Families in Dundee who have multiple children removed into care are to be discouraged from having more pregnancies under a scheme to be introduced in the city.

Between 2012 and 2017, the council says, 113 women in the city had 341 children removed into care between them.

Teaming up with the Pause charity which already works with 25 local authorities in England and Northern Ireland, could save up to £1,657,000 over five years, due to the high cost of keeping young people in care, according to a report due to be considered at the council’s Children and Families Committee on Monday.

The charity works with vulnerable women to encourage them to take a “pause from pregnancy” to address the problems which have led their other children to be looked after by the council.

The report says many such mothers have multiple problems including mental health issues, histories of offending, drug misuse or backgrounds of domestic abuse.

Should councillors back the scheme, women will take part on a voluntary basis, but will commit to take a “pause” from pregnancy to develop new skills, tackle destructive patterns of behaviour and avoid further trauma.

Each woman would have a bespoke programme designed around their needs,

The report says that with the women involved having an average of three children each removed into care, the cost savings could be substantial as such children often remain in care for extended periods.

An evaluation suggests the programme could help avoid between six and ten pregnancies over 18 months, potentially saving costs to the city’s social work department and a range of other services.

The scheme itself is estimated to cost £300,000 a year, with funding coming from the Big Lottery, the Scottish Government and the Robertson Trust.

Depute children and families service convener Councillor Roisin Smith said: “There are terrible human tragedies behind these statistics and I am keen that we can find new ways of working with these women to help improve their lives.

“The council also faces a significant financial cost to remove children into care.

“Pause Dundee would give us a chance to intervene in a way that can hopefully better help these vulnerable women. They face extremely difficult challenges in their lives and are the victims of some dreadful circumstances.

I want to see these women have better life chances, to escape the cycles of abuse or addiction that they face and move on to training and employment opportunities and make a contribution to society.”