UK: Troubled children are being forced away from their families by the closure of care homes

Cut off in care

Recent government figures show that nearly 2,000 troubled young people are housed in special accommodation away from their home town because of a lack of residential care placements. Councils need to do more to address the difficulties that are faced by these children in homes or hostels, who are living too far from their families. Around 2,000 young people live more than 20 miles from their homes and all but 300 of these live outside their council's boundaries. This is unacceptable. Where specialist services are required it is accepted that it is not practical for units to be available in all areas, but it is different for basic education and care. Government guidelines state that children should be placed close to their homes, wherever possible. To meet this objective, councils must look favourably on planning applications for care homes to help providers offer placements for children.

The perception that all children in care have Asbos and wear 'hoodies' is causing communities to oppose planning applications for homes. Applications are often fraught with problems and eventually rejected making the provision of care extremely limited. Evaluation of care, supervision or emergency protection orders suggests these distances can hamper the objective of reuniting families. Care providers usually work with the child as part of the family, rather than as an individual so when there are many miles between the two it places everyone involved under extra stress.

Children's homes have been closing faster than they have opened, leaving many in need of care and placing pressure on places. The upshot has been social services scouring the country for placements and children being sent hundreds of miles from home. Children need to maintain close contact with the people and places that are familiar to them. For instance, an 11-year-old girl from Tyneside had a strong sense of belonging and attachment to her home town and football club. When she was sent to a care home out of the area she felt alienated. Her carers seemed to be speaking a different language as she was the only person with a geordie accent while her mother struggled to visit as she had young children at home.

Children develop a strong sense of belonging and identity at a young age. Being moved away disrupts the things that can provide stability in their lives such as school, friends and community activities. A five-year-old Irish boy, who had complex needs, had a strong sense of where he came from. If the service he needed could have been provided locally he would not have been forced to travel long distances, usually by plane, and the plans for his care would have been a lot easier to put in place.

The care sector needs to answer critical case work challenges. There are cases where the care required is extremely specialised and children must be placed in the most appropriate setting for their needs. The way forward for most young people, however, is to increase the number of residential homes to give them more locations to access care. This would increase the chance of the remaining close to, and eventually being integrated back into, their families. To do this there must be goodwill and support from everyone including councils and the community.

Julie Hamilton
5 February 2007

http://society.guardian.co.uk/children/comment/0,,1997631,00.html

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