Children's minister Nadhim Zahawi said the government will provide an extra £7m a year up to 2020 for the extension of the virtual school heads scheme.
The government will also increase funding for care leavers' personal advisers until 2021 to more than £12m, to cover their new responsibility for care leavers not in education, employment or training (Neet) up to 25.
Both roles are being extended through provisions contained in the Children and Social Work Act 2017, which are due to come into effect from 1 April.
Personal advisers currently provide care leavers with support until they are 21, or up to 25 if they are in education or training. But from 1 April they will be required to provide that support to all care leavers until they are 25.
Virtual school heads are currently in charge of promoting the educational achievement of all looked-after children in the care of the council that employs them.
However, the duty is to be extended to cover children who were are no longer looked-after, possibly because they have been adopted or returned home, up to the age of 18. This change has been made to take into account the impact that their experiences prior to care have had on their emotional wellbeing and school attainment.
"This government is making great strides with the support available to children leaving care, and we are working hard to improve this as they take their first steps from care to independence as adults," said Zahawi.
"As part of this we have changed the law to require councils to publish a local offer for care leavers and extend personal adviser support to all care leavers to age 25.
"At the same time we are helping local authorities to provide this support by providing £7m a year until 2020 for the extension of the virtual school heads scheme to more children, and increasing funding to extend the personal advisers scheme to over £12m by 2021."
The extended duties of virtual school heads and personal advisers has been reflected in updated guidance for local authorities on support for looked after children and care leavers.
The updated guidance emphasises that virtual school heads need to be the "educational advocate" for looked-after children that parents are for their peers. While for previously looked-after children virtual school heads need to help parents be effective in that advocacy role.
The guidance also calls on local authorities to ensure that a looked-after child's care placement and school arrangements are made at the same time, unless in an emergency.
Meanwhile, a senior Department for Education official has called for more co-ordinated policies across government related to looked-after children and care leavers.
The DfE's national implementation adviser for care leavers Mark Riddell told CYP Now that he wants ministers from across eight departments that have contact with care leavers to come together to develop policy.
