Local authorities ‘routinely failing’ in legal duties to children who become homeless

Local authorities are routinely failing in their legal duties to children aged between 16-17 years old who become homeless leaving them without the support, according to new research.

Published by the Coram Institute for Children, the research finds that little progress has been made in the ten years since their report ‘The Door is Closed’, which found that children were being allowed to become or remain homeless because local authorities were failing to give them the support they are legally entitled to.

Examination of legal rulings, case work and published reports shows that too many homeless 16- and 17-year-olds are still being left unassessed, unsafe and denied the support and security that they need.

Statutory guidance and case law are clear that homeless 16- and 17-year-olds should receive a child in need assessment under section 17 of the Children Act 1989 and subsequently if found in need, owed a duty to be care housed under section 20 of the same Act. This entitles them to the care and protection afforded to children in care until 18-years-old and then to support as a care leaver until the age of 25.

The latest report finds that a large number of 16- and 17-year-olds who become homeless are not assessed or are housed under the wrong legislation (the Housing Act 1996) with no practical or financial support from children’s social care services until the age of 25.

“When I had my meeting where it was my homelessness officer, my social workers and me, I just wish I had an independent advocate there because I was stressed,” one young person said. “I was not in the best mentally healthy place and I have… problems with comprehension skills, like understanding how people are talking to me, understanding the writing in front of me, it all confuses me. So … I just wish that someone was there to just talk, talk on my side more and … explain things to me better so that I could have made the better decisions sooner.”

Further, local authorities are continuing to ‘gatekeep’ and ‘wait out the clock’ until children turn 18, at which point the local authority has less responsibility for them if not deemed a care leaver. Vulnerable 16- and 17-year-olds are also being housed in unsuitable and unsafe accommodation including adult hostels, unregulated or under-supervised provision. There was also clear evidence of adultification and a lack of recognition of the vulnerability of 16- and 17-year-olds.

Children are navigating the complexities of the different support options without consistent advice and advocacy (and in some cases legal advice) leaving children to make decisions which they later regretted. Advocate support was found to play a significant role in positive outcomes for homeless children.

National data on homeless 16- and 17-year-olds is incomplete, making it difficult to understand how well children’s needs are being met and hold services to account in fulfilling their obligations in law.

In response to the findings, the charity makes a number of recommendations to ensure homeless 16- and 17-year-olds can access the care and support that they are entitled to, including ensuring that the default for local authorities is to accommodate homeless children under section 20 of the Children Act 1989 in all but exceptional cases.

Fundamental to this is that homeless 16- and 17-year-olds have access to an independent advocate in line with the 1989 Children Act, with Coram calculating that it would cost just £5m per annum to ensure that no 16- or 17-year-old child facing homelessness stands alone without an advocate.

“Vulnerable 16- and 17-year-olds who become homeless are almost always fleeing abuse and family breakdown,” Dr Carol Homden, CEO of Coram, said.

“They not only need a roof over their head but the care and support that is their right under the Children Act 1989. It is disappointing to see that a decade on from Coram Voice’s study, we are still not acting. Coram calls for investment of £5m to resource local authorities to ensure every child in this situation has an independent advocate to address the barriers and ensure they get access to the support to which they are entitled. Now is the time to change so that a decade from now this same report does not need to be written again.”