Children in Care: Coronavirus

(asked on 18th May 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to extend financial assistance offered to support Looked After Children during and after the period of school closures due to the covid-19 outbreak to all children who are subject to a Special Guardianship Order.


Answered by
Vicky Ford Portrait
Vicky Ford
This question was answered on 27th May 2020

Schools in England receive £2,345 Pupil Premium Plus funding for each child recorded on their census as having left the care of an English or Welsh local authority on a special guardianship order, which is the same rate as attracted by looked-after children. Since 2018, special guardians have been able to benefit from the expert advice of local authority virtual school heads, and schools are required to appoint a designated teacher to provide support in school. Providers have discretion, working with other partners where appropriate, to continue to offer education provision to children and young people who they deem to be vulnerable. This may include children who have left care because they are the subject of an adoption, special guardianship or child arrangements order.

Local authorities also have a duty to provide for special guardianship support services, including financial support where necessary. Provision of support is discretionary and is based on an assessment of the guardian’s support needs. Where the child was looked after immediately prior to the making of the special guardianship order, funding from the Adoption Support Fund is available to pay for therapeutic services where they need help to recover from their previous experiences and bond with their new family.

We are also providing financial support to schools to meet additional costs arising from COVID-19. In addition, local authorities across England will receive a further £1.6 billion to help them to deal with the immediate impacts of COVID-19. This takes the total funding to support councils to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak to over £3.2 billion. Local authorities are best placed to decide how to meet the major COVID-19 service pressures in their local area, including special educational needs and disabilities and children’s social care.

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