Surrey: Plans to move more vulnerable children into foster care

Surrey County Council hopes to get 22 more children into foster care by 2024

More looked after vulnerable children living in residential children's homes in Surrey are to be moved into foster families under council plans.

Surrey County Council hopes to get about 22 children out of homes into long-term foster placements by 2024.

It believes joining the Big Fostering Partnership, which helps to recruit foster carers, will help to achieve this.

The authority hopes the move will cut its children's placement budget by £5m.

At the end of last year, Surrey had 140 of its 1,080 looked after children in regulated residential placements, including children's homes, residential schools, care homes, parenting assessment units and secure units, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Statutory duty

Councillor Chris Townsend, vice-chair of the children and families select committee, said: "We're finding it very difficult to get foster parents in Surrey."

The council's cabinet agreed to join the Big Fostering Partnership, which brings together the expertise of the UK's biggest fostering agency - the National Fostering Group - with a number of local authorities.

The council has a statutory duty to secure enough accommodation in the local area to meet the needs of Surrey children.

A report to cabinet last week said the authority had made progress on this during 2021/22.

But at the end of 2021 still only 54% of children were placed in Surrey and two thirds within 20 miles of the county.

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