Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the report by The Children's Society <i>Getting the house in order</i>, which found that few 16 and 17 year-olds are being properly assessed and supported when they present as homeless.

The Department for Education is clear about how local authorities should support 16 and 17 year-olds presenting as homeless. The report from the Children’s Society, ‘Getting the house in order’ reminds local authorities to ensure that under-18s who are homeless receive the help they need. The government has no current plans to legislate on this issue, but we are taking action to ensure that all homeless people have access to the help that they need: we have invested £500 million in homelessness services, including funding for the development of the ‘Youth accommodation pathway’ service model. This is designed to support all young people remain in the family home where it is safe to do so, and offer tailored support options for those that cannot remain in the family home, including supported accommodation as a starting point for 16- to 17-year-olds.

With regard to 16- to 17-year-old care leavers, revised statutory guidance was issued to local authorities in 2010, setting out how they can better meet the needs of this group. It makes clear that local authorities should work pro-actively with young people and their families to identify and resolve issues which have led them to become homeless. The guidance also underlines the importance of effective agency collaboration between Children’s Services and Housing Services.

The guidance reminds Housing Services that applicants cannot be considered to have become homeless intentionally if they fail to take up an offer of accommodation; the guidance says that homelessness can only be deemed to be ‘intentional’ where the applicant has ceased to occupy accommodation that it would have been reasonable for him or her to continue to occupy. Local authorities that do not follow these procedures are open to legal challenge. The full statutory guidance on the provision of accommodation for 16- to 17-year-olds who may be homeless or require accommodation can be accessed on GOV.UK.

Since 2013, Ofsted inspections of local authorities’ children’s social care services have included a separate sub-judgement on care leavers, which includes an assessment of whether the local authority is ensuring that care leavers have access to suitable accommodation. Where Ofsted judges that a local authority’s social care services are inadequate, the department may intervene to secure necessary improvements in the quality of care that is provided.