§ Mr. Gareth Wardellasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what information he has as to the frequency of changes of placement of children in the care of local authorities (a) placed with foster parents and (b) placed in residential care; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. WhitneyInformation on changes of placement of children in local authority care is not held centrally. However, a major programme of research funded by the Department and the Economic and Social Research Council has recently been completed which showed that poor planning and decision making for children coming into and in care may well result in breakdown of the placement. The Department is currently undertaking a widespread dissemination exercise of these findings which is aimed at grass root practitioners and managers and is based on "Social Work Decisions in Child Care-Recent Research findings and their implications" a publication which summaries the relevant research. This publication has been very well received by practitioners in the child care field and a copy is in the Library. We are currently funding a project entitled "The child care placement outcomes Study" by Jane Rowe which should throw further light on the circumstances in which placements with foster parents break down.