Spend on Unregistered/Bespoke Placements for Children Under 16 in 2025/26
Case reference FOI2026/00902
Received 14 April 2026
Published 6 May 2026
Request
I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 regarding the Council's expenditure on placements for children and young people under the age of 16 during the 2025/26 financial year (to date).
Specifically, I am seeking information regarding placements that are unregistered with Ofsted (often referred to as "unregulated" or "emergency bespoke arrangements") where staffing was provided by recruitment or staffing agencies.
If the cost of providing a full list would exceed the limit under Section 12 of the FOI Act, please prioritize providing the totals for Category A and Category B.
Please provide the following information:
1. Total Expenditure: The total amount spent by Children’s Services on unregistered/unregistered-bespoke placements for children under the age of 16.
2. Agency Breakdown (Property vs. No Property): Of the total spend identified in Question 1, please itemize the spend with recruitment/staffing agencies according to the following two categories:
o Category A (Staffing Only): Total spend where the agency provided staffing only (e.g., to support a child in a council-owned property, a hospital setting, air bnb or a pre-existing foster/residential placement).
o Category B (Staffing & Property): Total spend where the agency provided both the staffing AND the accommodation (e.g., the agency provided private property as part of the "wraparound" crisis package).
3. Supplier List: A list of every recruitment or staffing agency used for these U16 placements in the 2025/26 period, and the total amount paid to each.
4. Team/Budget Line: Please confirm which service area or budget team this spend was authorized under (e.g., Placements Budget, Social Work Staffing Budget, or Emergency/Crisis Fund).
Response
I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 regarding the Council's expenditure on placements for children and young people under the age of 16 during the 2025/26 financial year (to date).
Specifically, I am seeking information regarding placements that are unregistered with Ofsted (often referred to as "unregulated" or "emergency bespoke arrangements") where staffing was provided by recruitment or staffing agencies.
If the cost of providing a full list would exceed the limit under Section 12 of the FOI Act, please prioritize providing the totals for Category A and Category B.
Please provide the following information:
1. Total Expenditure: The total amount spent by Children’s Services on unregistered/unregistered-bespoke placements for children under the age of 16.
Answer: £186,478.85.
2. Agency Breakdown (Property vs. No Property): Of the total spend identified in Question 1, please itemize the spend with recruitment/staffing agencies according to the following two categories:
o Category A (Staffing Only): Total spend where the agency provided staffing only (e.g., to support a child in a council-owned property, a hospital setting, air bnb or a pre-existing foster/residential placement).
o Category B (Staffing & Property): Total spend where the agency provided both the staffing AND the accommodation (e.g., the agency provided private property as part of the "wraparound" crisis package).
Answer: This information is not held. The Service Area have advised the provider is paid a weekly amount, and they don’t provide the split between staff/accommodation costs.
3. Supplier List: A list of every recruitment or staffing agency used for these U16 placements in the 2025/26 period, and the total amount paid to each.
Answer: This information is not held. The Service Area have advised we do not have access to the list or the costs as they would be organised by the placement privately.
4. Team/Budget Line: Please confirm which service area or budget team this spend was authorized under (e.g., Placements Budget, Social Work Staffing Budget, or Emergency/Crisis Fund).
Answer: Childrens Residential Care Budget.
Documents
This is Herefordshire Council's response to a freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) request.
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