See answers to previous information requests

1. Demand and Placement Profile
• What is the current number of looked after children placed in children’s homes by your authority?
• Of these, how many are placed:
o Within your local authority area?
o Outside of your local authority area?
• How many children are currently awaiting a residential placement (if applicable)?
• What are the most common presenting needs requiring residential placements?

2. Out-of-Area Placements
• Does the authority currently place children outside of its local area?
• If yes:
o Approximately what percentage of residential placements are out-of-area?
o What are the primary reasons for out-of-area placements? (e.g. lack of local provision, matching needs, specialist requirements)
• Is there a strategic objective to reduce out-of-area placements?

3. Placement Types and Needs
• What proportion of placements are:
o Emergency placements
o Planned placements
• What level of staffing is most commonly required? (e.g. 1:1, 2:1)

4. Spend and Cost
• What was the total spend on children’s residential care placements in the last financial year?
• What is the approximate average weekly cost of:
o Standard residential placements
o Higher-support placements (e.g. 1:1 or 2:1)

5. Provider Market and Sufficiency
• How many residential care providers does the authority currently use?
• Are there any identified gaps in provision? If so, please specify (e.g. EBD, mental health, smaller homes, crisis placements).
• Does the authority have a current sufficiency strategy or commissioning plan for children’s residential care? If so, please provide a copy or link.

6. Commissioning and Access
• How does the authority source residential placements? (e.g. framework agreements, dynamic purchasing systems, spot purchasing)
• Which frameworks or systems are currently in use?
• Is the authority currently open to onboarding new providers? If so, via which route?

7. Quality and Outcomes
• What are the key factors considered when selecting a residential placement provider?
• What are the most common reasons for placement breakdown?
• What outcomes are most important when assessing placement success?

8. Contact and Structure
• Please provide the structure of the team responsible for commissioning or placing children into residential care.
• Please provide a generic contact email or central point of contact for placement enquiries.

If any part of this request exceeds cost limits, we would be grateful if you could provide a partial response within the allowable threshold.