Recommendation 26

When finding children’s homes places, local authorities must often look outside of their own area, putting them in competition with each other. Local authorities also often rely on finding places just at the time children need to be housed, rather than buying in advance. which can further increase competition and therefore the prices they have to pay.73 The Association of Directors of Children’s Services recognised that local authorities often compete for available beds which increases prices.74 That has contributed to the exponential increase in the cost of residential care, which almost doubled over five years to £3.1 billion in 2023–24. Over the same period the average local authority spend per child increased to £318,400, from £239,800 in 2019–20.75 We received written evidence from the County Councils Network which stated that to balance budgets and meet increased demand, councils had been forced to reduce non-statutory services including those which may help avoid children needing care.76