8.7 Children Living Away from Home

This policy deals with the safeguarding issues that arise when a child lives away from home - whether in a Local Authority foster placement, a private fostering setting, a children's home, armed forces bases, hospital, boarding schools (including residential special schools) or custodial settings.

The National Minimum Standards and Quality Standards contain specific requirements on safeguarding and child protection for each particular regulated setting where children live away from home.

Every setting in which a child lives should provide the same basic safeguards against abuse, founded on an approach that promotes their general welfare, protects them from harm and treats them with dignity and respect. Where services are not directly provided, these safeguards should be explicitly addressed in any contract with a service provider.

All settings must ensure that:

• Children feel valued and respected and their self-esteem is promoted;
• There is an openness on the part of the organisation to the external world and to external scrutiny; including contact with families and the wider community;
• Staff and foster carers are trained in all aspects of safeguarding children, are alert to children's vulnerabilities and risks of harm, and knowledgeable about how to implement safeguarding children procedures;
• Children are listened to, and their views and concerns responded to;
• Children have ready access to a trusted adult outside the organisation, e.g. a family member, social worker, independent visitor or children's advocate. Children should be made aware of independent advocacy services, external mentors and Child Line;
• Staff/carers recognise the importance of ascertaining the wishes and feelings of children and understand how individual children communicate by verbal or non-verbal means;
• Complaints procedures are clear, effective, and user-friendly and are readily accessible to children and young people including those with disabilities and those for whom English is not their preferred language;
• Bullying is effectively countered;
• Recruitment and selection procedures are rigorous and create a high threshold of entry to deter abusers and there is effective supervision and support that extends to temporary staff and volunteers;
• Contractor staff are effectively checked and supervised when on site or in contact with children;
• Clear procedures and support systems are in place for dealing with expressions of concern by staff and carers about other staff or carers (a Whistle-blowing Policy);
• There is respect for diversity, and sensitivity to race, culture, religion, gender, sexuality and disability;
• Staff and carers are alert to the risks of harm to children in the external environment from people prepared to exploit the additional vulnerability of children living away from home.

Where there is reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered Significant Harm, the Local Authority for the area in which the child is living has the responsibility to convene a Strategy Discussion  which should include representatives from both the placing Local Authority and the Local Authority where the child is living.

At the Strategy Discussion it should be decided which Local Authority should take responsibility for the next steps, which may include a Section 47 Enquiry.

The Local Authority's duty to undertake a Section 47 Enquiry, when there are concerns about Significant Harm to a child, applies on the same basis to children in foster care as it does to children who live with their own families.

Where there is reasonable cause to believe that a child in foster care has suffered or is at risk of suffering Significant Harm in the foster placement, the Allegations Against People who Work with, Care for or Volunteer with Children Procedure will apply and a Strategy Discussion will be held.

In these circumstances, enquiries should consider the safety of any other children living in the household, including the foster carers' own children, grand-children or any children cared for by the foster carers in their home as well as any children whom the foster carers may be caring for or working with outside their home in a voluntary or paid capacity e.g. teaching, faith or youth work, scouts or many other groups.

Foster carers should monitor the whereabouts of their foster children, their patterns of absence and contacts, and follow the recognised agency procedure whenever a foster child is missing from their home.

As foster care is undertaken in the privacy of the carers' own home, it is important that children have a voice outside the family. Social workers are required to see children in foster care on their own and evidence of this should be recorded on the child's records.

All arrangements and regulations in relation to private fostering are set out in the Children (Private Arrangements for Fostering) Regulations 2005.

A private fostering arrangement is essentially one that is made without the involvement of a Local Authority for the care of a child under the age of 16 (under 18 if disabled) by someone other than a parent or close relative for 28 days or more. Privately fostered children are a diverse and sometimes vulnerable group which includes:

• Children sent from abroad to stay with another family, usually to improve their educational opportunities;
• Asylum-seeking and refugee children;
• Teenagers who, having broken ties with their parents, are staying in short-term arrangements with friends or other non-relatives;
• Language students living with host families.

Under the Children Act 1989, private foster carers and those with Parental Responsibility are required to notify the Local Authority of their intention to privately foster or to have a child privately fostered, or where a child is privately fostered in an emergency.

Teachers, health and other professionals should notify the local authority of a private fostering arrangement that comes to their attention, where they are not satisfied that the arrangement has been or will be notified.

