Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department is taking steps to help ensure that all care leavers have access to at least two secure and trusted relationships with adults when leaving care.

As set out in the Children’s Social Care Implementation Strategy: Stable Homes, Built on Love, the department’s mission is that by 2027, every care-experienced child and young person will feel they have strong, loving relationships in place. Throughout the implementation of our reforms to care, we will prioritise children’s loving and safe relationships, both with their families and with care givers.

The department will provide over £30 million in the next two years to significantly increase the number of local authorities with family finding, befriending and mentoring programmes, including Lifelong Links. These programmes help children in care and care leavers to identify and connect with the important people in their lives and create new relationships.

The department will also increase the accessibility and take-up of the Independent Visitors offer by working with the sector to reinforce current good practice and developing standards for Independent Visitor services.