We’ve gathered up some interesting documents on child welfare, which have been published this week.

The House of Commons Library put out two briefings on February 18, which offer information on child protection laws and unregistered accommodation for looked after children, both current topics in the news.

An overview of child protection legislation in England

The briefing summarises the key pieces of legislation in child protection, what each one does and also includes statutory guidance for the sector.

A full review, which is 13 pages long, is also added in downloadable PDF format at the bottom of the page.

 

 

Looked after children: out of area, unregulated and unregistered accommodation (England)

This briefing paper explains out of area placements for looked after children in England, and the developments around placements for looked after children in unregulated and unregistered accommodation.

The paper sets out the current position in relation to what local authorities can and can’t do when it comes to organising accommodation for children in care, and highlights the recent concerns over children being placed outside of their local area.

The document also offers information on a review of children’s residential care which took place in 2016. The two paragraphs in this section are an important read for anyone concerned about the government’s focus on profits rather than people inside the sector.

The paper also outlines the ongoing government consultation into unregulated care homes for children, which sets out proposals for change. This review is open until April 8, and wants to hear from children, young people and families with experience of care.

The proposals as set out, are:

• Banning the use of independent and semi-independent placements for children under the age of 16.
• Introducing a new requirement on local authorities to consult with local police forces when they place a child out of area in unregulated provision.
• Amending legislation to define ‘care’ in order to provide clarity on the distinction between unregulated and unregistered provision.
• Introducing new national standards for providers of unregulated provision. The consultation seeks views on how the standards should be introduced and enforced.
• Legislate to increase Ofsted’s enforcement powers “so that robust action can be taken quickly where providers are found to be acting illegally.”