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Children in Care

Volume 476: debated on Wednesday 21 May 2008

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what percentage of children in the care system are from ethnic minorities; (206927)

(2) how many children were adopted in (a) Aylesbury Vale district and (b) England in 2007;

(3) how many respite care home places were available for disabled children in (a) Aylesbury Vale district and (b) England in 2007;

(4) how many foster care placements there were in (a) Aylesbury Vale district and (b) England in 2007.

Information on Aylesbury Vale (Buckinghamshire) is not collected centrally. Where the question refers to Aylesbury Vale we have provided statistical information on Buckinghamshire as a whole.

Information on the numbers and percentages of children looked after in the care system, broken down by ethnicity over the last five years is shown in the following table. The information is taken from the Statistical First Release (SFR 27/2007) entitled ‘Children looked after in England (including adoption and care leavers) year ending 31 March 2007’. The SFR is located at

http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000741/index .shtml.

Children looked after at 31 March by ethnic origin, 2003-071,2,3, England

Number and Percentage

Number

Percentage

20034

20045

20055

20065

20075

20034

20045

20055

20065

20075

All children looked after at 31 March1,2

61,200

61,200

61,000

60,300

60,000

100

100

100

100

100

Ethnic origin

White:

White British

47,300

46,300

45,9090

45,000

44,700

77

76

75

75

74

White Irish

580

520

500

440

400

1

1

1

1

1

Any other White background

1,800

1,900

1,800

1,600

1,500

3

3

3

3

3

Mixed:

White and Black Caribbean

2,000

2,000

2,000

1,900

1,900

3

3

3

3

3

White and Black African

400

410

440

430

440

1

1

1

1

1

White and Asian

750

720

720

750

770

1

1

1

1

1

Any other mixed background

2,000

2,000

2,000

2,000

2,000

3

3

3

3

3

Asian or Asian British:

Indian

300

300

280

300

290

0

0

0

0

0

Pakistani

510

520

580

610

660

1

1

1

1

1

Bangladeshi

200

230

270

280

280

0

0

0

0

0

Any other Asian background

320

480

650

880

1,000

1

1

1

1

2

Black or Black British:

Caribbean

1,600

1,700

1,600

1,600

1,600

3

3

3

3

3

African

1,800

2,300

2,400

2,400

2,300

3

4

4

4

4

Any other Black background

870

880

900

900

880

1

1

1

1

1

Other ethnic groups:

Chinese

80

120

120

120

130

0

0

0

0

0

Any other ethnic group

750

840

900

1,000

1,200

1

1

1

2

2

1 Source: SSDA903 return on children looked after.

2 Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short-term placements.

3 Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials.

4 Figures are derived from the SSDA 903 one-third sample survey.

5 Figures are taken from the SSDA 903 return which, since 2003-04, has covered all children looked after.

The number of children looked after that were adopted during the year ending 31 March in (a) Buckinghamshire was 10, and (b) England was 3,300.

Information on the number of respite care home places which were available for disabled children in (a) Aylesbury Vale and (b) England in 2007 is not collected centrally. However, the numbers of children looked after under an agreed series of short-term breaks (respite), who were placed in a children’s home or similar establishment at 31 March 2007, in Buckinghamshire and England, are shown in the following table.

Children looked after at 31 March 2007, in respite care by placement in care homes1,2, England

Number

Homes and hostels

Other establishments

Total

subject to Children’s Homes regulations

not subject to Children’s Homes regulations

Residential care homes

NHS Trust providing medical/nursing care

England

4,200

3,700

10

330

170

Buckinghamshire

10

10

0

0

0

1 Source: return on children looked after.

2 Figures at national level have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 and to the nearest 10 otherwise. Figures at local authority level have been rounded to the nearest five or if zero are shown as zero.

The number of looked after children in foster care placements at 31 March 2007 in (a) Buckinghamshire was 205 and (b) England was 42,300.