Under current legislation, local authorities are only required to support foster parents until a child in their care turns 18.
But children’s minister Edward Timpson will announce today that this will be extended to 21, with the government providing £40m to councils over the next three years towards the cost of the duty.
The move comes after attempts by the government to persuade councils to extend support voluntarily foundered.
Last October, Timpson wrote to councils calling on them to make sure children can stay in placements beyond 18.
But Department for Education statistics published in September showed that in 2012/13 only one in 20 care leavers (five per cent) were living with their former foster carers at age 19.
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