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A recent BBC investigation has revealed that many children in care endure prolonged periods without attending school, sometimes lasting months or even years, due to repeated refusals by schools to accept them. A 16-year-old boy in Lincolnshire, identified as Tyler, was rejected by 14 different schools, exemplifying the struggles faced by children in care to secure education. As of January, half of the children living in certain care homes were not enrolled in mainstream education, highlighting a significant failure in the system designed to support them.
Local authorities are legally required to prioritize school placements for looked-after children, yet data from the Children’s Homes Association (CHA) points to widespread difficulties across England and Wales in obtaining school places for these vulnerable youngsters. The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) links this issue to chronic underfunding, which limits schools’ capacity to accommodate children with additional needs. Meanwhile, councils argue that they lack sufficient powers to mandate that all schools admit children in care, especially academies, which constitute the majority of secondary schools.
Tyler’s experience sheds light on the severity of the situation. He has been out of school for 18 months and is set to miss his GCSE examinations entirely, having only received a few hours of education weekly over the last three years. His education, health and care plan (EHCP) outlines his needs due to behavioural difficulties stemming from earlier trauma, requiring a supportive environment with staff skilled in trauma care. Tyler expressed feelings of rejection: “No matter how nice I am, they only see what they want to see. Why should I care about my education when no-one else does?” His key worker, Alex, emphasized the long-term consequences of this exclusion, worrying about Tyler’s chances of gaining employment or successfully transitioning out of care without qualifications.
Other children in care face similar barriers. A teenage girl, referred to as Katie, who aspires to work as a social worker, has been out of school for over four months after being told not to return without explanation. Despite local authorities’ interventions and appeals, the schools sometimes seem unwilling to accommodate children with challenging behaviour. Katie’s key worker described how the school scrutinized her every move, making her feel unwelcome. Government guidelines clearly state that challenging behaviour should not be a reason to refuse school places to looked-after children and that rejections should only occur in exceptional circumstances, yet this practice continues.
The managing director of the children’s homes group, Julie, condemned the system for failing these young people. She highlighted how bureaucratic delays and complex multi-agency processes prolong the wait for school placements, and even when appeals succeed, children often start at school stigmatized as unwanted. The Children’s Homes Association survey found that many providers have had to wait six months or more to place a child in school, with some establishing their own educational provisions to cope.
Councils remain constrained by limited powers, particularly over academies, and despite their efforts, many children “are not receiving the education they need,” according to Amanda Hopgood of the Local Government Association. Calls for better cooperation between councils and schools are echoed by children’s commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza, who stresses the importance of earlier joint action to prevent children in care from being left in limbo. Without such measures, the educational and personal development of these vulnerable children remains at serious risk
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
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