1. Please could you supply the name, job title, email address and telephone number of the commissioner with responsibility for Looked After Children and/or placements in children’s care homes.
Nick Scribbins, Commissioning Manager, Children’s services, nick.scribbins@devon.gov.uk
For questions 2 through 6, please supply the following information for the financial years 2017/18 to 2020/21, and where possible, the budget or most up to date snapshot available for 2021/22.
2. Please provide the total number of children looked after by the local authority.
| Financial year | Children looked after within the year for at least 24hrs. |
| 2017/18 | 1,007 |
| 2018/19 | 1,002 |
| 2019/20 | 1,076 |
| 2020/21 | 1,114 |
3. Please provide the local authority’s total expenditure on placements for looked after children (q.2).
Net Spend Children in Care Placements
|
Outturn 2017/18 £ |
Outturn 2018/19 £ |
Outturn 2019/20 £ |
Outturn 2020/21 £ |
Budget 2021/22 £ |
| 33,590,000 | 39,428,000 | 41,871,000 | 43,915,000 | 48,920,000 |
4. Of the total number of children looked after by the local authority (q.2) please provide the number of placements in children’s homes (not including secure units or hostels).
| Financial year | Placements in children’s homes |
| 2017/18 | 135 |
| 2018/19 | 142 |
| 2019/20 | 140 |
| 2020/21 | 161 |
5. Of the number of children looked after by the local authority in children’s homes (q.4) please provide the number placed inside the local authority boundary (in area) and the number placed outside the local authority boundary (out of area).
| Financial year |
Placements in children’s homes Inside the local authority |
| 2017/18 | 54 |
| 2018/19 | 68 |
| 2019/20 | 70 |
| 2020/21 | 81 |
| Financial year | Placements in children’s homes outside the local authority |
| 2017/18 | 81 |
| 2018/19 | 74 |
| 2019/20 | 70 |
| 2020/21 | 80 |
6. Please provide the number of children looked after by the local authority in:
* In placements inside the local authority boundary, in ‘own provision’ (operated by the local authority)
| Financial year | Placements inside the local authority boundary, in ‘own provision’ |
| 2017/18 | 838 |
| 2018/19 | 858 |
| 2019/20 | 927 |
| 2020/21 | 978 |
* In placements outside the local authority boundary, in ‘own provision’ (operated by the local authority)
| Financial year | Placements outside the local authority boundary, in ‘own provision’ |
| 2017/18 | 123 |
| 2018/19 | 145 |
| 2019/20 | 169 |
| 2020/21 | 196 |
* In placements inside the local authority boundary, in ‘private provision’ (operated by the independent sector)
| Financial year | Placements inside the local authority boundary, in ‘private provision’ |
| 2017/18 | 309 |
| 2018/19 | 292 |
| 2019/20 | 309 |
| 2020/21 | 305 |
* In placements outside the local authority boundary, in ‘private provision’ (operated by the independent sector)
| Financial year | Placements outside the local authority boundary, in ‘private provision’ |
| 2017/18 | 235 |
| 2018/19 | 235 |
| 2019/20 | 233 |
| 2020/21 | 277 |
7. Please provide the highest, average, and lowest weekly fee currently paid for LAC in a children’s home.
Our view is that it would not be in the public interest to share the average fee for this provision.
This is because sharing this information could jeopardise our ability as a purchasing authority to achieve best value for money.
Therefore we are withholding this information in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, S43(2): Information is exempt information if its disclosure under this Act would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of any person (including the public authority holding it).