Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of Ofsted inspection Regulation 44; and what assessment they have made of how to remove incentives which discourage registered children’s homes from accepting high-needs children.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is clear that inspection and regulation should not discourage providers from caring for children with high levels of need where this can be done safely.
Regulation 44 provides independent scrutiny of children’s homes to help ensure children are effectively safeguarded and their wellbeing is promoted. Reports are shared with Ofsted, who use them to develop lines of enquiry for inspection and regulatory activity and take urgent action if children are at risk.
In 2025, Ofsted amended its inspection framework to support placement stability for vulnerable children and is now consulting on how inspection can better support providers to care for the children who have the most complex lives.
The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 establishes a new statutory framework to authorise the deprivation of liberty of children in provision other than a secure children’s home. This will facilitate different types of community-based placements to achieve better stability and improve long term outcomes for children requiring a higher level of support.
The department has recently announced £18.5 million for our Home Again programme which will improve the lives of children with complex needs by helping services work together more effectively, providing earlier intervention, reducing crisis situations and supporting children in the most appropriate settings.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether evidence from the operation of the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund during 2025–26, including effects of the introduction in April 2025 of the £3,000 Fair Access Limit and the timing of the fund's launch, will inform the Adoption Support: A System That Works for All consultation, published in February.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department routinely reviews data relating to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF). The average amount of funding per recipient increased from £2,336 in 2017/18 to £3,090 in 2024/25, reflecting changes in demand and the cost of therapeutic support over time. In 2025/26, the average amount approved per recipient was £2,537.
The decision to set the Fair Access Limit at £3,000 from April 2025 was taken to ensure that the available budget could support the maximum number of eligible children whilst remaining within the budget. The department has previously assessed that £3,000 could fund an average of approximately 19 to 20 hours of therapy, based on median therapeutic costs and associated expenses. During 2025/26, the average approved therapy cost was £2,537, below the Fair Access Limit.
The department is currently considering responses to its consultation on the future of Adoption Support. Evidence from the operation of the fund during 2025/26 will contribute to the department’s consideration of future adoption support arrangements.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what analysis they have undertaken of the average amount awarded per recipient through the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund in each financial year since 2015–16; and what assessment they have made of trends in the average level of support required by recipients.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department routinely reviews data relating to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF). The average amount of funding per recipient increased from £2,336 in 2017/18 to £3,090 in 2024/25, reflecting changes in demand and the cost of therapeutic support over time. In 2025/26, the average amount approved per recipient was £2,537.
The decision to set the Fair Access Limit at £3,000 from April 2025 was taken to ensure that the available budget could support the maximum number of eligible children whilst remaining within the budget. The department has previously assessed that £3,000 could fund an average of approximately 19 to 20 hours of therapy, based on median therapeutic costs and associated expenses. During 2025/26, the average approved therapy cost was £2,537, below the Fair Access Limit.
The department is currently considering responses to its consultation on the future of Adoption Support. Evidence from the operation of the fund during 2025/26 will contribute to the department’s consideration of future adoption support arrangements.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what analysis underpinned their decision to reduce the Fair Access Limit under the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund from £5,000 to £3,000; and whether that analysis considered the potential impact of the delayed commencement of the 2025–26 scheme on average spend per recipient.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department routinely reviews data relating to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF). The average amount of funding per recipient increased from £2,336 in 2017/18 to £3,090 in 2024/25, reflecting changes in demand and the cost of therapeutic support over time. In 2025/26, the average amount approved per recipient was £2,537.
The decision to set the Fair Access Limit at £3,000 from April 2025 was taken to ensure that the available budget could support the maximum number of eligible children whilst remaining within the budget. The department has previously assessed that £3,000 could fund an average of approximately 19 to 20 hours of therapy, based on median therapeutic costs and associated expenses. During 2025/26, the average approved therapy cost was £2,537, below the Fair Access Limit.
The department is currently considering responses to its consultation on the future of Adoption Support. Evidence from the operation of the fund during 2025/26 will contribute to the department’s consideration of future adoption support arrangements.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the impact of the delayed announcement of the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund for 2025-26 resulted in (1) fewer applications being received, (2) lower-quality applications being received, (3) lower value of awards made, (4) lower average spend per recipient, and (5) unmet demand for therapeutic support.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Applications approved in 2025/26 remained broadly consistent with the previous year, with 20,000 approvals compared to 20,085 in 2024/25. No applications were refused because the overall fund budget had been exhausted. It continues to monitor application levels, spending trends and outcomes for children and families as part of the routine management of the fund.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much they have paid for private companies to look after children in unregistered care homes in each of the last three years for which such information is available.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
All homes which wholly or mainly look after children must be registered with Ofsted, to ensure effective oversight and inspection of homes where children in care live. Those which provide healthcare may also need to be registered with CQC.
