Placing English children in Scottish children’s homes

Charlotte Ramsden, Chair of the ADCS Health, Care & Additional Needs Policy Committee, said:

“Secure children’s homes offer intensive and tailored support to the most vulnerable cohort of children and young people at times of extreme crisis or distress. The criteria for making an application to the courts for a secure placement on the grounds of a child or young person’s welfare is rigorous, they must represent a very high risk to either themselves or others. These kinds of placements are often needed at short notice and as there are only 14 secure children’s homes in England, demand for beds is high meaning long distances are frequently involved.

“The Children and Social Work Act 2017 provided a legal basis for cross-border placements of this nature, however, the Association remains in ongoing discussions with the UK government about investment in, and boosting the capacity of, secure children’s homes, particularly in the greater London and the west Midlands regions of England where there is no provision of this nature at all.”

ENDS

---

---