Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will investigate private care providers alleged to prioritise profit over the care of children.

The department does not hold data on the profits made by private children’s residential care providers in each of the last 10 years or the annual turnovers of each private care provider for children in England in each of the last five years.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) looked at provider profits as part of their market study of children’s social care in England, Scotland, and Wales, and published their final report on 10 March 2022. The department welcomes the report and is carefully considering the CMA’s recommendations.