Government grants £53m funding to blitz illegal children's homes, including some in Milton Keynes
A massive £53m funding has been granted to tackle illegal and unregulated children’s homes, some of which are springing up on Milton Keynes estates.
Local MPs have welcomed the government award after previously expressing concerning about the recent spate of planning applications from private companies to open new homes in residential areas of the city.
The cash comes from the Department of Education and it will create an additional two hundred placements in council-run, high-quality children’s homes across the UK – wiping out the need for private and unregulated establishments that are run for profit.
A shortage in appropriate placements in recent years in the care system has led to the sharp increase in the number of children and young people placed in such illegally-operating accommodation.
To make matters even worse, these placements cost councils across the country roughly £440m a year, with reports of individual placements costing more than a million pounds each becoming "disturbingly common”, say the MPs.
Also, ,any councils are forced to place children in accommodation far away from their homes, communities and support networks.
This additional funding, announced by Janet Daby, the Minister for Children and Families, will help local authorities provide high-quality placements within their own boundaries for children with complex needs. It comes as part of an extra £2bn for the children’s care sector over the course of this Parliament.
Emily Darlington, Labour MP for Milton Keynes Central, said: “Many private providers of children’s accommodation turn young people in crisis into an opportunity to line their own pockets, sometimes skimming off more than a fifth of the cost of the placement as profit for themselves.
"This government is cracking down on those cashing in on vulnerable young people and helping to ensure they aren’t dragged away from their existing support networks”.
Callum Anderson, Labour MP for Buckingham and Bletchley, said: “We’re providing a roof over the heads of vulnerable children, and making sure they get the best start in life. I’m so pleased we’ve been awarded this local funding”.
Chris Curtis, Labour MP for MK North, said: “Children and young people, already facing such challenging circumstances, shouldn’t be expected to dust themselves off and transport their lives hundreds of miles away.”