I am writing under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to request information on placements of children into residential children’s homes, particularly for those with emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) or other complex needs. I confirm that I am seeking aggregated and non-personal data.

1. Current Fee Ranges
a) Over the past 12 months, what is the lowest weekly fee paid for a placement into an Ofsted-registered children’s home for EBD or complex needs?
b) What is the highest weekly fee paid during the same period?
c) What is the average weekly fee paid for such placements over the last 12 months?

2. Fee Benchmarks and Pricing Frameworks
a) Does your authority have a pricing band, framework agreement, or standard rate card for residential children’s placements? If yes, please supply the current version or outline of the pricing tiers (e.g. standard, therapeutic, education, etc.).
b) Are there different pricing categories based on services provided? For example, some councils supply separate minimum/maximum costs for standard homes, homes with therapy, homes with education, and homes offering both therapy and education. If applicable, please provide your current minimum and maximum weekly rates for each category.
c) What was the total annual spend on residential children’s placements (EBD or complex needs) in the last financial year?

3. Provider Landscape
a) Please list the providers commissioned for residential placements in the past 12 months.
b) For each provider, if possible, indicate:
– The number of placements made.
– The approximate weekly fee range paid.
c) If the a and b cannot be provided. Please let us know the top 5 providers that you place with in terms of number of placements made with them.
d) Do you operate an Approved Provider List (APL) or Preferred Supplier List (PSL) for residential placements? If so, please supply the latest version or criteria for inclusion.

4. Placement Volumes and Types
a) How many new residential placements were made in the last 12 months?
b) How many placement requests were issued but remained unfilled?
c) What were the most common reasons for failing to place a child (e.g. lack of suitable providers, price, location, complexity of needs)?
d) What is the average time taken from issuing a placement request to successful placement?

5. Profile Data
For residential placements in the past 12 months, what proportion were:
– Single-occupancy homes?
– Homes for children aged under 10?
– Homes requiring 2:1 staffing or higher?
– Emergency placements (within 24–48 hours)?

6. Factors Influencing Fee Acceptance
Beyond price, what factors does your authority consider most important when evaluating a provider’s placement proposal (e.g. therapeutic model, staff qualifications, Ofsted rating, evidence-based interventions, cultural/linguistic suitability, proximity to the child’s home)?

7. Current Market Pressures
In your view, what are the biggest challenges in securing residential placements at present (e.g. shortage of beds, escalating fees, provider closures, staff recruitment issues)? Recent research notes that local authorities face rising numbers of children in care with complex needs, a shortage of secure provision, recruitment difficulties, and reliance on private providers. Please indicate which of these (or other pressures) you are experiencing most acutely.

8. Additional Information
– Do you publish a sufficiency strategy or market position statement relating to residential children’s care? If so, please provide the latest version or a link to it.
– What percentage of placements in the past 12 months were outside your local authority area, and why?
– What proportion of placements were procured through framework agreements or block contracts versus spot purchasing?
– When assessing tenders, do you operate a weighted scoring system (e.g. quality vs. price)? If so, please provide the current weightings or evaluation criteria.
– What is the average duration of placements for EBD or complex needs in your authority?
– If recorded, what are the most frequent reasons placements end prematurely (e.g. provider decision, safety concerns, improved child outcomes)?
• What types of provision are currently hardest to source (e.g. solo homes, therapeutic models, secure placements, homes for under-10s, culturally specific homes)?
• In the last 12 months, how many placements were made in unregulated provision due to a lack of regulated homes?
• Does your local authority commission or pilot innovative residential care models (e.g. family-style homes, step-down services, trauma-informed models)? If so, please provide brief details

9. Team Contact Information
For future engagement, please provide the general contact details (e.g. team email address or telephone number) for the team responsible for managing residential children’s home placements/referrals/social workers. I am not seeking personal data about individual staff members; a generic contact or mailbox is sufficient.