CHILDREN IN CHILDREN’S HOMES IN
ENGLAND
DATA PACK
July 2011
2
Purpose of this Data Pack
Children’s homes are an important placement option for looked after children.
Stable effective care requires strong partnerships between local authorities and
children’s homes providers, so that children can benefit from planned admissions,
are placed in homes best able to meet their needs where their progress is
continually reviewed, and are supported to move when they have been properly
prepared and feel ready to take this step.
This pack:
 includes information about the children who depend on children’s homes for
their care;
 shows how different local authorities use children’s homes; and
 is intended to help local authorities understand how children’s homes contribute
to achieving good quality stable outcomes for the children they look after. For
example, why do some authorities place more children in residential care than
others?
This information helps build a picture about how children’s homes are used as a
placement option but does not include information about the quality of individual
homes. This information is available from Ofsted at
http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Inspection-reports
3
About this pack
 Unless otherwise stated, the information in this pack is drawn from
the DfE statistical collection about looked after children (SSDA903)
[See: http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000960/index.shtml for further
information]
 The data relates only to looked after children who are placed in
children’s homes and hostels and so excludes information about
children placed in residential care as part of short break (respite) care
arrangements
 The placement of individual looked after children will be determined
by local authority policies and their arrangements for commissioning
placements. But children should be matched to the placement
assessed as most likely to meet their needs and should be consulted
about placement moves.
Around 10% of looked after children are in children’s homes and hostels or
secure units. 6,200 children were placed in these settings at 31 March 2010, of
whom 5,000 were in regulated children’s homes.
In 2009-10 3,100 children started to be looked after in these settings.
Numbers of children looked after in children's homes and hostels and secure units
8000
7000
Number of children
6000
5000
Children's homes, hostels and secure units
Secure unit inside LA
Secure unit outside LA
Homes and hostels inside LA
Homes and hostels outside LA
Homes and hostels not subject to regs
4000
3000
See Annex for details of
placement type definitions
2000
1000
0
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
Year ending 31 March
38% of children in homes and hostels not subject to children’s homes regulations at 31
March 2010 were UASC (unaccompanied asylum seeking children) - 32% of 16 year olds
and 43% of 17 year olds. This compares with 2% of children in regulated homes and
hostels. (Numbers of UASC in secure units are negligible.)
4
Children’s homes, hostels and secure units cater for children of all ages.
In practice most children are aged over 12.
Stock of children at 31 March 2010
This is the sum
of the other
lines
1600
1400
Number of children
1200
1000
Children's homes, hostels and secure units
Secure unit inside LA
Secure unit outside LA
Homes and hostels inside LA
Homes and hostels outside LA
Homes and hostels not subject to regs
800
600
400
200
0
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Age at 31 March
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
This chart shows the stock
of children at a point in time
but the picture is similar for
the flow of children starting
to be looked after
5
Boys are more likely than girls to be placed in regulated children’s homes,
even after allowing for the fact that there are more boys than girls in the looked
after population.
Percentage of boys and girls in regulated children's homes by age
30%
27% of boys
starting to be
looked after aged
15 are placed in
regulated children’s
homes.
25%
20%
% boys looked after in regulated children's homes at
31 March 2010
% girls looked after in regulated children's homes at
31 March 2010
% boys starting to be looked after in regulated
children's homes in 2009-10
% girls starting to be looked after in regulated
children's homes in 2009-10
15%
10%
5%
0%
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
Age on starting to be looked after or at 31 March 2010
14
15
16
17
60% of children in
regulated children’s
homes are boys
6
Children placed in children’s homes are less likely to have abuse or neglect
identified as being the primary reason for being looked after than children in
other placements.
Stock of children aged 10+ (excluding UASC) at 31 March 2010 by placement and reason for being
looked after
Research indicates
that some of these
children may have
experienced neglect
or abuse that has
not been identified1
100%
90%
80%
70%
Absent parenting
Low income
Socially unacceptable behaviour
Family dysfunction
Family in acute stress
Parents illness or disability
Child's disability
Abuse or neglect
Percentage
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Children's
homes,
hostels and
secure units
Secure unit
inside LA
Secure unit
outside LA
Homes and
hostels inside
LA
Homes and
hostels
outside LA
Homes and
hostels not
subject to regs
All other
placements
All children
looked after
Reason looked after
About 95% of unaccompanied asylum seeking children
are looked after because of absent parenting. They
have been excluded from this chart.
1. https://www.education.gov.uk/publications/standard/publicationdetail/page1/DCSF-RBX-09-04
7
Research on Children’s Homes
8

Most young people were complimentary about the residential care they received,
generally felt safe where they were living and said that there was an adult who
would stand up for them.

