Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what risk assessments regarding the safety of looked-after children are carried out by the Education and Skills Funding Agency prior to such children being sent to distant local authority areas; and whether such assessments are available for public scrutiny.
The Education and Skills Funding Agency does not have a role in care planning for looked-after children. Care planning, including any decision to place a child in a distant placement, is the responsibility of the local authority, who have a statutory duty to ensure that the placement is the most appropriate way to safeguard and promote the child’s welfare. We have made it a requirement for Directors of Children’s Services to approve all placements outside of the local authority boundary.
Guidance on the use of direction in relation to looked-after children is set out in paragraphs 3.19 and 3.20 of the School Admissions Code, attached. When placing looked-after children, we would expect, in most cases, for local authorities and academies to reach an agreement between themselves. A request for my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State, to direct an academy to admit a child should be a last resort.
As the corporate parent, the local authority remains responsible for ensuring that the child’s safety and welfare are safeguarded. Children should never be placed in a situation that compromises their safety. Schools have a responsibility to promote and safeguard the welfare of all children in their care, regardless of whether or not they are looked-after.