The body representing directors of children’s services in England urged the government to make a profit out of children’s social care as figures showed 24 councils were paying as many seven-figure sums. One local authority – Knowsley in Merseyside – paid £49,680 a week for one child, which would equate to more than £2m a year. Steve Crocker, chairman of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) in England, said the Guardian’s findings highlighted a growing problem. “Children’s needs vary and we recognize that some placements, for example for children with complex and overlapping education, health and social care needs, will cost more than others. However, profiteering is a growing concern for us and the Competition and Markets Authority recently raised similar concerns following a market study into children’s social care,” he said. “ADCS members continue to call for a shift towards a not-for-profit system, both the Scottish and Welsh Governments are working towards this goal, but we are realistic, this cannot happen overnight. In addition, a complete ban on winnings comes with the risk of disorderly withdrawals from the market, the stakes are too high for children. So while we should work towards a not-for-profit system, all other options should be explored in the meantime.” Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner for England, said the most expensive placements tended to be short-term and bespoke, with large numbers of staff and high staffing ratios. “This is the opposite of the stable, loving and specialist care we should be giving all our children,” he said, calling for “a radically different approach that refocuses on the principle that children should be cared for close to home. in placements that adapt as children’s needs change.” There is no data to suggest that more expensive placements have the best outcomes for children. But the extreme costs of caring for too few young people are a huge challenge for cash-strapped councils, which often end up cutting preventive services. The most expensive placements were to care for some of society’s most vulnerable children, often at very short notice. Some were as young as 12 and needed four staff to watch over them 24 hours a day. Many had problems of serious self-harm and injury to their caregivers, and in some cases a judge had authorized them to be locked up in a safe house. These children, who are considered to be a danger to themselves and others, qualify for places in safe children’s homes, all of which are run by the state or the voluntary sector. But there are now only 14 of these specialist treatment facilities in England and Wales, not enough to meet the need. Every day, around 50 children wait for a place, according to Ofsted, the inspection. Children who cannot find a place in a secure children’s home are usually kept elsewhere, often in apartments or other accommodation with large groups of agency staff. Since last autumn, North Yorkshire County Council has been spending £35,480 a week on a child’s care, which is constantly monitored by three members of staff and a dedicated support worker. Hammersmith and Fulham in London paid £42,000 for a week for a child who could not be safely placed with other children, while Lewisham in London paid £23,000 a week for 17 months for a teenager who needed a mental health nurse and three support workers during the day and two care support workers at night. Blackpool council paid between £24,000 and £31,000 a week to look after a child over a three-month period. This young person was vulnerable to sexual exploitation and was subject to a detention and care order imposed by a high court judge. Around 35 English children are living in safe homes in Scotland, away from friends and family, Ofsted said. In Scotland – where a third of all children’s homes are run by private providers, compared with more than three quarters in England and Wales – councils generally pay far less than their English and Welsh counterparts. Only seven have exceeded the £10,000-a-week threshold, with the most expensive for a non-disabled child costing £10,700 a week (North Ayrshire). Between 2016 and 2020, the number of children in care increased by 14% in England and 27% in Wales, although it fell by 7% in Scotland. Ofsted said: “The ‘market’ for children’s social care remains problematic. The commissioning of specialist services is often linked to individual children… A national approach to commissioning these specialist services is needed and long overdue.’ Average prices for children’s homes in England are £4,865 a week for a local authority place and £4,153 for a private placement, according to a review by the Personal Social Services Review Unit. This is up from around £3,000 in 2016, with prices rising week-on-week as food, petrol and energy costs rise. But now many English and Welsh councils regularly pay more than £10,000 a week per child. Devon County Council said it had commissioned 43 weekly placements worth more than £10,000. Both Lancashire County Council and Thameside County Council in Greater Manchester had 28 over the same time period. The councils which have paid the equivalent of £1 million a year (£19,600 plus a week) to look after a child are: Devon, Knowsley, North Yorkshire, Nottingham, Blackpool, Coventry, Hampshire, Suffolk, Barnsley, Norfolk, Thurrock, Blackburn with Darwen, Wokingham, Nottinghamshire, East Sussex, Warrington; the London Boroughs of Brent, Hackney, Hammersmith & Fulham, Hillingdon, Lewisham and Sutton; and Monmouthshire and Powys in Wales. Graphic Five local authorities – Sefton in Merseyside, Swansea and Wrexham in Wales and Wolverhampton and Walsall in the Midlands – refused to reveal the cost of more expensive home-based accommodation, saying it could reveal the identity of of a child. The Guardian has complained to the Information Commissioner, but the process tends to take at least nine months. A Department for Education spokesman said: “All children and young people deserve to grow up in a stable, loving home and no private company should take advantage of those who need placement. “Children’s homes care for young people who often have very complex needs, requiring dedicated – and sometimes round-the-clock – support. That’s why we’re making unprecedented investment in expanding provision and improving standards for looked-after children ahead of wide-ranging reform of the care system.”
