1. As of today’s date (28.11.19) How many looked after children are in the care of your local authority?
762 children in care on 28/11/19 – not including children on short breaks.
2a. As of today’s date (28.11.19) How many sibling groups are in the care of your local authority?
147 sibling groups – this includes full siblings and half siblings within 1 group. To determine where the children came into care from to establish which of these sibling/half siblings would normally live together, as some may live apart with different parents, would require a manual examination of all cases which we estimate would take in excess of 18 hours, the limit specified under the Freedom of information Act 2000 Section 12 – Cost of Compliance.
2b. What is the total number of children within those sibling groups?
There were 382 children within these 147 sibling groups
3. How many sibling groups are all placed together?
64 siblings groups where all the children are placed together.
4. How many children in your care, who are part of a sibling group, are not living with at least one of their siblings?
155 children in a placement without one of their siblings – However, as mentioned above some of this siblings might normally reside elsewhere. Also, as in the case of older children, it might be that the child has moved away from their sibling in order to meet their current needs such as being in a supportive lodgings placement now instead of fostering.
5. During the last financial year (2018-2019) and this financial year to date, How many children placed for adoption by the local authority have been separated (through adoption) from any birth siblings?
The figures below are a count of children placed for adoption without a sibling being placed in the same place. It could be that these children came in as a single child with a plan for adoption as either their siblings (full or half) were never in care, did not have a plan for adoption or had already been adopted prior to this sibling having a plan for adoption (we do ask with the adopters of older siblings to see if they want to be considered to adopt a new sibling).
2018-19 – 24
2019-20 (to date) – 20