When there are concerns about Significant Harm to a child who is privately fostered the local authority and all the other agencies have the same duties to make enquiries as they do to any other child. The concerns must be reported to the local authority where the private foster placement is located in accordance with the Making a Referral Procedure and the Child Protection and Safeguarding Children Procedures will be applied.

It is the duty of every local authority to satisfy itself that the welfare of the children, who are privately fostered within their area, is being satisfactorily safeguarded and promoted. This includes an initial visit to the child and private foster carers within 7 days of receiving notification that the arrangement has started . As part of this duty, the local authority is required to assess the suitability of the private foster carer and the private fostering arrangement. The Local Authority must also arrange to visit privately fostered children at regular intervals in accordance with the regulations. Children should be given the contact details of the social worker who will be visiting them while they are being privately fostered.

All residential settings where children and young people are placed must adhere to the Children's Homes Regulations 2001 (as amended by the Children's Homes (Amendment) Regulations 2015, associated guidance) and all other relevant regulations and to the relevant Quality Standards . Children in these settings are particularly vulnerable and must be listened to. Settings include:

• Children’s homes
• Children’s homes that provide short break care
• Secure children’s homes; and
• Residential special schools or boarding schools who accommodate children for more than 295 days per year.

Children under 16 who spend more than 2 weeks in residence during holiday time in a school, become privately fostered children for the purposes of the legislation during that holiday period.

A child who is Looked After or placed in any residential home, hospital or school (where they are receiving full-time education) is excluded from the Private Fostering definition.

The welfare and safety of children living in boarding school should be promoted and provided in line with Boarding schools: national minimum standards

Where there is reasonable cause to believe that a child in a residential setting has suffered or is at risk of suffering Significant Harm, a referral must be made in accordance with the Making a Referral Procedure. The concerns may range from bullying or abuse by other children to allegations against staff. Where the concerns relate to a member or members of staff and/or the care the child is receiving in the residential setting, the Allegations Against People who Work with, Care for or Volunteer with Children Procedure will apply and a Strategy Discussion will be held.

Children on foreign exchange visits typically stay with a family selected by the school in the host country and are vulnerable for reasons comparable to others living away from home.

Schools should not place a pupil from an overseas school with a:

• Household which includes a child subject to a Child Protection Plan;
• Family currently subject to a Section 47 Enquiry.

Schools should take reasonable steps to ensure that relevant schools abroad take a comparable approach.

Where a professional is aware of a child, under 16 (or under 18 if disabled), who is staying or it is proposed will stay in a family for more than 27 days, they should make a referral to Children's Social Care because the child will be considered to be Privately Fostered. This imposes significant duties on both the providers of care and Children's Social Care - see 'Private Fostering' section above.

The local authority has the same responsibilities towards children in custody as it does to other children in the local authority area.

Under the Legal Aid, Sentencing & Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, children who are remanded to Youth Detention Accommodation are considered to be looked after by the Local Authority and are managed within the statutory Looked After Children framework.

Young Offenders Centres which accommodate Juveniles (16-18) must have policies and procedures in place which set out their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of the children and young people in their care. Accordingly, if information comes to light, from whatever source, that a young person has suffered or is likely to suffer significant harm, the professional who receives the information or has a concern must report this immediately to the safeguarding manager, or equivalent designated safeguarding children professional, and the Governor. A referral to LA children's social care should be made.

Specific organisations in an area must ensure that there are links in place with the Local Safeguarding Children Partnerships and local authorities.

Placement in temporary accommodation, often a distance from previous support networks or involving frequent moves, can lead to individuals and families falling through the net.

It is important that effective systems are in place to ensure that children from homeless families receive services from health and education, social care and welfare support services as well as any other specific services, because with frequent moves the y may become disengaged from services.  For example a child who is not registered with a school or a GP will miss out on basic services such as health screening, eye tests, immunisations and learning to read and write. Where a child who needs specific treatment misses appointments due to moves the problem may become an issue of Significant Harm.

See also Transfer Child Protection , Looked After Children

Children’s services and housing services should work together to plan and provide services that are centred on young people and their families, and prevent young people from being passed back and forth between services. For more information see Provision of accommodation for 16 and 17 year olds who may be homeless and/or require accommodation

Temporary accommodation, for example bed and breakfast accommodation or women's refuges, may be a location which is not secure and safe and where other adults are also resident who may pose a risk to the child.

All concerns of Significant Harm to a child should be referred to Children's Social Care Services in accordance with the Making a Referral Procedure