Williamson reportedly claims, in a letter seen by the BBC, that these placements should be "eliminated", and adds that he could not "imagine a circumstance under which a child under the age of 16 should be living in an independent or semi-independent setting".
In the letter sent to council chief executives, he calls for councils to review all placements of looked-after children in unregulated and unregistered provision, but to pay particular attention in relation to under-16s.
The move follows a BBC Newsnight investigation in October, which reported that more than 100 under-16s in England and Wales were living in such settings.
Providing support for children under 16 without being registered is not illegal, but if care is provided by unregistered settings, this could be an offence.
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