Boarding school placements for children in care
Case reference FOI2024/01206
Received 13 July 2024
Published 7 August 2024
Request
The statutory guidance for local authorities "Promoting the education of looked after children and previously looked after children" states:
"The child’s wishes and feelings should be taken into account, and the suitability of the education setting tested by arranging an informal visit with the child. Where a looked after child would benefit from attending a boarding school, either in the state or independent sector, VSHs and social workers should be proactive in considering this option."
Further to this guidance please advise:
1. How many of your children in care "Looked After Children", in both number and percentage, are currently in mainstream boarding school placements?
2. How many of your children in care "Looked After Children", in both number and percentage, are currently in Special Educational Needs boarding school placements?
3. What procedure (if any) do you have to consult children in care "Looked After Children" about the option of a boarding school placement? What record (if any) do you have of the number of children in care "Looked After Children" - in both number and percentage - who were asked about such an option, in the financial year 2023/24? How many of them expressed a wish to proceed with it?
4. How many informal visits that you arranged, to mainstream boarding schools, for children in care "Looked After Children" took place in the financial year 2023/24?
5. How many informal visits that you arranged, to SEN boarding schools, for children in care "Looked After Children" took place in the financial year 2023/24?
Response
The statutory guidance for local authorities "Promoting the education of looked after children and previously looked after children" states:
"The child’s wishes and feelings should be taken into account, and the suitability of the education setting tested by arranging an informal visit with the child. Where a looked after child would benefit from attending a boarding school, either in the state or independent sector, VSHs and social workers should be proactive in considering this option."
Further to this guidance please advise:
1. How many of your children in care "Looked After Children", in both number and percentage, are currently in mainstream boarding school placements?
2. How many of your children in care "Looked After Children", in both number and percentage, are currently in Special Educational Needs boarding school placements?
3. What procedure (if any) do you have to consult children in care "Looked After Children" about the option of a boarding school placement? What record (if any) do you have of the number of children in care "Looked After Children" - in both number and percentage - who were asked about such an option, in the financial year 2023/24? How many of them expressed a wish to proceed with it?
4. How many informal visits that you arranged, to mainstream boarding schools, for children in care "Looked After Children" took place in the financial year 2023/24?
5. How many informal visits that you arranged, to SEN boarding schools, for children in care "Looked After Children" took place in the financial year 2023/24?
A) The information for question 3 is not held in a form that would enable it to be located, retrieved and extracted within the Appropriate Time Limit which equates to 18 hours as defined by the Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limits and Fees) Regulations 2004.
Our electronic reporting systems are unable to run a report for this information. To ascertain the data requested, officers would need to manually check individual files for this information. An initial search has shown that 391 files would need to be checked for this information, and it is estimated that it would take 10 minutes to check each file. Once the details had been identified this would need to be noted and once all files had been checked in this way, the total figures requested could be calculated.
This would at a conservative estimate take at least 65 hours to complete. Where the Limit is exceeded Public Authorities are not obliged to supply the information requested by virtue of S12 of the Act. Please take this letter as a refusal notice under S17 of the Act.
However, within the 18 hour limit, we can provide answers for questions 1, 2, 4 and 5 as requested. Please advise us if this is something you require.
Documents
This is Herefordshire Council's response to a freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) request.
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