An editorial in The Guardian urges that the review of the care system promised in the Conservative manifesto should start as soon as possible, be fully independent and ‘peer into all the troubling gaps’. The piece states that with the number of looked after children in England at a ten year high, how they are cared for and educated should […]
Special Educational Needs of Looked After Children
The Guardian reports on the findings of a research study examining the level of special educational needs (SEN) support required by children in the care system. Researchers at the UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health examined data on almost half a million children who began school in September 2005 and found that 83% […]
Meeting the Needs of BAME Children in Foster Care
Two articles this month examine the issue of the shortage of black, Asian or minority ethnic (BAME) foster carers: BBC analysis of Ofsted figures show that two-thirds of councils in England have a shortage of BAME foster carers. 23% of children in foster care in England at 31 March 2019 came from a BAME background. […]
Special Guardians Allowance Ruling
Rochdale council has been unsuccessful in its High Court challenge of the findings of a critical report by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) about the way they pay special guardians. The High Court concluded that the council’s policy was not in line with statutory guidance and principles established in previous court cases. The original […]
Foster Carers’ School Transport Costs Ruling
The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) has issued a warning to a local council that they should be providing financial help to foster carers to help pay for school transport costs. The LGSCO investigation found that the council had wrongly told a foster parent, who was caring for children that were at school further away than […]
Helping Children to Understand Why They Are in Care
The importance of ensuring that children and young people understand why they are in care is discussed in: a Community Care piece, Linda Briheim-Crookall of Coram Voice, offers tips for talking to children about past experiences and why they are in care. The Bright Spots research programme that Coram Voice works on with the University of […]
Care Leaver Local Offer Report and toolkit
Catch22’s National Leaving Care Benchmarking Forum has released the Care Leaver Local Offer Report and toolkit, to support local authorities in raising the standard of provision across the country. The thematic report looks at: health and wellbeing; relationships; education and training; employment; accommodation; participation in society; ‘other’ groups of care leavers; finance and format/development of […]
Access to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
The Education Policy Institute (EPI) has published its Annual Report on access to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). The study examines access to specialist services, waiting times for treatment, and provision for the most vulnerable children in England, and is based on new data obtained through freedom of information (FOI) requests to mental […]
Meeting the Needs of BAME Children in Foster Care
Two articles this month examine the issue of the shortage of black, Asian or minority ethnic (BAME) foster carers: BBC analysis of Ofsted figures show that two-thirds of councils in England have a shortage of BAME foster carers. 23% of children in foster care in England at 31 March 2019 came from a BAME background. In […]
Online resource for teenagers in care and care leavers
IMO is a voice for teenagers in care and for care leavers. It is somewhere you can share stories, experiences and achievements, get and give advice, and find loads of great free stuff! IMO was created by the Children’s Commissioner for England in collaboration with an advisory network of teens with care experience. If you […]