Responding to a report by the education select committee into ongoing reforms of residential care, the government said the introduction of a new rule is not necessary because other work is taking place to address the issue of so-called “out-of-area” placements.
“While the government understands the committee’s concerns, we do not believe that conducting a separate study on the implications of a 20-mile radius cap, in isolation from other factors, would help to resolve the core issues affecting the quality of local authority placement commissioning and social work support,” the government response states.
The government claims the law is already clear that a child should be placed within their local area when it is in their best interests, and that regulations have been changed so that directors of children’s services must approve long-distance placements.
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