But, a third of residents said they had considered killing themselves at some stage
during the previous month; nearly half of whom were confirmed by their social
workers as having self-harmed or attempted suicide.

Residents mostly showed improvement across general measures of behavioural,
emotional and social difficulties as well as education.

The benefits that accrued during residence did not necessarily persist on departure
and follow-up outcomes were not encouraging.
(Sinclair and Gibbs, 1998; Clough et al, , 2006; Berridge et al., 2008; Stein, 2009).
9
Most children in residential care leave care after they turn 18 but a significant
minority (46%) leave earlier – a higher proportion than for children in foster care.
But this varies a lot by type of home.
Children leaving care in 2009-10 aged 16 or over
100%
90%
80%
70%
Percentage
60%
% aged 18
% aged 17
% aged 16
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
All children
leaving care
Children's
homes, hostels
and secure units
Secure unit
inside LA
Secure unit
outside LA
Homes and
Homes and
hostels inside LA hostels outside
LA
Homes and
hostels not
subject to regs
All other
placements
Type of placement on leaving care
Children are unlikely to remain in secure units until 18, but are very likely
to stay on in homes and hostels not subject to regulations
10
The duration of placements in regulated children’s homes is quite similar to
foster placements though fewer last longer than a year – 20% compared with 25%.
Duration of placements of children aged 10 or over which ceased in 2009-10
Percentage
0%
All placements ceasing
Secure units, children's homes and hostels
Secure unit inside LA
Secure unit outside LA
Homes and hostels inside LA
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Placements in secure
units are far less likely to
last over a year (3%)
while placements in
unregulated homes are
less likely to last under 8
weeks (30%).
Placement
Homes and hostels outside LA
Homes and hostels not subject to regs
Foster placements
Placed for adoption
Under 2 weeks
From 2 weeks to under 8 weeks
From 8 weeks to under 6 months
From 6 months to under 1 year
From 1 year to under 2 years
2 years and over
Placement with parents
Other placement in the community
Other residential settings
Residential schools
Missing - Absent for more than 24 hours
Other placement
Placements in residential
schools are most likely to
be of long duration,
followed by placements
with parents.
UASC are more likely to have long placements,
although some do still have very short placements.
11
For some children being placed in a children’s home is their first placement.
But 30% of children in children’s homes have had at least 5 previous placements.
Number of placements in current period of care of children looked after aged 10+ at 31 March 2010
Percentage
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
All children
after
All looked
afterlooked
children
Children’s
hostels
Secure units,
children's homes,
homes and
hostels
and secure units
Secure unit inside LA
Secure unit outside LA
Homes and hostels inside LA
Placement
Homes and hostels outside LA
Homes and hostels not subject to regs
Foster placements
Placed for adoption
1 placement
2 placements
3 placements
4-5 placements
6 or more placements
Placement with parents
Other placement in the community
Other residential settings
Residential schools
Missing - Absent for more than 24 hours
Other placement
32% of children in foster placements are on their first placement, compared to 24% of
children in regulated children’s homes.
This chart doesn’t show when children were first placed in a children’s home.
15% of looked after children have lived in a children’s home, hostel or secure
unit at some point: 3,400 (5%) have since moved to another placement.
Number of looked after children who have previously lived in a children's home or hostel or secure
unit
2,000
1,800
The bars show the number of children in
each type of placement at 31 March 2010
who have previously been in a children’s
home or hostel or secure unit
1,600
Number of children
1,400
1,200
1,000
800
600
400
200
0
Foster placements Placed for adoption
Placement with
parents
Other placement in
the community
Other residential
settings
Residential schools
Missing - Absent
for more than 24
hours
Other placement
Placement type at 31 March 2010
On average a child’s first placement in a children’s home, hostel or secure unit is their third
placement although some are placed in homes when they first start to be looked after.
12
Children in all types of homes and hostels are more likely to be placed over 20 13
miles from their local communities than those in foster care (33% vs. 14%). They
are also more likely to be placed outside the local authority boundary (44% vs.
33%).
Distance between home and placement at 31 March 2010 by placement type
All Children
Secure Units, Children's homes and hostels
Placement type
Secure units
Regulated homes and hostels
Unregulated homes and hostels
20 miles or less & Inside boundary
20 miles or less & Outside boundary
Over 20 miles & Inside boundary
Over 20 miles & Outside boundary
Not Known
Not Recorded
Foster Placements
Placed for Adoption
Placed with Parents
Living independently
Other
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
45% of children in regulated homes and hostels live within the Local Authority and
fewer than 20 miles from home, but 30% live outside the LA and over 20 miles from
home.
This compares with 58% (in LA <20 miles) and 11% (outside LA >20 miles) for children
in foster care.
More than half of the children in children’s homes, hostels and secure units are 14
in private or voluntary provision, but this varies by type of home and whether the
child is placed inside or outside the LA area.
Placement providers for children in children's homes, hostels and secure units at 31 March 2010
100%
90%
80%
70%
Voluntary/third sector provision
Private provision
Other public provision (e.g. by a PCT etc)
Other Local Authority provision
Own provision (by the Local Authority)
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
Placements Inside council boundary
Placements Outside council boundary
All Placements
Unregulated
homes and hostels
Regulated homes
and hostels
Secure units
Children's homes,
hostels and secure
units
Unregulated
homes and hostels
Regulated homes
and hostels
Secure units
Children's homes,
hostels and secure
units
Unregulated
homes and hostels
Regulated homes
and hostels
Secure units
0%
Children's homes,
hostels and secure
units
85% of children in
unregulated homes
and hostels are in
private or voluntary
provision.
Number of children placed in regulated
children’s homes at 31 March 2010
Local authorities make very different use of regulated children’s homes – from 15
placing no children to one authority that places 225 children in children’s homes.
On average, at 31 March 2010, LAs had 33 children in children’s homes.
Three LAs had no
children placed in
children’s homes
(City of London,
Rutland, Isles of
Scilly)
There is also a lot of variation between LAs as to whether they place children
inside or outside the LA boundary.
16
Where are children placed?



