1.How many care leavers in Devon and North Devon have died aged 18-25 years old in the last five years?
10 care leavers have died in the last 5 years that were open to DCC as a Care Leaver. Of those, 6 were living in the DCC area (1 of which was in North Devon).
2. What are the most common reasons behind the causes of these deaths, i.e drugs, suicide?
Devon County Council do not hold this information.
3. How many care leavers aged 18-25 currently exist in Devon and North Devon?
We have 303 care leavers living in Devon DCC area, of which 48 are located in North Devon. These are only Care Leavers where we have a known address and they are receiving a service from DCC. This does not include Care Leavers living in Plymouth or Torbay and does not included Care Leavers from other authorities.
4.What is the system in place to support care leavers once they leave care and reach the age of 16 and 18 years old?
See attached our Practice Standards which can be seen via the link below:
5. What responsibility does Devon County Council owe to its young people who were in care of the local authority on or after their 18th birthday?
This can be seen online in the available information to young people which includes the NICE standards at: https://www.standupspeakup.org.uk/localoffer/
6. Does the council have any central policy relating to the treatment or statutory obligation of the authority towards care leavers and if so please can you supply a copy if this?
This is set out in our response to questions 4 and 5 above.
7. How would a young person who is deemed a care leaver approach Devon County Council for help and support should they somehow become ‘lost’ in the system?
Devon County Council contact every care leaver at least once every six months.
8. How do the placements/social housing team and the leaving care team work together? What is the structure and who is involved in placing a care leaver?
Social housing is not the responsibility of Devon County Council; this is the responsibility of district, city and unitary councils. The “structure” therefore in fact requires co-operation between different authorities and please see attached the protocol which governs how the district council and Devon County Council work together on this issue via the link below:
9. Are most care leavers housed in private rented or social housing before they are closed to the service? If they are in a placement where the council pays their rent prior to being closed, what happens to them?
As explained in our response to question 8, housing is the responsibility of district, city and unitary councils. We therefore recommend that you contact them for further information on this issue. Their contact details can be found on our website at: https://www.devon.gov.uk/neighbouring-authorities/