Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not hold this information in relation to children’s residential homes. Residential children’s homes can be owned and operated by health boards, local authorities, private, or third sector not for profit organisations.

The Scottish Government has some limited information in relation to fostering agencies. Fostering services can be owned and operated by local authorities, or third sector not for profit organisations. We are publishing a consultation on the future of fostering later this year which will include questions on the role of independent fostering agencies.

The Scottish Government welcomes the 2021 Competition and Markets Authority report. We continue to consider the recommendations relevant to Scotland in line with implementation of the Promise. We are working alongside COSLA and local government to consider what further steps could be taken in Scotland.

The latest statistics on exclusions of looked after or care-experienced children show that there were no exclusions of children looked after in the last year in 2022-23 in Orkney Islands. Exclusions rates per 1,000 pupils who were looked after ranged from 7.4 per 1,000 to 291.2 per 1,000 in other local authority areas.

The legal power to exclude children or young people from school rests with the relevant local authority and therefore it is the responsibility of the local authority to have regard to the particular facts and circumstances of each case when deciding if exclusion is necessary. Our national guidance, Included, Engaged and Involved Part 2, is already clear that exclusion should be used as a measure of last resort and that there are particular considerations before the exclusion of care experienced young people.

The Promise Implementation Plan sets out the commitment to support attendance and reduce exclusion of care experienced children from education. To support local authorities to meet the commitment in the implementation plan, we have developed a Framework which aims to focus on improving the educational outcomes of care experienced children and young people which include increased attendance and reduced exclusion. This Framework has recently been tested in nine local authorities and the outcomes are being considered and will be discussed with COSLA and the Association of Directors of Education in due course to inform any future roll out. In addition, in August 2024, the Scottish Government published a new three-year action plan on relationships and behaviour in schools, setting out 20 actions to support efforts to improve relationships and behaviour, which will contribute to efforts to reduce exclusions by maintaining and further embedding our approach to relational approaches and promoting positive relationships and behaviour.

The Scottish Government has worked with local authorities to introduce new data related to siblings into the annual Looked after Children Statistics (CLAS). This data will help establish the extent to which children are placed together with their siblings in care. The definition of siblings includes sibling-like relationships, in recognition of the diversity of family relationships and children’s experiences.

The first year of data collection, 2023-2024, will be treated as a test of change and will provide the basis for further development to data to understand reasons for sibling separation.

The wellbeing and safety of children and young people is always paramount, and the Scottish Government is clear that the use of restraint should always be a last resort in exceptional circumstances when it is the only practicable means of securing the welfare or safety of the child or another person.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on how many looked after or care experienced young people have been subject to restraint.

The Care Inspectorate oversees reporting and monitoring on the use of restraint in care services and collects data on the number of restraints that occur in registered care settings, such as care homes for children and young people, school care accommodation services and secure accommodation services. In order to improve monitoring and reporting of restraint of children in these settings, the Care Inspectorate intend to publish its data on restraint annually. The first report is due to be published shortly.

The Scottish Government’s National Practice Guidance on siblings and the Looked after Children (Scotland) Regulations 2009 highlights the importance of recording information about a child’s brothers and sisters.

From 2023-2024, data reported by all local authorities to Scottish Government as part of their annual Looked after Children Statistics (CLAS) return will include data on the number of siblings living apart from each other.

The Scottish Government does not monitor the financial health of private providers of residential children’s homes. Local authorities are responsible for the placement of children and young people and decisions that relate to the most suitable options for meeting their needs.

The Care Inspectorate range of powers include that they can require providers to make proper provision for children’s needs. However, how private providers do that and how they are funded is their responsibility.

We continue to engage with the UK Government, the Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive on a regular basis to understand and learn from how responses to this issue are developing across the UK.

The Promise is clear that there is no place for profiting in how Scotland cares for its children and the Scottish Government supports this principle.

The Scottish Government meets with the UK Government, the Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive on a regular basis to discuss children’s residential care policy, including profit from care.

Although we have not undertaken a formal assessment of the Welsh Government’s legislative proposals, we continue to engage with the Welsh Government as these develop.

The Scottish Government, working alongside COSLA and local government, will consider what further steps could be taken in Scotland, including through legislation.

Local authorities are responsible for the placement of children and young people and decisions that relate to the most suitable options for meeting their needs.

The Promise is clear that there is no place for profiting in how Scotland cares for its children. The Scottish Government is committed to Keeping The Promise and we are working alongside COSLA and local government to consider what further steps could be taken in Scotland.

Scottish Government legislation places a duty on local authorities to keep siblings together when they can’t live at home with their family. We published National Practice Guidance in 2021 alongside the legislation to support practitioners with implementation.

This guidance clearly sets out that while the presumption should be in favour of keeping siblings together, a robust assessment must be made with the aim of keeping a child safe and promoting their wellbeing.

No two cases will be the same and the circumstances of each child need to inform the approach taken, within the context of the Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) approach.

Where there is evidence that it is not appropriate or safe for brothers and sisters to live together, local authorities have a duty to put measures in place to nurture their relationships.