2,300 (47%) of the children placed in regulated children’s homes were placed outside the LA
area
On average LAs placed 55% of their children in children’s homes outside the local authority
area
Twenty-two LAs placed all children outside the local authority area
Who is responsible for the children placed in children’s homes?



On average 49% of the children living in children’s homes in a LA area were the responsibility
of another LA
Nineteen LAs had no children placed in their area by other LAs
For eighteen LAs the only children living in children’s homes in their area were the
responsibility of other LAs
Do Local Authorities fully utilise the provision in their own areas?


Most LAs (130: 86%) simultaneously placed children in residential care outside their area and
had children placed within their area from other LAs
LAs may be looking for specific specialised support when they decide to place outside of their
area
17
Costs of Children’s Home care
See -
Unit Costs of Health and Social Care - PSSRU (2010)
http://www.pssru.ac.uk/pdf/uc/uc2010/uc2010.pdf
Cost implications
 The cost of care in a local authority children’s home is estimated at
£2,689 per resident week (£2,881 including external services).
 In comparison, the cost of care in the non-statutory sector is estimated at
£2,408 per resident week (£2,494 including external services).
 These costs include capital costs (buildings, land, equipment) and
revenue costs (salary and other revenue costs).
 The average cost of foster care is estimated at £676 per child per
week. This is much less than the cost of a children's home placement
but children's homes have a higher proportion of older children who are
likely to have more complex needs which increases costs.
Conclusions


