For time periods 1/1/2020-1/1/2025 in 1 year increments. If this is not possible then for 1/1/2024-1/1/2025 or the current year.
1. What is your total budget for looked after children’s (LAC) services?
2. What is your budget for placements?
The answers to questions 1 and 2 can be found below:
| 20/21 | 21/22 | 22/23 | 24/25 | |
| £’000 | £’000 | £’000 | £’000 | |
| LAC Services | 51,488 | 52,519 | 70,546 | 79,893 |
| Placements | 51,086 | 52,261 | 68,998 | 76,666 |
3. How many children do you look after?
4. How many of those children are in sibling groups (including half siblings and step siblings) of:
2 siblings
3 siblings
4 siblings
5 or more siblings
5. How many of these sibling groups are in a placement together in care?
The answers to questions 3-5 can be found below:
| 3. How many children do you look after? | 748 | 829 | 815 | 828 | 898 | |
| 4. How many of those children are in sibling groups (including half siblings and step siblings) of: | ||||||
| 2 siblings | 134 | 157 | 154 | 161 | 176 | |
| 3 siblings | 36 | 44 | 45 | 40 | 51 | |
| 4 siblings | 15 | 19 | 17 | 16 | 11 | |
| 5 or more siblings | 10 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 3 | |
| 5. How many of these sibling groups are in a placement together in care? | 103 | 112 | 102 | 103 | 122 |
6. What is the decision making process for matching children with placements?
We assess potential carer’s abilities to support children long term producing child and carer profiles that present an accurate balanced summary of current and likely future needs based on the impact of early experiences, their likes and dislikes, their personality, behaviour and their wishes and feelings. We speak with potential carers in a clear, open, and timely way, which is honest about children’s needs whilst being positive and solution-focussed about how these needs might be met. We talk sensitively with children and their parents about any proposal for matching long term with carers, and their wishes and feelings are included in the matching report. When a child has a plan of long term fostering, permanence planning meetings continue to review this plan until it is achieved.
7. Is this different for sibling groups? If yes how?
The process for matching siblings is the same as in question 6, except that we will assess individual needs separately against the Carers capacity to meet those needs.
8. What are some of the factors when it comes to sibling group placement decision making?
We will consider Together or Apart assessments to see if it is in the siblings best interest to remain in the same placement, but our primary aim is to keep siblings together.
9. For those who are not placed together, for how many sibling groups is contact maintained?
Devon County Council does not hold a figure however, the majority of children will maintain contact with their siblings unless it is not in their best interests to do so.
10. How is this facilitated?
This can be supervised contact at the placement or an outdoor venue facilitated by either the foster carer, or a Social Worker, or a family member depending on a risk assessment being completed.