Many children looked after enjoy school, and almost all think it is important. But as a group they have poor experiences of education and very low educational attainment.
Why do children become looked after?
Children enter public care for a variety of reasons. The majority come from families who experience hardship and are separated from them because of some form of family breakdown.
Less than one per cent of young people are looked after because of offences they have committed.
What are the outcomes for care leavers?
- Between a quarter and a third of rough sleepers were in care
- Young people who have been in care are two and a half times more likely to be teenage parents
- Around a quarter of adults in prison spent some time in care as children (Social exclusion unit report)
Five big issues
The SEU report ‘A better education for children in care’ identified the barriers that prevent children in care achieving their educational potential
- Greater stability
- Less time out of school
- Help with schoolwork
- More support and encouragement from home
- Health and wellbeing of the child
Getting it right for young people in public care is about getting it right for all children........ The ways in which children in public care are supported is a test of the general policies and practices of a local authority. This is not simply because they have difficult problems to resolve, but because their experiences highlight how robust and inclusive policies and practices really are(DfES guidance 2000)