Homeless children need better information and independent advocacy

Homeless children need better information and independent advocacy to help understand their rights. Ofsted has published new research on how local authorities support homeless children aged 16 and 17.

Ofsted has today published new research on how local authorities support homeless children aged 16 and 17. It follows data published by the Children’s Commissioner in November 2023, which showed that only 40% of homeless 16- and 17-year-olds are accommodated as looked-after children.

When a 16- or 17-year-old child presents as homeless there are three ways to accommodate them:

• They can become a looked-after child under section 20 of the Children Act 1989. This means the local authority becomes the child’s corporate parent. Looked after children are automatically entitled to support, including funding for educational courses and priority access to certain types of accommodation, which must be regulated.
• They can be accommodated as a child in need under section 17 of the Act.  Children in need are not entitled to any of this support.
• They can be accommodated under the Housing Act 1996 (part 7).

Statutory guidance is clear that in most cases a local authority should accommodate a child as a ‘looked-after child’. There are only 2 reasons not to do this:

• The child is not ‘a child in need’.
• Having been fully advised of the implications and having the capacity to reach a decision, the child has decided they do not want to be accommodated under section 20.

Today’s report finds that, while some local authorities work effectively with homeless children and young people, many of those surveyed felt they lacked information about their options. Some children told Ofsted they were not given enough information to decide their next steps, including the option to become a looked-after child.

Government guidance states that homeless young people should have access to an independent advocate to help them understand their rights, but less than one in 10 of those surveyed said they were offered an advocate. Researchers found that some local authorities contacted an advocate any time a child declined to become looked after, but this practice was not widespread. Ofsted also found little evidence that local authorities were routinely monitoring the uptake or impact of their advocacy services.

Today’s report also finds that a lack of suitable placements, and shortfalls in budgets and staff, may be influencing local authorities’ decisions about whether children become looked after or not. Children’s advocates told Ofsted that they believe homeless children are sometimes ‘steered away’ from choosing to become a looked-after child by children’s services departments, who fail to properly explain the benefits and overemphasise the potential negatives. And some housing authority representatives said they felt it was an easier and cheaper option for local authorities to treat children as a child in need instead. However, local authorities told researchers that children themselves often prefer to be accommodated as a child in need, despite efforts to encourage them to enter care.

Some local authorities are still using inappropriate bed and breakfasts and hostels as temporary or emergency accommodation for homeless children. While supported accommodation is the most common placement type for homeless 16- and 17-year-olds, the level of support on offer can vary widely, and does not always meet children’s needs.

Ofsted’s National Director of Social Care, Yvette Stanley, said:

Finding yourself homeless must be distressing at any age, but when you’re still a legally defined child, it’s vital that local authorities and their partners work hard to ensure these children are supported in the way that works best for them.

It’s also important that all homeless children have access to independent advocates, who can help them understand their rights, including the benefits of being a child in care, and help them make the best decision about their next steps.

To improve their provision and support for homeless 16- and 17-year-olds, Ofsted suggests some next steps for local authorities:

• make sure children get the right information about their choices, and are properly supported to make the right decision for them
• review the advocacy offer for homeless children, including how it is promoted to children and monitored for uptake and effectiveness
• consider the benefits of working with homeless children to co-create important documents and policies that affect their experiences and options
• take urgent action to address cases where bed-and-breakfast accommodation is being used as emergency accommodation
• assess children’s safety and wellbeing on a continual basis to make sure their accommodation remains right for them
• provide children with adequate follow-up support and aftercare – regardless of whether they are accommodated through section 17 or section 20

For its part, Ofsted will:

• consider how to get better data or insights from local authorities on inspection into whether homeless children are accommodated under section 17 or section 20
• ask inspectors to routinely consider the take-up and impact of advocacy for homeless children when looking at those children’s experiences in local authority inspections
• share learning resources and materials about homeless 16- and 17-year-olds with education and social care providers
• consider how to share best practice in a way that makes it easier for local authorities and partners to see examples of good practice

Notes

1. The research underpinning today’s report was gathered from focus groups held between April and May 2023, involving local authority children’s services, housing authorities, advocates and His Majesty’s Inspectors. Ofsted also commissioned the youth homelessness charity, St Basils, to conduct a survey and focus group with homeless-experienced children and young people.