UK Inquiry Tracker

Financial sustainability of children’s care homes

Public Accounts Committee Open Inquiry

Opened: 10 Jul 2025 Parliament page

The numbers of looked after children increased by 19% to 83,360 between 2015-16 and 2023-24. Around 16% of looked after children are accommodated in children’s homes. Over the same period, local authority spending on children’s homes has increased rapidly, from £10.7bn to £14.6bn, with a 35% increase (to £97,326) in … Read more The numbers of looked after children increased by 19% to 83,360 between 2015-16 and 2023-24. Around 16% of looked after children are accommodated in children’s homes. Over the same period, local authority spending on children’s homes has increased rapidly, from £10.7bn to £14.6bn, with a 35% increase (to £97,326) in the average annual cost to look after each child. Costs are projected to increase further without reform. The Department for Education (DfE) recognises the challenges, and has proposed changes including greater financial oversight and transparency over private providers, and profit caps. The PAC held an inquiry into children’s services in 2019 , reporting that children deserved better than slow progress on social care. The delivery date for government's programme of reforms had then slipped from 2020 to 2022, and the report called on DfE to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of care in measurable ways. It also recommended that DfE should set out how it would understand and reduce cost variations. With significant concerns reported with the children’s homes market by local authorities and stakeholders, the National Audit Office reports in 2025 on monitoring and managing the children’s homes market . The NAO’s study examines DfE’s oversight of the market in the wider context of children’s social care. Following the NAO’s report, the PAC will take evidence from senior DfE officials and others. Likely topics for scrutiny include drivers of rising costs, suitability of settings for children, and how DfE is working to ensure the financial sustainability of the sector. If you have evidence on these issues, please submit here by 23:59 on Monday 3 November 2025. Please look at the requirements for written evidence submissions and note that the Committee cannot accept material as evidence that is published elsewhere. You can request anonymity or confidentiality when you send evidence, but it is the Committee which decides what information to publish and how. It may treat submissions confidentially, even where you have not requested this. Please note that the Committee’s inquiry cannot assist with individual cases. If you need help with an individual problem you are having, you may wish to read the information on Parliament’s website about who you can contact with different issues . Show less

6 Recommendations

23 Conclusions

1 Report

1 Oral session

4 Letters

1 Event

Activity timeline 8 events

27 Apr
2026

Correspondence

Letter to the Permanent Secretary to the Department for Education relating to Treasury Minute response - Financial sustainability of child…

1 Apr
2026

Report published

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Sixty-first report from Session 2024-26

16 Jan
2026

Report published

61st Report - Financial sustainability of children’s care homes

12 Jan
2026

Correspondence

Letter from the Chief Executive Officer of IESE CIC relating to the written evidence submitted by the Children’s Homes Association to the C…

8 Jan
2026

Correspondence

Letter from the Chief Executive Officer at the Children’s Homes Association relating to the Committee’s evidence session on 17 November 202…

8 Dec
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the President of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services relating to the Committee’s evidence session on Financial …

17 Nov
2025

Oral evidence

Oral evidence session

17 Nov
2025

Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House

Committee event

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

17 Nov 2025

View on parliament.uk

Dr Mark Kerr · Children’s Homes Association Gila Sacks · Department for Education Isabelle Trowler CBE · Department for Education Joe Lane · Citizens Advice Rachael Wardell OBE · Association of Directors of Children’s Services Susan Acland-Hood · The Department for Education

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
61st Report - Financial sustainability of children’s care homes	HC 1233	16 Jan 2026	29	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

1 result

2 Recommendation Rejected

61st Report - Financial sustainabi…

Reaffirm commitment to reducing children in unregistered homes to zero by 2027 and detail specific actions.

It is unacceptable that children are placed in illegal settings that are not inspected, increasing safety risks and offering no assurance over the quality of care. Over the last five years, local authorities have reported placing more and more children … Read more

Government Response

The government rejects the recommendation to reaffirm a commitment to zero children in unregistered homes by 2027, stating that a fixed deadline does not reflect the complexity. However, it outlines actions to tackle the issue, including £560 million capital funding, new secure placements opening between 2026-2031, new enforcement powers for Ofsted (from Summer 2026), and Ofsted reforms to increase focus on sufficiency.

HM Treasury

View details

Government Response AI assessment · 26 of 6 classified

Accepted 5

Acknowledged 14

Not Addressed 6

Rejected 1

Total 6 recs + 23 conclusions

Correspondence 4 letters

27 Apr 2026 From committee Letter to the Permanent Secretary to the Department for Education relating to Treasury Minute response - Financial sustainability of children's care homes, 27 April 2026

Parliament page

12 Jan 2026 To committee Letter from the Chief Executive Officer of IESE CIC relating to the written evidence submitted by the Children’s Homes Association to the Committee’s inquiry into Financial sustainability of children’s care homes, 23 December 2025

Parliament page

8 Jan 2026 To committee Letter from the Chief Executive Officer at the Children’s Homes Association relating to the Committee’s evidence session on 17 November 2025 on Financial sustainability of children’s care homes, 22 December 2025

Parliament page

8 Dec 2025 To committee Letter from the President of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services relating to the Committee’s evidence session on Financial sustainability of children’s care homes on 17 November 2025, 28 November 2025

Parliament page