Children’s Looked After Statistics 2022 ECSPB
Renfrewshire Council · 22 August 2024
Back to Education and Children's Services Policy Board — 22 August 2024 and its agenda
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To: Education and Children Policy Board On: 22 August 2024 ___________________________________________________________________ Report by: Director of Children’s Services ___________________________________________________________________ Heading: Children’s Looked After Statistics - 2023 ___________________________________________________________________ 1. Summary 1.1. The Scottish Government requires local authorities to report the number of children who are looked after on an annual basis. The information is gathered during a census conducted on 31 July each year, passed to the Scottish Government who analyse the information and produce an annual report on the national data. The annual report is generally published in March of April of the following year. The Scottish Government report on the annual census for 2023 was published on 30 April 2024. 1.2. The 2023 annual report and data tables can be accessed via this link https://www.gov.scot/publications/childrens-social-work-statistics-2022-23- looked-after-children/documents/ 1.3. This report contains information on the number of looked after children on 31 July 2023 at a national and Renfrewshire level. Whilst there was a census on 31 July 2024 the results from that will not be available until March or April 2025. This report does contain the provisional figures for the number of looked after children in Renfrewshire on 31 July 2024 to show the most recent figures available locally. 1.4. On 31 July 2023 there were 12,206 looked after children in Scotland, a 2% reduction from the previous year. The number of looked after children in Renfrewshire on 31 July 2023 was 640 compared to 592 on 31 July 2022. This represented an increase of 8%. 1.5. The main increase in Renfrewshire is related to the addition of 35 children in historical kinship care arrangements which were previously classed as “non- looked after”, a classification we decided was not appropriate as all children in
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approved kinship placements should be considered as looked after. Removing these children from the count meant Renfrewshire still had an increase of 13 children a rise of 2%. 1.6. At the 2023 census, Renfrewshire had the 6th highest number of looked after children in Scotland. The Renfrewshire profile shows a higher percentage of our looked after children are in kinship care arrangements and at home with their parents compared to the national figure. Consequently, the percentage of looked after children in foster care and residential provision in Renfrewshire is lower than the Scottish average. 1.7. As elected members are designated as corporate parents it is proposed that every second meeting of the board should receive a report detailing the most up to date position in relation to the number of children who are looked after and the number of children on the child protection register in Renfrewshire. This will allow elected members to consider trends in the numbers on a regular basis. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. Recommendations 2.1. Members are asked to: [a] note the information in this report on the number of looked after children in Scotland and Renfrewshire on 31 July 2023; [b] note the preliminary information in relation to the number of looked after children in Renfrewshire on 31 July 2024; and [c] agree that a report on the latest available data on looked after children in Renfrewshire be presented to every second meeting of the board. 3. Background 3.1. On 31 July each year, local authorities complete a census for the Scottish Government in relation to the number of children who are looked after. Whilst the census is conducted in July the report on the data is generally not available until the following March or April. The 2023 data report from the Scottish Government was published on 30 April 2024. 3.2. It should be noted that social work in Renfrewshire operates under the principles of minimum necessary intervention and “no-order”. This means that a significant number of children and families being supported by social work aren’t reported in national statistics. 3.3. The minimum necessary intervention principle requires social work to provide support and intervention at the right level at the right time to allow children and families to move out of the system quickly when challenges are addressed and resolved. The “no-order” principle means that a children’s hearing or court
