Up to £6.3 million could be spent in Herefordshire to provide two two-bedroom homes for children in care over the next five years.
A proposal expected to be backed at Herefordshire Council’s cabinet meeting this Friday says this should save the council money over the period.
“The potential to match children and meet their complex needs is best undertaken within a smaller home”, which “would mirror as closely as is possible a family-based experience”, according to a report for the meeting by corporate director for children and young people Darryl Freeman.
RELATED NEWS:
- Herefordshire children’s services showing little improvement - Ofsted
- Herefordshire Council's costliest looked-after children
- Herefordshire to buy up 'at least 10' properties for young homeless
Current children’s accommodation is often outside the county and is becoming more expensive, while placements can be “fragile” and only partly match children’s needs, he said, adding: “The risk of not doing anything, and being dependent on a chaotic market that benefits suppliers and is volatile, is understood.”
As of last month there were nine young people in care aged 11-17 in the county for whom such accommodation would have been suitable. The council currently spends an average of £7,500 a week housing them with external suppliers.
For the proposed move to break even, the council would need to ensure its two contracted properties were at least 80 per cent occupied.
OTHER NEWS:
- Winter help for Herefordshire's Ukrainian hosts
- Jump in Herefordshire homeless housed in Travelodge and Premier Inns
- Freedom Church in Hereford to get an eye-catching new look
But “some individuals have some level of sexually harmful behaviour” requiring “robust risk assessment and support”, the cabinet report warns.
The contracted supplier “must have experience and confidence in meeting the needs of young people who challenge through behaviours deemed risky”, it adds.
Alternative proposals for the council to buy and run its own children’s home, or to partner with a neighbouring council, were rejected.
The council expects to choose a supplier by next March, with actual placements following within a year.
It now plans to engage with young people themselves to guide how the residential arrangement should be set up and then monitored. They will also be asked to help set rules for the homes, and decide how they are furnished.
An Ofsted monitoring report into the children's services department last month found “a very small number” of looked-after children in the county had been placed in unregistered children’s homes over the previous year.
The report found the pace of improvement was still “too slow” over a year after the department was rated Inadequate on all counts.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel