Drop in number of kids under Calderdale Council's care

Councillors heard the authority was looking after 358 children at the end of the fourth quarter of 2024-25 – down from 376 at the end of the previous three months.

Of these, 18 young people are unaccompanied asylum-seeking children – a number down from 25 at the end of the year’s third quarter, reported cabinet member for Children and Young People’s Services, Coun Adam Wilkinson.

Coun Wilkinson told colleagues the figures puts the authority’s rate of children looked after at 80 per 10,000, which is similar to the end of 2023-4 (81 per 10,000) and is below Calderdale’s statistical neighbour rate of 90 per 10,000 children.

The figures are however slightly above the national average of 70 per 10,000.

Coun Wilkinson (Lab, Sowerby Bridge) said 63 per cent of the looked after children are in foster care, which is close to national and statistical neighbour averages of 67 per cent and 66 per cent respectively.

In all, 51 per cent were in the council’s own provision - slightly above the national rate of 43 per cent.

Thirty-seven per cent of the children are in residential provision, either children’s homes or supported accommodation – these are over aged 16.

Of these, 34 children are living in privately run external placements. These external placements continue to place extreme financial pressure on the council’s children’s services budget due to rising costs of provision and shortage of supply which leads to a very competitive market for placements, said Coun Wilkinson.

Coun Wilkinson was reporting to a meeting of the full Calderdale Council.