need for an “urgent” re-examination of child protection in Scotland as they came in the wake of an education inspectorate report which showed nearly one-in-four councils were not fully meeting the needs of children.

He said: “Every one of these 4,000 children are children at risk. But we know for every child where action is taken there are many more that are not identified.

“Social workers do a great job in working with problem families but the system needs to be re-examined.”

Liberal Democrat Margaret Smith highlighted drug abuse as a child protection issue.

She said: “Drug abuse played a central part in the Brandon Muir case and we know that across Scotland around 40,000 children are being raised by a drug addict.

“Thousands of children are potentially at risk here.

“The Scottish government needs to act on these statistics and improve the way that we look after vulnerable children right across the country,” she added.

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