Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of multiple placement moves on the well-being and mental health of children in the care system in England.

All placement decisions are subject to the duty set out in Section 22(3) of the Children’s Act 1989, which requires the placement decision to be the most appropriate way to safeguard and promote the child’s welfare. The welfare of children must always be paramount and local authorities have a duty to safeguard all children in their care. When the difficult decision is made to change a child’s placement, it must be in the best interest of the child. The department believes that social workers and the courts are best placed to make decisions for vulnerable children, in consideration of all the factors involved in often complex cases. Every child should experience a stable and loving home during their time in care.

Recognising the urgency of action in placement sufficiency, the department is prioritising working with local authorities to recruit more foster carers. This will include pathfinder local recruitment campaigns that build towards a national programme to help ensure those carers approved are the right match for children coming into care, and children have access to the right placements at the right time, including supporting those children who have suffered complex trauma.

Figures on the number of looked after children who moved more than once (three or more placements during the year) were published for the year ending 31 March 2018 to the year ending 31 March 2022 in the table ‘CLA on 31 March with three or more placements during the year – LA’ in the annual statistical release ‘Children looked after in England, including adoptions, 2022’. The table can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/fast-track/53b32118-528e-4015-777b-08dab100bfc2.