Agenda item

Local authorities had a statutory duty to provide sufficient high-quality placements for their looked after children. Towards the end of the Covid pandemic in Autumn 2021 the external (private) placements market collapsed. This had caused a national crisis in placement sufficiency, which had been deepened by a range of new challenges linked to the cost-of-living crisis and economic downturn.

The scale of these challenges had prompted local authorities to develop new and radical approaches to achieving placement sufficiency. Local authorities across the South East were exploring options for expanding in-house (Council-run) provision.

Cabinet received a report presenting a business case for Buckinghamshire to invest in up to 10 new in-house children’s homes (32 beds) taking a phased approach. These proposals would enable the Council to meet its statutory duties around placement quality and sufficiency for future years, deliver £4.998m savings (by 2027/28), while also reducing exposure to financial and legal risk. The potential to work in partnership to deliver this proposal was being explored.

Despite maintaining a stable proportion of children in care, the Council’s spend on placements has increased significantly over the last 3 years from £27.3m to a forecast £38.4m this year. This reflected growing demand for residential placements due to a loss of foster carers and unit cost increases of 25-30% across all external placement types during this period. This started to reveal the impact of the post-pandemic global economic crisis on the national placements market. It was a complex and dynamic picture, with various interconnected factors creating a ‘perfect storm’ – with all placement types becoming harder to find and costing significantly more. As a result, in November 2021 the Council placed their first child in ‘unregistered’ provision. This was where a local authority placed a child under the age of 18 in accommodation that was not registered with Ofsted. Wider engagement across the South East (via the South East Sector-Led Improvement Partnership) had shown that all Authorities in the region were facing similar pressures and challenges to Buckinghamshire in terms of demand far outstripping supply and significant increases in average placement costs.

RESOLVED –

(1)               That a phased approach to invest in up to 10 new in-house children’s homes (including 32 additional beds), to be delivered in stages over the next 3 years be AGREED and ADOPTED, to include:

(i)            The addition to the capital programme of £11.184m of capital expenditure, of which £984k to be added to the 2023-24 Capital Programme and £10.2m to the Capital MTFP, phased over 4 years, funded from borrowing.

(ii)          The inclusion of a net -£0.662m saving in 2025-26 rising to -£2.981m saving in 2026-27 and -£4.998m in 2027-28 to the Revenue MTFP resulting from moving children currently in high-cost unregistered and external residential provision into in-house children’s homes.

(iii)        Delivery of the programme in clear phases including a further review of the business case by Cabinet within 12 months.

(2)               That authority be delegated to the Service Director of Property and Assets, in conjunction with the Service Director Major Projects, the Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration and the Cabinet Member for Education and Children’s Services, to use the Council’s existing property portfolio for this programme (where the costs are in line with the agreed Capital and Revenue budgets).

(3)               That, if it is not possible to identify suitable properties within the Council’s existing portfolio, authority be delegated to the Service Director of Property and Assets, in conjunction with the Service Director Major Projects, the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources and the Cabinet Member for Education and Children’s Services, to undertake property searches, exchange and complete on the initial four homes referenced in this report (homes 5-10 will be subject to Cabinet decisions before phases 2 and 3 commence).

Local authorities had a statutory duty to provide sufficient high-quality placements for their looked after children. Towards the end of the Covid pandemic in Autumn 2021 the external (private) placements market collapsed. This had caused a national crisis in placement sufficiency, which had been deepened by a range of new challenges linked to the cost-of-living crisis and economic downturn.

The scale of these challenges had prompted local authorities to develop new and radical approaches to achieving placement sufficiency. Local authorities across the South East were exploring options for expanding in-house (Council-run) provision.

Cabinet received a report presenting a business case for Buckinghamshire to invest in up to 10 new in-house children’s homes (32 beds) taking a phased approach. These proposals would enable the Council to meet its statutory duties around placement quality and sufficiency for future years, deliver £4.998m savings (by 2027/28), while also reducing exposure to financial and legal risk. The potential to work in partnership to deliver this proposal was being explored.

Despite maintaining a stable proportion of children in care, the Council’s spend on placements had increased significantly over the last 3 years from £27.3m to a forecast £38.4m this year. This reflected growing demand for residential placements due to a loss of foster carers and unit cost increases of 25-30% across all external placement types during this period. This started to reveal the impact of the post-pandemic global economic crisis on the national placements market. It was a complex and dynamic picture, with various interconnected factors creating a ‘perfect storm’ – with all placement types becoming harder to find and costing significantly more. As a result, in November 2021 the Council placed their first child in ‘unregistered’ provision. Unregistered placements were also very expensive. This was where a local authority placed a child under the age of 18 in accommodation that was not registered with Ofsted. Wider engagement across the South East (via the South East Sector-Led Improvement Partnership) had shown that all Authorities in the region were facing similar pressures and challenges to Buckinghamshire in terms of demand far outstripping supply and significant increases in average placement costs.

RESOLVED –

(1)               That a phased approach to invest in up to 10 new in-house children’s homes (including 32 additional beds), to be delivered in stages over the next 3 years be AGREED and ADOPTED, to include:

(i)            The addition to the capital programme of £11.184m of capital expenditure, of which £984k to be added to the 2023-24 Capital Programme and £10.2m to the Capital MTFP, phased over 4 years, funded from borrowing.

(ii)          The inclusion of a net -£0.662m saving in 2025-26 rising to -£2.981m saving in 2026-27 and -£4.998m in 2027-28 to the Revenue MTFP resulting from moving children currently in high-cost unregistered and external residential provision into in-house children’s homes.

(iii)        Delivery of the programme in clear phases including a further review of the business case by Cabinet within 12 months.

(2)               That authority be delegated to the Service Director of Property and Assets, in conjunction with the Service Director Major Projects, the Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration and the Cabinet Member for Education and Children’s Services, to use the Council’s existing property portfolio for this programme (where the costs are in line with the agreed Capital and Revenue budgets).

(3)               That, if it is not possible to identify suitable properties within the Council’s existing portfolio, authority be delegated to the Service Director of Property and Assets, in conjunction with the Service Director Major Projects, the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources and the Cabinet Member for Education and Children’s Services, to undertake property searches, exchange and complete on the initial four homes referenced in this report (homes 5-10 will be subject to Cabinet decisions before phases 2 and 3 commence).