Seventy-nine children in care per day moved over the Christmas period

New research has revealed the number of children in care who were moved over the Christmas period.

The research was carried out by Become, a national charity for children in care and young care leavers, which said that uprooting young people over the Christmas holidays can cause particular instability and harm.

Placement changes over the Christmas period can be abrupt, and not the child’s choice, which only exacerbates feelings of being unsettled and uprooted. It can also lead to children being unable to form relationships, to feel safe and secure, and to remain connected to the people around them. It increases their feelings that they have little agency over their lives and their futures.

“For many young people, Christmas represents a time of excitement and joy, presents and fun, but for children in care, it is yet another period of trauma and unknowns, and while families across the country will be enjoying time together, young people in care are being uprooted and moved, and facing increasing uncertainty,” Become said.

One young person said: “Christmas (…) often reminds me that I don’t have a ‘normal’ family (..) I am reminded of how different my experience of the world is from them.”

Responses to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests found that 1257 children in care moved homes between 18 December 2021 and 3rd January 2022 – meaning that an average of 79 children each day were moved during the Christmas period. Data provided by some local authorities also shows that some children in their area were moved more than once during the Christmas period.

Freedom of Information (FOI) requests were sent by the charity to all 151 local authorities in England and responses were received from 144, representing 96% of councils across the country.

During 2021-2022 generally there were a total of 54,620 placement changes in England - an average of 150 per day. The charity says this number “underscores the ongoing instability and insecurity vulnerable young people face,” but adds that the movements over Christmas will undoubtedly increase feelings of anxiety and unrest in care-experienced children.

Research also shows that across 2021/22, one in ten (10%) of all children in the care system were moved three or more times (8,030 children in total), while almost a third of all children in care (31%) were moved twice or more.

The statistics vary between local authorities, with some appearing to have a higher proportion of children moved at Christmas. The numbers of total children moved during Christmas ranged from 0 in one local authority to 54 in another.

Katharine Sacks-Jones, CEO of Become, said the findings were “as shocking as they are upsetting”.

“For children and young people in care, Christmas can already be a difficult and isolating time, without the family around them that many of us take for granted.

“But to move young people at Christmas, when their friends are enjoying presents, family meals and the usual festive joys, delivers yet more isolation and uncertainty. Care-experienced children are being moved into unfamiliar surroundings, leaving behind relationships they have managed to build, and into an environment they do not know. Become is calling on the government to take urgent and ambitious action to ensure children and young people in care have greater stability and the same opportunities as other children to thrive.

Katharine conceded that sometimes moves are needed but said that targets should be introduced alongside a national commitment to reduce the number of moves children in the care system experience.

“Of course, there are many reasons which mean that moves are necessary and can be of long-term benefit, but the reality is that for young people in care, uprooting them at this time of year can be especially destabilising and serve as another reminder to them of the volatility they live with every day,” Katharine added.