Looked After Children and Care Leavers Sufficiency Strategy (2011) Final Draft
Slough
Looked After Children
And
Care Leavers
Sufficiency Strategy
2011-2012
Contact and Lead Author: Jill ForrestEffective Date: 2011-2012
Review Date: December 2012
Agreed at SMT:
Looked After Children and Care Leavers Sufficiency Strategy
Contents:
1. Introduction
2. Values and Principles
3. National Picture
a. Slough’s Performance Compared to the National Average
4. Regional Picture
5. Slough Picture
a. Admissions by Reason
b. Admissions by Age at Admission
c. Ethnicity of the Care Population
d. Asylum Seekers
e. Current Placement
f. Placement distance
g. Placement stability
6. Current Placement Options
a. Internal Foster Placements
b. IFA Providers
c. Mallards
d. Short Breaks, Respite and Shared Care
e. Semi Supported Independent Accommodation
f. Supported Lodgings
g. Bed and Breakfast Accommodation
7. Scrutiny
a. Placements Panel
b. Purchased Placements Panel
c. IRO Role
8. Future Provision
a. Challenges and Implications Of The Rise in Looked After Children Numbers
b. Financial
c. Intensive and Therapeutic Foster Care
d. Mother and Baby Placements
e. Short Breaks, Respite and Shared Care
f. Semi Supported Independent Accommodation
g. Supported Lodgings
h. Long Term and Permanent Carers
9. Future Plans for Fostering
a. Support for carers
b. Longer Term Plans for Recruitment
c. Developing Specialist Schemes
10. Actions/Recommendations
11. Appendices
1. Actual and Projected Costs
2. Ethnicity of CLA at Month end
3. LAC Placement
4. LAC placed more than 20 miles from Home address
5. Distance of LAC Placements
6. Statistics of SBC Internal Foster carers
7. Joint Assessment of 16/17
8. Home from Home
9. Children in IFA Placements
Looked After Children and Care Leavers Sufficiency Strategy
1. Introduction
The Government published its Sufficiency Statutory Guidance on Securing Sufficient Accommodation for Looked After Children at the beginning of 2010. This has prompted an internal review process within Slough Borough Council to ensure there is sufficient, appropriate accommodation to ensure the needs of Looked After Children, Care Leavers and Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children are met. Alongside sufficient short break and respite provision for children with disabilities.
Slough Borough Council Children’s Services continues to manage a system that has been affected by societal changes including the economic downturn and increased public awareness of safeguarding whilst managing these changes alongside a change in Government and public spending, the consequences of which have had significant impact for us, our partners and children and families. The Authority continues to be committed to promoting the welfare of and protecting the most vulnerable children and young people in Slough. The underlying foundation of any intervention lies in our commitment to ensuring that children and young people remain within their families. It is only when they are not able to remain within either their birth or extended families due to safety and welfare issues that they are placed with foster carers or adopters.
The functions (including powers and duties) of local authorities in relation to children who are looked after by them are set out in the 1989 Act as principally amended by the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000, the Adoption and Children Act 2002 and the Children and Young Persons Act 2008, and the associated Regulations and guidance in relation to those functions. Section 22(3) of the 1989 Act sets out the general duty of the Local Authority looking after a child to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child. This duty underpins all activity by the local authority in relation to Looked After Children.
2. Values and Principles
Slough Strategic Children’s Partnership recognises the value of prevention and early intervention and works with partners in the community to do all it can to support children in need and their families. The authority believes that the vast majority of children will best achieve their potential and thrive the most within their families of origin. The authority also recognises that there are a small number of vulnerable children who need to be cared for outside their birth families and who have no other networks in the community where they can live and grow up in safety and security. For this group of children and young people Slough Strategic Children’s Partnership has a responsibility as corporate parents to provide care and to work with other partners to meet their needs as well as possible in line with legislation and government guidance.
3. National Picture
At a national level, as at 31st March 2010, there were 64,400 Looked After Children; this was an increase of 6% from 2009. Nationally, 27800 children became looked after during the 2009/10 year, an increase of 8% on the previous year.
In April 2010 the results of a national survey undertaken by the Association of Directors of Children’s Services into Safeguarding Pressures were published. Across England, Safeguarding activity rose in all sectors - this rise was also experienced in Slough and in most instances the rise was substantially greater in Slough than in other areas – particularly in the number of contacts, number of S.47 enquiries, number of children with a child protection plan and the number of Looked After Children.
The causes of this are often equated with the case of baby Peter in November 2008, but it is not clear that this is the sole reason for the rise. The research notes a number of different factors that might contribute to this, including; the introduction of the Public Law Outline (PLO); changing demographics; immigration; teenage pregnancies; the ‘Southwark Judgement’ (how local authorities support homeless 16 and 17 year olds) and Unaccompanied Asylum seeking Children. All of these factors are relevant to Slough to a greater or lesser extent and are compounded by a greater degree of sensitivity about child protection since Peter Connolly’s death.
Activity / National Average / Slough Performance / StatusLong-term stability of LAC / 67.0% / 66 / Slightly lower than national
% of LAC adopted within 12 months of best interest decision / 72.4% / 90.0 / Vastly better than national
LAC having 3 or more placements in a year / 10.9% / 9.71 / Slightly better than national
LAC in care for at least 2 ½ years, who have lived in their current placement for 2 years or more / 68.0% / 65.6 / Slightly lower than national
Care Leavers in suitable accommodation / 90.3% / 100 / Vastly better than national
Slough’s Performance Compared to the National Average
From the table below it can be seen that Slough is faring well compared to national average rates particularly related to Care Leavers in suitable accommodation and the number of Looked After Children who are adopted.
4. Regional Picture
The table below demonstrates the percentage increase in young people becoming looked after between 2009 and 2010. It shows that Slough has had a substantial increase in numbers, which is more than double the average increase across Berkshire.