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should only impose a compulsory order on a child where it is better for the child to do so than not have the order in place. Looked after children - Scotland 3.4. On 31 July 2023 there were 12,206 looked after children in Scotland, a reduction of 2% from the 2022 census. The trend over the past 10 years has been a reducing number of looked children after children across Scotland. At the census in 2013 the number of looked after children in Scotland was 16,032. The 2023 figure shows a reduction of 24% in the number of looked after children in Scotland over the 10-year period. 3.5. The 2023 census found that 54% of Scotland’s looked after children were in the care of their own parents or birth family through a kinship care arrangement. The breakdown of that figure is those cared for at home 20% and 34% cared for by kinship carers. Nationally the percentage of children in foster care is 32%. The breakdown for foster care is 22% of looked after children in foster care provided by the local authority and 10% in foster care in the independent sector. 11% of Scotland’s looked after children are in residential care. 3.6. The number of looked after at home with their own parents has reduced by 48% compared to the 2013 position. The number of children looked after in kinship care arrangements has decreased by approximately 0.5% in the same period. The reduction in children placed with foster carers from the 2013 position to 2023 is just over 26%. The reduction in foster care provided directly by local authorities was greater than the reduction in that provided by the independent sector. The number of children in residential care fell by almost 10% from 2013 to 2023. 3.7. Appendix 1 shows where Scotland’s looked after children live by care placement type at the census point in 2023, 2022, 2021 and 2013. Looked after children - Renfrewshire 3.8. On 31 July 2023 there were 640 looked after children in Renfrewshire. This was an increase of 48 children from the previous year (an increase of 8%). The increase in Renfrewshire consisted of 35 children in long term kinship care arrangements who were previously classed as “non-looked after”. The service no longer uses this classification and therefore reported these children as looked after. Removing these children from the numbers results in Renfrewshire having an increase of 13 (+2%) which was out of line with the national trend where overall numbers of looked after children reduced. 3.9. Whilst Renfrewshire had an increase in the number of looked after children in 2023, the overall trend over the past 10 years is a reducing number of looked children after children. At the census in 2013 Renfrewshire had 779 looked after children. Over the past 10 years the number of looked after children in Renfrewshire has reduced by just under 18%. Again, if the previous non- looked after kinship children were removed the actual reduction in Renfrewshire was 22%.
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3.10. At the 2023 census Renfrewshire had the 6th highest number of looked after children in Scotland. In 2013, Renfrewshire had the 4th highest number of looked after children in Scotland. As the 9th largest local authority in Scotland, we should aim to reduce the number of looked after children when it is safe and appropriate to do so to bring us into that overall national position. 3.11. In the 2023 census 67.9% of Renfrewshire’s looked after children were in the care of their own parents or birth family through a kinship care arrangement, significantly higher than the Scottish national figure. 26% of Renfrewshire looked after children are cared for at home with their parent(s). This is a higher proportion than the Scottish position. 41% of Renfrewshire’s looked after children are cared for in a kinship arrangement. This is the highest looked after group in Renfrewshire and again a significantly higher percentage than the national figure. 3.12. Looked after children placed with internal foster carers account for 18% of the looked after population. Just over 4% of Renfrewshire’s looked after children are placed in external foster care. This means that 22% of Renfrewshire’s looked after children are in foster care compared to 32% of the looked after population at a national level. Renfrewshire has a lower use of external foster care than the Scottish percentage (4% compared to 10%). Our low use of foster care is balanced by a higher use of kinship care. This is seen as good practice in ensuring children remain with a member of their birth family if they can’t be cared for by their own parents. 3.13. Just over 5% of Renfrewshire’s looked after children are in external residential provision with 3% in our internal houses. This give a total of 8% of Renfrewshire’s looked after children being in residential care compared to 11% at a national level. 3.14. The number of looked after children in Renfrewshire cared for at home by their parents on 31 July 2023 has reduced by just over 46% compared to the 2013 census. Over the same period the number of children looked after in kinship care has increased by 35%. When the figure is adjusted to remove the 35 children who were in kinship but recorded as non-looked after the increase over the 10-year period is 18%. 3.15. The 2023 census shows there were16% fewer children looked after in internal foster care compared to the 2013 census. There were 73% fewer looked after children in external foster care at the 2023 census compared with the 2013 census. This is a positive impact of Renfrewshire’s strategy to support children in their own birth family but also the support we offer to our internal foster carers. 3.16. Renfrewshire made changes to our internal residential provision in 2020 with the closure of two of the children’s houses. The closure of one children’s house had been planned and the other was in relation to the initial response to the COVID-19 pandemic and addressed significant excess capacity in our provision at that time. In 2020 Renfrewshire had 6 children’s houses which provided accommodation for 48 children. We presently operate 4 children’s houses which provide accommodation for 22 children or young people.