The use of unregistered provision reflects shortages of suitable registered provision in some areas, particularly for children with complex needs. The government has made available £53 million in match-grant funding for local authorities to create up to 200 new placements for children with complex needs by 2029, helping to address sufficiency gaps.
Ofsted have published criteria to prioritise applications to register homes that: address local need; receive departmental capital funding; or provide highly specialist care for children with complex needs and disabilities.
To improve transparency, the 2026 annual data return submitted by local authorities (SSDA903) will include a category for unregistered placements to help build a national dataset of this provision.
Regional Care Cooperatives will help reduce reliance on unregistered provision by improving regional sufficiency planning, commissioning and market oversight, enabling more children to access the right registered homes in the right place.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to allowing Ofsted to recognise Care Quality Commission-registered children’s care placements.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
All homes which wholly or mainly look after children must be registered with Ofsted, to ensure effective oversight and inspection of homes where children in care live. Those which provide healthcare may also need to be registered with CQC.
The use of unregistered provision reflects shortages of suitable registered provision in some areas, particularly for children with complex needs. The government has made available £53 million in match-grant funding for local authorities to create up to 200 new placements for children with complex needs by 2029, helping to address sufficiency gaps.
Ofsted have published criteria to prioritise applications to register homes that: address local need; receive departmental capital funding; or provide highly specialist care for children with complex needs and disabilities.
To improve transparency, the 2026 annual data return submitted by local authorities (SSDA903) will include a category for unregistered placements to help build a national dataset of this provision.
Regional Care Cooperatives will help reduce reliance on unregistered provision by improving regional sufficiency planning, commissioning and market oversight, enabling more children to access the right registered homes in the right place.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what role they envisage for regional care co-operatives in reducing the use of unregistered homes in children’s care provision.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
All homes which wholly or mainly look after children must be registered with Ofsted, to ensure effective oversight and inspection of homes where children in care live. Those which provide healthcare may also need to be registered with CQC.
The use of unregistered provision reflects shortages of suitable registered provision in some areas, particularly for children with complex needs. The government has made available £53 million in match-grant funding for local authorities to create up to 200 new placements for children with complex needs by 2029, helping to address sufficiency gaps.
Ofsted have published criteria to prioritise applications to register homes that: address local need; receive departmental capital funding; or provide highly specialist care for children with complex needs and disabilities.
To improve transparency, the 2026 annual data return submitted by local authorities (SSDA903) will include a category for unregistered placements to help build a national dataset of this provision.
Regional Care Cooperatives will help reduce reliance on unregistered provision by improving regional sufficiency planning, commissioning and market oversight, enabling more children to access the right registered homes in the right place.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they plan to provide to local authorities to increase the number of specialist placements in children's care homes which they operate.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
All homes which wholly or mainly look after children must be registered with Ofsted, to ensure effective oversight and inspection of homes where children in care live. Those which provide healthcare may also need to be registered with CQC.
The use of unregistered provision reflects shortages of suitable registered provision in some areas, particularly for children with complex needs. The government has made available £53 million in match-grant funding for local authorities to create up to 200 new placements for children with complex needs by 2029, helping to address sufficiency gaps.
Ofsted have published criteria to prioritise applications to register homes that: address local need; receive departmental capital funding; or provide highly specialist care for children with complex needs and disabilities.
To improve transparency, the 2026 annual data return submitted by local authorities (SSDA903) will include a category for unregistered placements to help build a national dataset of this provision.
Regional Care Cooperatives will help reduce reliance on unregistered provision by improving regional sufficiency planning, commissioning and market oversight, enabling more children to access the right registered homes in the right place.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase (1) transparency, and (2) knowledge of the use of, unregistered children’s homes in England.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
All homes which wholly or mainly look after children must be registered with Ofsted, to ensure effective oversight and inspection of homes where children in care live. Those which provide healthcare may also need to be registered with CQC.
The use of unregistered provision reflects shortages of suitable registered provision in some areas, particularly for children with complex needs. The government has made available £53 million in match-grant funding for local authorities to create up to 200 new placements for children with complex needs by 2029, helping to address sufficiency gaps.
Ofsted have published criteria to prioritise applications to register homes that: address local need; receive departmental capital funding; or provide highly specialist care for children with complex needs and disabilities.
To improve transparency, the 2026 annual data return submitted by local authorities (SSDA903) will include a category for unregistered placements to help build a national dataset of this provision.
Regional Care Cooperatives will help reduce reliance on unregistered provision by improving regional sufficiency planning, commissioning and market oversight, enabling more children to access the right registered homes in the right place.