The government has pledged £88m to recruit 10,000 new foster carers by the end of this parliament. Currently, there is a severe shortage of them in the foster care sector. This means local authorities are placing many children far from home in expensive residential settings.

According to the Local Government Association, councils currently spend £4.7bn per year on residential children’s care.

According to the Guardian, the government has doubled its spending on residential care since 2020. Costs reached £3.1bn in 2023-24. This means that each place in a children’s home costs over £300,000 a year.

Now, the government is aiming to attract a wider range of households to foster caring. It emphasises that carers don’t have to be married, homeowners, or in full-time employment. This would reduce reliance on these expensive residential homes whilst also providing children with greater stability.

The £88m will also include £25m to help current foster carers extend or update their homes. This will allow them to accommodate more children. It will also pilot a new scheme which could mean potential foster carers help out on a part-time basis.

Profiteering from foster care

Additionally, Josh MacAlister, Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing, has said that the government will push private providers of child social care in England out of the system if they discover they’re profiteering.

The Competition and Markets Authority found that in 2022, children’s home owners in England, Scotland and Wales were making massively excessive profits. At the same time, they were also carrying too much debt. This was exposing both children and councils to unacceptable risks.

As it stands, more than 80% of residential children’s homes in England are for-profit, which makes you question whether they really have the best interests of children at heart.

MacAlister also called for an equivalent of the Homes for Ukraine scheme to provide homes for tens of thousands of children in foster care.

However, the government’s plan does not appear to address the increasing number of private foster care agencies.

These are known to pay foster carers far more than local authorities do, meaning the government then pays far more to use them. Because, of course, profit is vitally important when looking after vulnerable children.

Local authorities have reported struggling to compete. So when foster carers leave and turn to private companies, there are not enough carers, and the government has no choice but to rely on the private agencies.

Safe, stable, and secure foster care placements have the ability to change a child’s life for the better.

But until the government puts a stop to profiteering private companies taking advantage of vulnerable children needing a home, their best interests are never going to be the primary goal of the foster care system.

Feature image via BBC Creative/Unsplash

By HG

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