UK Government releases annual statistics on looked after children in England
The UK Government’s Department for Education has published the Children looked after in England including adoption: 2017 to 2018 statistics for the year ending 31 March 2018.
The statistics show that 75,420 children were looked after in the period covered, a 4% increase on 2016 to 2017.
The statistics include information on demographics as well as age, gender and ethnicity, proportions of children in each placement type, and reasons for being looked after.
Abuse or neglect remains the most common reason and the continued number of unaccompanied asylum seekers makes up almost all of absent parenting cases. The report looks at asylum-seeking children in more depth and notes that numbers have fallen in recent years since a peak in 2016.
Other areas covered by the report include children who have ceased to be looked after, children who were missing or away from placement without authorisation, health and behavioural outcomes for looked after children, and former care leavers.