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3.17. The total number of looked after children in residential provision has reduced by 30% from the census in 2013 to the census in 2023. The balance of provision has changed from most placements in 2013 being internal residential provision to most placements in 2023 being in external residential provision. 3.18. Appendix 2 shows the breakdown of where Renfrewshire’s looked after children live by care placement type in 2023, 2022, 2021 and 2013. Looked after children Renfrewshire – 31 July 2024 3.19. The children’s services directorate monitors the number of looked after children on a regular basis. Each month reports on all children who were looked after at any point in the month are generated and a report on the number of children at the month end are prepared. The Head of Children and Justice Social Work and other children’s social work managers have access to weekly reports on the number of looked after children. 3.20. The most recent month end information available for this board is the data from 31 July 2024. This information is currently being verified and will be the data submitted to the Scottish Government as the 2024 annual census figure. As a result, there could be minor differences between the figures reported in this board report and the actual numbers published from the census. 3.21. On 31 July 2024 there were 604 looked after children in Renfrewshire, a reduction of 36 from the previous year. The majority of Renfrewshire’s looked after children are cared from in kinship care arrangements (42%), followed by children cared for at home by their parents (26%). Just over 32% of Renfrewshire’s looked after children are cared for in foster care arrangements and 4% are cared for in residential provision. 3.22. A total of 137 of Renfrewshire’s looked after children are in foster care arrangements. 115 (84%) are cared for by Renfrewshire foster carers. 22 (16%) of Renfrewshire’s looked after children in foster care are placed with independent fostering services. 3.23. 44 children from Renfrewshire were looked after in a residential setting on 31 July 2024. 19 (43%) were placed in one of Renfrewshire’s four children’s houses with the remaining 25 placed in the independent sector. 3.24. Appendix 3 provides information on the census data for Renfrewshire for each year from 2014 to 2024. Implications of this report 1. Financial Implications The current number of children looked after in external residential provision is at a higher level than for a number of years. The service is working to ensure that children’s needs are met by placements and where possible they can return to Renfrewshire to mitigate demand on budgets.
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2. HR and Organisational Development Implications None 3. Community Plan/Council Plan Implications Community Care, Health and Well-being - Children and families are supported to address the challenges they face. Safer and Stronger - Children and families receive the right support to ensure they are safe at home and in the community. 4. Legal Implications The authority works within the legal framework to discharge its duties to looked after children and those involved in the child protection system. 5. Property/Assets Implications None. 6. Information Technology Implications None. 7. Equality and Human Rights Implications The Recommendations contained within this report have been assessed in relation to their impact on equalities and human rights. No negative impacts on equality groups or potential for infringement of individuals’ human rights have been identified arising from the recommendations contained in the report because it is for noting only. 8. Health and Safety Implications None. 9. Procurement Implications None. 10. Risk Implications None. 11. Privacy Impact None. 12. COSLA Policy Position None. 13. Climate Risk None.
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14. Children’s Rights This report demonstrates compliance with Article 3 (best interest of child), Article 9 (keeping families together), Article 12 (respect for children’s views) and 25 (review of a child’s placement) of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. List of Background Papers None ___________________________________________________________________ Children’s Services JCTLG 12 August 2024 Author: John Trainer, Head of Children and Justice/Chief Social Work Officer 0300 300 0277 john.trainer@renfrewshire.gov.uk
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Appendix 1 The foster care figures in 2013 are the total combined local authority and independent sector as the breakdown between sectors is not available.
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Appendix 2
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Appendix 3 31/07/2014 31/07/2015 31/07/2016 31/07/2017 31/07/2018 31/07/2019 31/07/2020 31/07/2021 31/07/2022 31/07/2023 31/07/2024 Looked after at home 231 220 221 221 221 190 197 160 146 169 155 Local authority foster care 130 125 130 132 119 127 125 110 111 115 115 Independent foster care 104 92 84 78 65 61 60 48 45 28 22 Kinship care* 175 176 183 178 190 190 212 218 230 266 252 Pre-adoption/other 13 18 21 9 12 13 12 7 9 9 16 Internal children's houses 44 35 29 28 31 30 17 17 17 20 19 Independent residential units 16 16 13 13 18 18 19 27 34 33 25 Total 713 682 681 659 656 629 642 587 592 640 604 Looked After Data - Renfrewshire 2014 - 2024