Lord Touhig

The information requested is shown in the below table. The footnotes for the missing data table should be reviewed as they explain some of the limitations to this data.

Data on looked after unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) in England is published in the annual statistical release ‘Children looked after in England including adoptions’. The latest data is for year ending 31 March 2025 and has been available since 20 November 2025.

In these statistics, ‘missing’ is defined as a looked after child who is not at their placement or a place they are expected to be and their whereabouts is not known. A child may have had multiple missing incidents during a year that may have been resolved only to conclude with a further incident that results in the child being missing again on 31 March. Any missing incident is concerning but the vast majority (91%) of incidents, where a child who is looked after and reportedly goes missing, last for two days or less.

The department holds responsibility for the collection and publication of statistics for children looked after by local authorities in England only. Similar statistics for other countries in the UK are the responsibility of the devolved administrations.

Children missing on 31 March who were unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC), 2021 to 2025, England

Footnotes

1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. Figures exclude children looked after under a series of short-term placements.

2. Historical data may differ from older publications which is mainly due to amendments made by local authorities after the previous publication. However, users looking for a longer time series may wish to check for the equivalent table in earlier releases.

3. Missing is defined as a looked after child who is not at their placement or a place they are expected to be and their whereabouts is not known.

4. Since 2017 a growing number of local authorities informed the department that they do not record incidents as 'away without authorisation', but instead report all incidents as 'missing' to maintain consistency with local police reporting. We estimate this could mean an overestimate of missing incidents of up to 13% in 2021, 10% in 2022, 11% in 2023, 13% in 2024 and 12% in 2025; suggesting the true figures could be more like 9,600, 11,100, 11,500, 11,500 and 11,300. There is a corresponding estimate of an undercount of away without authorisation incidents of up to 32% in 2021, 30% in 2022, 32% in 2023, 36% in 2024 and 32% in 2025; suggesting the true figures could be more like 3,800, 3,600, 3,900, 4,300 and 4,300. However some of these local authorities submitted some 'away without authorisation' information and this can be found in the away from placement without authorisation table.

5. Figures for 2021 exclude data for Hackney.

The information requested is shown in the below table. The footnotes for the missing data table should be reviewed as they explain some of the limitations to this data.

Data on looked after unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) in England is published in the annual statistical release ‘Children looked after in England including adoptions’. The latest data is for year ending 31 March 2025 and has been available since 20 November 2025.

In these statistics, ‘missing’ is defined as a looked after child who is not at their placement or a place they are expected to be and their whereabouts is not known. A child may have had multiple missing incidents during a year that may have been resolved only to conclude with a further incident that results in the child being missing again on 31 March. Any missing incident is concerning but the vast majority (91%) of incidents, where a child who is looked after and reportedly goes missing, last for two days or less.

The department holds responsibility for the collection and publication of statistics for children looked after by local authorities in England only. Similar statistics for other countries in the UK are the responsibility of the devolved administrations.

Children missing on 31 March who were unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC), 2021 to 2025, England

Footnotes

1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. Figures exclude children looked after under a series of short-term placements.

2. Historical data may differ from older publications which is mainly due to amendments made by local authorities after the previous publication. However, users looking for a longer time series may wish to check for the equivalent table in earlier releases.

3. Missing is defined as a looked after child who is not at their placement or a place they are expected to be and their whereabouts is not known.

4. Since 2017 a growing number of local authorities informed the department that they do not record incidents as 'away without authorisation', but instead report all incidents as 'missing' to maintain consistency with local police reporting. We estimate this could mean an overestimate of missing incidents of up to 13% in 2021, 10% in 2022, 11% in 2023, 13% in 2024 and 12% in 2025; suggesting the true figures could be more like 9,600, 11,100, 11,500, 11,500 and 11,300. There is a corresponding estimate of an undercount of away without authorisation incidents of up to 32% in 2021, 30% in 2022, 32% in 2023, 36% in 2024 and 32% in 2025; suggesting the true figures could be more like 3,800, 3,600, 3,900, 4,300 and 4,300. However some of these local authorities submitted some 'away without authorisation' information and this can be found in the away from placement without authorisation table.

5. Figures for 2021 exclude data for Hackney.

The information requested is shown in the below table. The footnotes for the missing data table should be reviewed as they explain some of the limitations to this data.

Data on looked after unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) in England is published in the annual statistical release ‘Children looked after in England including adoptions’. The latest data is for year ending 31 March 2025 and has been available since 20 November 2025.

In these statistics, ‘missing’ is defined as a looked after child who is not at their placement or a place they are expected to be and their whereabouts is not known. A child may have had multiple missing incidents during a year that may have been resolved only to conclude with a further incident that results in the child being missing again on 31 March. Any missing incident is concerning but the vast majority (91%) of incidents, where a child who is looked after and reportedly goes missing, last for two days or less.

The department holds responsibility for the collection and publication of statistics for children looked after by local authorities in England only. Similar statistics for other countries in the UK are the responsibility of the devolved administrations.

Children missing on 31 March who were unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC), 2021 to 2025, England

Footnotes

1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. Figures exclude children looked after under a series of short-term placements.

2. Historical data may differ from older publications which is mainly due to amendments made by local authorities after the previous publication. However, users looking for a longer time series may wish to check for the equivalent table in earlier releases.