Numbers of Looked After ChildrenBerkshire / 2009 / 2010 / % Increase 2009 – 2010
Bracknell Forest / 82 / 88 / 7%
Reading / 193 / 204 / 13%
Slough / 137 / 172 / 43%
West Berks / 99 / 128 / 35%
Windsor & Maidenhead / 89 / 108 / 23%
Wokingham / 69 / 79 / 12%
Average increase / 16.4%
5. Slough Picture
Slough, like most local authorities across England has seen increases in activity over the last 3 years. In overview, activity across Children in Need, Child Protection and Looked After Children fell to their lowest levels of activity in 2007 since then activity has risen steadily across all indicators.
The numbers of children in care are at the highest rates in 10 years. The number of Looked After Children at December 2010 has risen by 15% since December 2009 and by 23% since December 2008. Despite this, Slough has lower numbers of children in care than its statistical neighbours and is currently just above the national average per 10,000 of the under 18 years population.
Sep 2010 / Oct 2010 / Nov 2010 / Dec 2010 / Jan 2011 / Feb 2011Total Numbers of Looked After Children / 169 / 170 / 176 / 175 / 178 / 176
Admissions by Reason for becoming Looked After (Nov 2010)
· Neglect is the largest cause of admission, closely followed by drug use, however drug misuse is implicated as a secondary factor in a significant number of domestic violence and physical abuse cases.
· The impact of the Southwark Judgement (the requirement to accommodate 16 and 17 year old homeless young people) is currently small, accounting for just 5 cases.
· A grant is received for unaccompanied asylum seeking young people, but the Local Authority retains responsibility for these young people after they have left care – accommodation and living costs to age 18 and certain support costs to age 21.
Looked After Children Admissions by Age at Admission
Comparing the last 12 months (Oct 09 – Sep 2010) to the previous 12 months (Oct 08 – Sep 2009) for non-UASC, there has been a percentage increase in every age band except those aged 10 – 15.The largest increase in admissions has been in children aged 0 – 4 years which has shown a rise of 389%.
Age Band / Oct 08 - Sep 09 / Oct 09 - Sep 10 / % changeUnder 1 / 12 / 21 / 75%
1 - 4 / 7 / 29 / 314%
5 - 9 / 11 / 22 / 100%
10 - 15 / 22 / 21 / -5%
16 - 17 / 4 / 9 / 125%
Ethnicity of the Care Population
Analysis of ethnicity trends indicates that there is an over-representation of white children and those of mixed/ dual heritage in the Looked After Children system, whilst there is a significant under-representation of Asian children (Appendix 2). The rise in Looked After Children numbers appears to be mainly due to a rise in the number of white children looked after as demonstrated in the chart below. There is no clear reason for this, although national research does indicate an under-reporting of child protection concerns in Asian British families.
Ethnicity / Sept 2010% / Oct 2010
% / Nov 2010
% / Dec 2010
% / Jan 2011
%
White / 54.1 / 58.6 / 61.8 / 61.2 / 58.5
Mixed Ethnic Origin / 22.4 / 13.8 / 14.7 / 12.9 / 16.3
Asian and Asian British / 11.8 / 13.8 / 11.8 / 14.7 / 18.5
Other ethnic groups / 7.1 / 6.9 / 5.9 / 5.2 / 4.4
Black or Black British / 3.5 / 5.7 / 4.9 / 5.2 / 1.5
Not recorded/ Unborn / 1.2 / 1.1 / 1.0 / 0.9 / 0.7
Ratio of BME LAC: to all BME Under 18s / 0.95 / 0.86 / 0.79 / 0.81 / 0.87
Asylum Seekers
Slough is home to a number of asylum seeking young people from many different parts of the world, and it is important that services and accommodation are provided to meet their complex needs. Older asylum seekers are usually placed in supported lodgings, but places are limited. Plans are currently underway for two housing developments which will provide semi supported independent accommodation which would provide additional placements for asylum seekers.
Status / NumberUnaccompanied Asylum Seekers Under 16 years / 10
Asylum Seekers 16-18 years / 32
Asylum Seekers 18-21/24 / 41
Asylum Seekers who are now Care Leavers / 7
Current Placements of Looked After Children (January 2011)
Placement Types / Sep-10 / Oct-10 / Nov-10 / Dec-10 / Jan-11Foster / IFA or OLA Carer / 62 / 65 / 69 / 70 / 68
Foster / Slough Carer / 52 / 56 / 56 / 57 / 61
Foster / Relative or Friend / 19 / 16 / 15 / 15 / 14
Residential / Children’s Home / 11 / 9 / 9 / 9 / 11
Residential / Supported residential settings / 9 / 7 / 9 / 9 / 9
Residential / Residential school / 1 / 1 / 1 / 1 / 1
Residential / Residential care home / 1 / 1 / 1 / 0 / 0
Residential / Secure unit / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Residential / Medical/nursing care / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Residential / Family centre/mother & baby unit / 1 / 1 / 1 / 0 / 0
Residential / Young offenders Institution or Prison / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Other / Placed with parents / 1 / 1 / 1 / 1 / 1
Other / Placed for adoption / 12 / 12 / 13 / 12 / 12
Other / Independent living / 0 / 1 / 1 / 1 / 1
Total / 169 / 170 / 176 / 175 / 178
Placement Distance from Slough of Looked After Children
Currently only 3.7% of Looked After Children are placed more than 20 miles from their home address, this has reduced from 12.2% in December 2010. There is more work to be done in relation to this, as it is obviously beneficial for children and young people to be placed within or close to Slough as it:
· allows a child to be close to family and friends (when appropriate)
· avoids disrupting education
· enables local services to meet the needs of local children