£50 million for councils to support care leavers

New funding continues to be introduced to extend support to care leavers and proposals happen to be launched to introduce national standards in unregulated accommodation.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson asserted £51 million support package will fund a range of schemes to support those that are either in or leaving care, in addition to proposals to introduce national standards that accommodation settings for 16- and 17-year-olds would have to meet.

These programmes include £33 million continued investment in ‘Staying Put’, which helps looked after children stay with their foster carers after their 18th birthday if they wish to, as well as £3.Six million to increase the ‘Staying Close’ pilot which gives extra support for young people leaving residential care, and £12m for councils to continue to provide Personal Advisors to aid care leavers as much as age 25.

An additional £2.7 million is going to be made available to provide intensive support of looking after leavers at high-risk of homelessness, as part of the government’s Rough Sleeping strategy.

A consultation has also been proposing national standards that unregulated settings accommodating 16- and 17-year-old children in and leaving care would need to meet, to boost quality and ensure consistency of provision across the country.

Williamson said: “Every teenager in care deserves to live in accommodation that fits their needs and keeps them safe – anything less is unacceptable, and thus continuing to prioritise children in care or leaving care is completely vital. The measures being announced today develop our shared ambition across government to level up outcomes and opportunities for everybody, but especially the most vulnerable – by giving safer homes, reducing isolation among young adults leaving care, and by ensuring there is a strong support network to depend on as they do something into life.”