3. Missing is defined as a looked after child who is not at their placement or a place they are expected to be and their whereabouts is not known.

4. Since 2017 a growing number of local authorities informed the department that they do not record incidents as 'away without authorisation', but instead report all incidents as 'missing' to maintain consistency with local police reporting. We estimate this could mean an overestimate of missing incidents of up to 13% in 2021, 10% in 2022, 11% in 2023, 13% in 2024 and 12% in 2025; suggesting the true figures could be more like 9,600, 11,100, 11,500, 11,500 and 11,300. There is a corresponding estimate of an undercount of away without authorisation incidents of up to 32% in 2021, 30% in 2022, 32% in 2023, 36% in 2024 and 32% in 2025; suggesting the true figures could be more like 3,800, 3,600, 3,900, 4,300 and 4,300. However some of these local authorities submitted some 'away without authorisation' information and this can be found in the away from placement without authorisation table.

5. Figures for 2021 exclude data for Hackney.

The government is committed to upholding the principles of the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child and safeguarding the rights of children, as we continue to do through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.

We know that some schools choose to follow the UNICEF scheme ‘Rights Respecting Schools Award’, which puts children’s rights at the heart of school policy and practice, and we welcome that commitment to promoting the rights of children. However, there are no plans to provide funding for the ‘Rights Respecting Schools Award’ scheme in England.

All schools in England have specific duties to promote the spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development of their pupils and prepare them for the opportunities and responsibilities of adult life.

Schools in England are required to promote the fundamental British values of democracy, rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs. Citizenship education is an effective way of doing this, and we expect teachers to reinforce these values as well as to support pupils’ SMSC development.

Ministers welcome the opportunity to meet children and would be grateful for requests to be sent to the office of my hon. Friend, the Minister for School Standards.

Education plays a vital role in promoting integration and ensuring children and young people are prepared for life, including learning about the values that underpin and unite our society. All schools in England have a duty to promote the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of their pupils and to prepare them for the opportunities and responsibilities of adult life. It is up to schools to decide whether to join UNICEF’s Rights Respecting School programme.

Citizenship education provides a framework for pupils to develop the knowledge, skills and values that will prepare them to take their place in society as responsible citizens. Citizenship forms a core part of the statutory national curriculum at key stages 3 and 4 and primary schools can choose to teach citizenship at key stages 1 and 2, following the non-statutory framework for citizenship.

In the plan to Make Work Pay (October 2024), we committed to raising awareness of all forms of neurodiversity (including autism) in the workplace.

In January 2025, DWP launched an independent panel of academics with expertise and experiences of neurodiversity to advise us on boosting neurodiversity awareness and inclusion at work. This is building on the work of the Buckland Review, which was published under the previous Government, and focused more narrowly on autism employment. The evidence review concluded in late summer 2025 and the panel will be reporting their findings and recommendations shortly.

Although this Government has not made a formal response to the Buckland Review, the Ministers for Employment and Social Security and Disability met Sir Robert Buckland in October 2024 to talk about his findings and key drivers for change in the workplace. In addition, Professor Amanda Kirby, Chair of the Academic Panel, has subsequently met Sir Robert to discuss the panel's terms of reference, scope, and timelines, and in June they jointly gave evidence to this House’s Autism Act 2009 Committee.

The Government will decide next steps in the light of the panel’s recommendations, and other relevant reviews such as Sir Charlie Mayfield’s Keep Britain Working Review.

DWP analysis of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Annual Population Survey (APS) shows there were an estimated 40,000 people with Autism who said they were looking for full-time employment in 2024/25.

Information on the number of disabled people with autism who have found work in the past 12 months is published by the Department at: The employment of disabled people - GOV.UK.

There were an estimated 90,000 people with Autism who moved into employment between 2023 and 2024 (the latest data available).

In the plan to Make Work Pay (October 2024), we committed to raising awareness of all forms of neurodiversity (including autism) in the workplace.

In January 2025, DWP launched an independent panel of academics with expertise and experiences of neurodiversity to advise us on boosting neurodiversity awareness and inclusion at work. This is building on the work of the Buckland Review, which was published under the previous Government, and focused more narrowly on autism employment. The evidence review concluded in late summer 2025 and the panel will be reporting their findings and recommendations shortly.

Although this Government has not made a formal response to the Buckland Review, the Ministers for Employment and Social Security and Disability met Sir Robert Buckland in October 2024 to talk about his findings and key drivers for change in the workplace. In addition, Professor Amanda Kirby, Chair of the Academic Panel, has subsequently met Sir Robert to discuss the panel's terms of reference, scope, and timelines, and in June they jointly gave evidence to this House’s Autism Act 2009 Committee.

The Government will decide next steps in the light of the panel’s recommendations, and other relevant reviews such as Sir Charlie Mayfield’s Keep Britain Working Review.

In our plan to Make Work Pay, we committed to raising awareness of neurodiversity in the workplace.

Our forthcoming employment White Paper considers how to improve employment outcomes and experiences for disabled people and people with health conditions. We are exploring how we can build on the earlier, independent, Buckland Review which was focused more narrowly on autism and employment, to improve understanding and support for all neurodivergent people at work.