18
For the first time - the Children’s Homes Data Pack brings together in one place
all the data that is held by DfE about children who rely on children’s homes. This
information is intended to help local authorities think about the use they make of
children’s homes so that residential care offers each child a good quality, stable,
experience.
The data suggests a range of questions for individual local authorities to consider
in reviewing their placement and commissioning strategies and in deciding on
placements for individual children. These include:
– Are there groups of children whose assessed needs are such that
placement in a children’s home is likely to be the best option; and how is this
understanding reflected in the range and numbers of children’s homes
placements commissioned by the authority?
– Does the authority have access to sufficient children’s homes placements,
so that a move to residential care enables young people to continue to be
supported by suitable local services?
– Where children are placed at a distance from their local community how will
the local authority support them, so that they can make a planned transition
when they are ready for the next move in their lives?
– How does the authority work with children’s homes to promote children’s
emotional health and well being, so that the child can access to additional
mental health support where necessary?
– Does the authority maximise sustained outcomes for individual children so
that the costs of placement represent real value for money?
19
Next steps and future publications






This data pack emphasises the continuing contribution children’s homes
make to supporting looked after children, who will often be older and have
many previous placements behind them.
Statistics on children looked after for 2010-11 will be published in
September 2011.
DfE and Ofsted officials will be co-operating on a revised data pack with
more comprehensive information both updating this data and incorporating
information on quality, supply and provision of children’s homes. This data
pack will be issued in late autumn 2011.
We very much welcome feedback and suggestions on how the pack might
be developed.
Please send any ideas for further analysis that we may be able to include in
future publications to [email protected]
For policy questions questions please contact
[email protected] or
[email protected]
Annex:
20
Placement type definitions (1)
The definitions used in this data pack are the same as those that given in the Guidance
Notes for local authorities for completion of the SSDA903 data return
Placed in secure accommodation
This definition is used for children's placements in secure accommodation, either where section 25 of the
Children Act applies (or would apply after 72 hours), or where the child is subject to a court ordered secure
remand.
Placed in homes and hostels
This definition is used for children's homes which fall within the meaning of the Children's Homes
Regulations (1991); this includes maintained, controlled and assisted community homes (except where the
child is placed in a secure unit) voluntary sector children's homes, and private children's homes; as well as
schools that are dual-registered as children's homes, as defined in section 1 (6) of the Care Standards Act
2000.
Hostels and other supportive residential settings not subject to the Children’s Homes
Regulations
This definition is used for placements in residential accommodation that are not subject to the Children’s
Homes Regulations, but where some supervisory or advice staff are employed (although they do not have to
live on the premises). This placement code includes hostels, foyers; lodgings, flats and bedsits where staff or
advice workers are specifically employed and available to provide support to the residents. These support
staff do not have to live on the premises, but must be an integral part of a formal support service provided by
the place of residence.
Annex:
21
Placement type definitions (2)
Residential care homes
Registered Homes Act 1984 Applies to residential care homes and nursing homes that fall within the scope of
the Registered Homes Act. The services they provide will normally include an element of personal care or
nursing care. ‘Personal care’ in this instance generally means help with personal activities such as feeding,
washing, etc. This category does not include hospitals, or facilities provided by NHS/health trusts.
NHS/health trust or other establishment providing medical/nursing care.
This definition refers to the placement of looked after children in hospitals of all kinds when the child is placed
there as part of the care plan. (Temporary spells in hospital receiving treatment for injuries or illness do not fall
in this category and are not normally recorded on the SSDA903); the definition would also be used for other
facilities provided by health services.
Residential family centre or mother and baby unit
This definition applies to looked after children placed in a residential family centre, as defined in section 4 (2)
of the Care Standards Act 2000, or a placement in a residential facility for mothers and babies (except
hospitals and other NHS facilities).
Young Offender Institute or Prison
This definition applies to looked after young people who are accommodated in one of these settings. These will
generally be boys (either on remand or serving a sentence) who are the subjects of a care order.
School
This definition applies to children placed in a residential school, except schools that are dual-registered as
children's homes, as defined in section 1(6) of the Care Standards Act 2000.